Division of Research
Animal Care & Use Program
Laboratory Animal Research (LAR) ensures the humane care and use of animals in biomedical research and teaching at Florida International University and also provides veterinary services. LAR staff members oversee compliance with federal regulations and guidelines related to animal use and promote the responsible use of animals for the benefit of society.
Florida International University Animal Care & Use Program is registered as a research facility with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in accordance with the Animal Welfare Act and Regulations. FIU Animal facilities are inspected by the USDA to ensure that all activities involving research animals are in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations. FIU also holds a Category II Assurance with the Public Health Service (through the NIH's Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare). These two relationships confirm the integrity of the program structure, function, and foundation.
Oversight of the Animal Care and Use Program is the joint responsibility of the LAR and the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC). The following regulations and recommendations are used as a foundation for the development of a comprehensive animal care and use program and for the process of continually improving this program:
- Animal Welfare Act and Regulations
- Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals
- Guide for the Care & Use of Laboratory Animals 8th Edition
- Guide for the Care & Use of Agricultural Animals
- Guide for the Care & Use of Mammals in Neuroscience and Behavioral Research
- Guidelines for Behavioral Research Using Animals (NIMH Report)
- Guidelines for Fish in Research
- Guidelines of the American Society of Mammalogists for the Use of Wild Mammals in Research
- Guidelines to the Use of Wild Birds in Research (3rd Edition – 2010, The Ornithological Council)
- United States Government Principles for the Utilization and Care of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research, and Training
- Use of Animals in Department of Defense Programs - Directive 3216.01 (2010)
- CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora)
- Lacey Act
- Endangered Species Act
- Marine Mammal Protection Act
- AVMA Guidelines on Euthanasia (2007)
- Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories
