Keene State College
IN-23: Laboratory Animal Welfare

The attached KSC Animal Welfare Assurance Program provides the guidelines protecting laboratory animals from being subjected to severe and unrelieved pain and distress. The College employs a veterinarian who, along with the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, ensures the College protects animals and immediately corrects any concerns or "deficiencies that threaten animal health."

complies with federal regulations regarding the care and use of laboratory animals, as set forth by the Animal Welfare Act and the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. The KSC Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) is the body charged with the review and approval of all research involving animals. Faculty and students wishing to conduct animal research must seek approval prior to initiating the research. To prepare a request, download this form to your computer, complete it, and then submit it via email attachment to the IACUC.

The following topics will be considered in the preparation and review of animal care and use protocols:

Rationale and purpose of the proposed use of animals
Justification of the species and number of animals requested. Whenever possible, the number of animals requested should be justified statistically
Availability or appropriateness of the use of less-invasive procedures, other species, isolated organ preparation, cell or tissue culture, or computer simulation (see Guide, Appendix A, “Alternatives”)
Adequacy of training and experience of personnel in the procedures used
Unusual housing and husbandry requirements
Appropriate sedation, analgesia, and anesthesia. (Scales of pain or invasiveness might aid in the preparation and review of protocols; see Appendix A, “Anesthesia, Pain and Surgery.”)
Unnecessary duplication of experiments
Conduct of multiple major operative procedures
Criteria and process for timely intervention, removal of animals from a study, or euthanasia if painful or stressful outcomes are anticipated
Postprocedure care
Method of euthanasia or disposition of animal
Safety of working environment for personnel
Please note that, per Keene State College policy, all individuals conducting research with vertebrate animals must complete the online CITI Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) training module. No IACUC protocols will be approved without proof of satisfactory completion of the training module. Please submit your training certificate to the IACUC chair with your protocol materials. For instructions on accessing the CITI animal training module, please visit our CITI page.

Conversation with Dr. Karen Cangialosi, Professor of Biology and other Biology faculty that are engaged with the policy. Also discussed with KSC's Office of Sponsored Research Projects.