Categories of Animal Use According to Pain/Discomfort/Distress Levels

For the purpose of this categorization, assume that any procedure known to cause pain or distress to humans will have a similar effect on other vertebrate animals. (The Animal Welfare Act requires placing animal usage into categories according to potential pain and distress and the reporting of such usage annually to the U. S. Department of Agriculture).

Classification B: Animals being bred, conditioned, or held for use in teaching, testing, experiments, research, or surgery, but not yet used for such purposes.

Examples:

• Breeding colonies of any animal species (USDA does not require listing of rats, mice, birds) that are held in legal sized caging and handled in accordance with the Guide and other applicable regulations. Breeding colony includes parents and offspring.

• Newly acquired animals that are held in proper caging and handled in accordance with applicable regulations.

• Animals held under proper captive conditions or wild animals that are being observed.

Classification C: Animals upon which teaching, research, experiments, or tests will be conducted involving no pain, distress, or use of pain-relieving drugs.

Examples:

• Procedures performed correctly by trained personnel such as the administration of electrolytes/fluids, administration of oral medication, blood collection from a common peripheral vein per standard veterinary practice (dog cephalic, cat jugular) or catheterization of same, standard radiography, parenteral injections of non-irritating substances.

• Euthanasia performed in accordance with the recommendations of the most recent AVMA Panel on Euthanasia, utilizing procedures that produce rapid unconsciousness and subsequent humane death.

• Manual restraint that is no longer than would be required for a simple exam; short period of chair restraint for an adapted nonhuman primate.

Classification D: Animals upon which experiments, teaching, research, surgery, or tests will be conducted involving accompanying pain or distress to the animals and for which appropriate anesthetic, analgesic, or tranquilizing drugs will be used.

Examples:

• Surgical procedures conducted by trained personnel in accordance with standard veterinary practice such as biopsies, gonadectomy, exposure of blood vessels, chronic catheter implantation, laparotomy or laparoscopy.

• Blood collection by more invasive routes such as intracardiac or periorbital collection from species without a true orbital sinus such as rats and guinea pigs.

• Administration of drugs, chemicals, toxins, or organisms that would be expected to produce pain or distress but which will be alleviated by analgesics.

Classification E: Animals upon which teaching, experiments, research, surgery, or tests will be conducted involving accompanying pain or distress to the animals and for which the use of appropriate anesthetic, analgesic, or tranquilizing drugs will adversely affect the procedures, results, or interpretation of the teaching, research, experiments, surgery, or tests.

Examples:

• Procedures producing pain or distress unrelieved by analgesics such as toxicity studies, microbial virulence testing, radiation sickness, and research on stress, shock, or pain.

• Surgical and postsurgical sequella from invasion of body cavities, orthopedic procedures, dentistry or other hard or soft tissue damage that produces unrelieved pain or distress.

• Negative conditioning via electric shocks that would cause pain in humans.

• Chairing of nonhuman primates not conditioned to the procedure for the time period used.

NOTE REGARDING CLASSIFICATION E: An explanation of the procedures producing pain or distress in these animals and the justification for not using appropriate anesthetic, analgesic or tranquilizing drugs must be provided on Appendix E . This information is required to be reported to the USDA, will be available from USDA under the Freedom of Information Act, and may be publicly available through the Internet via USDA's website.

Consideration of Alternatives:

If any procedures fall into USDA's Classification D or E, causing more than momentary or slight pain or distress to the animals, describe your consideration of alternatives and your determination that alternatives are not available. Delineate the methods and sources used in the search. Database references must include databases searched, the date of the search, period covered, and the keywords used. Alternatives include methods that (1) refine existing tests by minimizing animal distress, (2) reduce the number of animals necessary for an experiment, or (3) replace whole-animal use with in vitro or other tests. When ascites production is used to produce anitbodies, justification needs to be given as to why in vitro systems cannot be used. Note that you must certify in Section Q.5. that no valid alternative was identified to any described procedures which may cause more than momentary pain or distress, whether relieved or not.




Research Home Compliance Home Animal Use Biological Safety Feedback Forms Human Subjects Research Policies Responsible Conduct Staff		Categories of Animal Use According to Pain/Discomfort/Distress Levels For the purpose of this categorization, assume that any procedure known to cause pain or distress to humans will have a similar effect on other vertebrate animals. (The Animal Welfare Act requires placing animal usage into categories according to potential pain and distress and the reporting of such usage annually to the U. S. Department of Agriculture). Classification B: Animals being bred, conditioned, or held for use in teaching, testing, experiments, research, or surgery, but not yet used for such purposes. Examples: • Breeding colonies of any animal species (USDA does not require listing of rats, mice, birds) that are held in legal sized caging and handled in accordance with the Guide and other applicable regulations. Breeding colony includes parents and offspring. • Newly acquired animals that are held in proper caging and handled in accordance with applicable regulations. • Animals held under proper captive conditions or wild animals that are being observed. Classification C: Animals upon which teaching, research, experiments, or tests will be conducted involving no pain, distress, or use of pain-relieving drugs. Examples: • Procedures performed correctly by trained personnel such as the administration of electrolytes/fluids, administration of oral medication, blood collection from a common peripheral vein per standard veterinary practice (dog cephalic, cat jugular) or catheterization of same, standard radiography, parenteral injections of non-irritating substances. • Euthanasia performed in accordance with the recommendations of the most recent AVMA Panel on Euthanasia, utilizing procedures that produce rapid unconsciousness and subsequent humane death. • Manual restraint that is no longer than would be required for a simple exam; short period of chair restraint for an adapted nonhuman primate. Classification D: Animals upon which experiments, teaching, research, surgery, or tests will be conducted involving accompanying pain or distress to the animals and for which appropriate anesthetic, analgesic, or tranquilizing drugs will be used. Examples: • Surgical procedures conducted by trained personnel in accordance with standard veterinary practice such as biopsies, gonadectomy, exposure of blood vessels, chronic catheter implantation, laparotomy or laparoscopy. • Blood collection by more invasive routes such as intracardiac or periorbital collection from species without a true orbital sinus such as rats and guinea pigs. • Administration of drugs, chemicals, toxins, or organisms that would be expected to produce pain or distress but which will be alleviated by analgesics. Classification E: Animals upon which teaching, experiments, research, surgery, or tests will be conducted involving accompanying pain or distress to the animals and for which the use of appropriate anesthetic, analgesic, or tranquilizing drugs will adversely affect the procedures, results, or interpretation of the teaching, research, experiments, surgery, or tests. Examples: • Procedures producing pain or distress unrelieved by analgesics such as toxicity studies, microbial virulence testing, radiation sickness, and research on stress, shock, or pain. • Surgical and postsurgical sequella from invasion of body cavities, orthopedic procedures, dentistry or other hard or soft tissue damage that produces unrelieved pain or distress. • Negative conditioning via electric shocks that would cause pain in humans. • Chairing of nonhuman primates not conditioned to the procedure for the time period used. NOTE REGARDING CLASSIFICATION E: An explanation of the procedures producing pain or distress in these animals and the justification for not using appropriate anesthetic, analgesic or tranquilizing drugs must be provided on Appendix E . This information is required to be reported to the USDA, will be available from USDA under the Freedom of Information Act, and may be publicly available through the Internet via USDA's website. Consideration of Alternatives: If any procedures fall into USDA's Classification D or E, causing more than momentary or slight pain or distress to the animals, describe your consideration of alternatives and your determination that alternatives are not available. Delineate the methods and sources used in the search. Database references must include databases searched, the date of the search, period covered, and the keywords used. Alternatives include methods that (1) refine existing tests by minimizing animal distress, (2) reduce the number of animals necessary for an experiment, or (3) replace whole-animal use with in vitro or other tests. When ascites production is used to produce anitbodies, justification needs to be given as to why in vitro systems cannot be used. Note that you must certify in Section Q.5. that no valid alternative was identified to any described procedures which may cause more than momentary pain or distress, whether relieved or not.


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