Guidelines for Researchers


1. Decisions regarding the welfare, care and use of animals should be guided by scientific knowledge and professional judgment, reflect ethical and social values, and consider the potential benefits and the impact on the well-being of the animals involved.

2.  ICLAS has concerns that some scientific methods, which are not considered ethically acceptable, are still being perpetuated by virtue of being previously published. Publication appears to confer ethical acceptability in the minds of some journal editors and this is not always correct.

3.  ICLAS believes that a statement of IACUC approval sometimes not sufficient to confirm humane science.  More information is required before an editor accepts the manuscript as meeting international best practice standards of humane science.

4.  The additional information required is provided in these guidelines.

ICLAS Ethical Guideline for Researchers

1. All animals have an intrinsic value, i.e. their welfare and wellbeing should be protected not because they have an instrumental value by religious, social, financial or any other standards, but because they have an intrinsic value.

2. Fol­lo­wing the the­o­ry of mo­de­ra­te bi­o­cen­trism ani­mals de­ser­ve pro­tec­tion of their wel­fa­re and well­being ac­cor­ding to their po­si­ti­on with the sca­la na­tu­rae, i.e. hig­her de­ve­lo­ped ani­mals need stron­ger pro­tec­tion than lo­wer de­ve­lo­ped ani­mals.

3. The use of ani­mals in ex­pe­ri­men­tal re­search should be avo­i­ded, whe­re ever it is pos­sib­le (Re­pla­ce­ment).

4. If ani­mal re­search is ne­cessa­ry, as few ani­mals as pos­sib­le should be used (Re­duc­tion).

5. Using ani­mals for ne­cessa­ry ex­pe­ri­men­tal re­search should only be per­for­med un­der high qua­li­ty stan­dards i.e. op­ti­mal me­thods, espe­ci­al­ly avo­i­ding un­ne­cessa­ry pain (Re­fi­ne­ment).

6. For ani­mal ex­pe­ri­ments with the ex­pec­ta­ti­on of se­ve­re suf­fe­ring or pain hu­ma­ne end­points need to be de­fi­ned in advan­ce.

7. Per­sons using ani­mals in ex­pe­ri­men­tal re­search take over the respo­nsi­bi­li­ty for the wel­fa­re and well­being of their ani­mals (Responsibility).

8. Only per­sons with ade­qua­te trai­ning are al­lo­wed to per­form or par­ti­ci­pa­te ani­mal ex­pe­ri­ments.
9. Ani­mal ex­pe­ri­ments must be ethi­cal­ly jus­ti­fied by the re­spon­sib­le re­sear­cher as well as by an ethi­cal re­view com­mit­tee re­spec­ting the re­gi­o­nal le­gis­la­ti­on, re­li­gi­on and mo­ral.
10. Re­sults of ani­mal ex­pe­ri­ments need to be pub­lis­hed whene­ver pos­sib­le in or­der to avo­id un­ne­cessa­ry further ex­pe­ri­ments in other coun­tries.

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