The AWA was first passed in 1966 and has been amended several times since then.
The Animal Welfare Act:
- Regulates the use of dogs, cats, primates, guinea pigs, hamsters, rabbits and farm animals in research, teaching, and testing.
- Requires that all proposals to use animals be reviewed and approved by an institutional animal care and use committee whose membership includes, at a minimum, an experienced scientist,
a veterinarian, and an individual who is not affiliated with the institution.
- Requires animals to be provided with adequate food, living space, and veterinary attention in buildings that are clean and properly lighted, ventilated, and temperature controlled. In
addition, dogs must receive appropriate exercise, and primates must be provided
with an environment that will assure their psychological well-being.
- Requires research facilities to register with and animal dealers to be licensed by the US Department of
Agriculture (USDA), which conducts periodic inspections of their compliance
with AWA regulations. Significant or repeated violations of the AWA may result in fines or other enforcement actions.
- Requires the USDA to report annually to Congress on the numbers of regulated animals used in research and involved in potentially painful experiments for which no pain-relieving drugs were used.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and most other federal funding agencies also require scientists to use the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals to determine appropriate standards for animal care.
The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals:
- Offers expert advice and the latest scientific research on how to care for various species of animals to
meet scientific, technical, and humane standards.
- Provides guidelines for designing and operating an animal care program that fulfills the requirements of the Animal Welfare Act and the Public Health Service Policy.
The 1985 Health Research Extension Act requires all medical research funded through the NIH to conform with the Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.
The Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals:
- Requires institutional animal care and use committee review and approval for all research using vertebrate animals that is funded by Public Health Service agencies.
- Requires animal care to be provided according to the standards set forth in the Animal Welfare Act and the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.
- Requires each institution conducting Public Health Service- sponsored research to file a written assurance with NIH detailing how it will provide an acceptable program of animal care and use oversight.
- Requires grantees to follow the "US Government Principles for the Utilization and Care of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research, and Training."
- Requires that significant problems with animal care must be reported to the Public Health Service. Failure to correct violations can result in the research funding being suspended or revoked.