| Description |
These guidelines have been developed to assist investigators and members of animal ethics
committees (AECs) to achieve the goals of the Australian code of practice for the care and use of
animals for scientific purposes (the Code; NHMRC 2004), by promoting the wellbeing of animals used for scientific purposes. To meet the requirements of the Code, scientists, animal carers and members of AECs must ensure that the use of animals in scientific activities is justified, and that there are no alternatives to using animals. For animals that are used, pain and distress must be alleviated or minimised. Uncontrolled adverse effects on animal wellbeing directly affect the validity of research results and the number of animals used to achieve a scientific objective. Therefore, an animal’s potential to experience pain and distress while it is being used for scientific purposes has ethical, scientific and practical implications. |