Rationale:
The US Department of Agriculture has oversight responsibility for the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) and requires that the therapeutic treatment of laboratory animals must be consistent with good veterinary medical practice regardless of who provides the treatment. 

Applicability:
This policy applies to veterinary treatment of only animal species covered by the USDA.

Policy:
All therapeutic treatment of laboratory animals not described in an IACUC-approved protocol 1) must have the approval of an Animal Resources Center (ARC) clinical veterinarian; 2) must be conducted by a person that is trained and capable of rendering such treatment as determined by ARC veterinary staff; and 3) the treatment and observations must be documented consistent with the AWA, Public Health Service Policy, and Institutional Policy.  Investigators with approval of the ARC veterinary staff may assume responsibility for the treatment of their research animals, provided the following list of issues is addressed.

• All animals at UT Southwestern are examined daily including weekends and holidays, for illnesses, injury, and abnormal behavior.  An abnormality may be identified by the ARC staff or the investigative team, who must report the abnormality to the ARC veterinary staff.  An ARC clinical veterinarian and a member of the investigative staff will communicate to determine what therapeutic regimen is appropriate to treat the abnormality consistent with the experimental objectives and good veterinary medical care.
• Results of diagnostic tests, treatments, and unexpected clinical complications must be recorded in the animal health records.

Contact Information:
For any additional questions, please contact the IACUC Manager at 5-6420.