Implementing the New Animal Guide

I wanted to let our community know that last week our Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare announced that NIH will adopt the 8^th edition of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. Since 1985, we have required that institutions base their animal programs on the Guide, and it has been 15 years since the last Guide update. The 8^th edition includes important revisions to ensure the continued humane care and use of vertebrate animals in the research we support.

Beginning January 1, 2012, institutions that receive NIH funding for animal activities must base their animal care and use program on the 8^th edition of the Guide. By December 31, 2012, you must complete at least one of your twice yearly inspections using the new Guide. We understand it will take some time to implement changes, so all the changes need not be complete by the end of next year, but an implementation plan should be in place.

To help clarify how we expect institutions to implement the new Guide, we created position statements and provided the ability to comment on your understanding of those statements. We also posted all the comments received during the public comment period earlier this year.

I encourage you to check out all the updated resources on our website. They are consistent with the 8^th edition of the Guide and include frequently asked questions (updated FAQs are flagged), tutorials, and sample reports.

NIH is committed to the humane care and use of animals involved in research and this requires a collaborative effort of all who participate in NIH programs.