Research Guidelines for Vertebrate Animal Use

Application Procedure for Approval of a Research Study Involving Live Vertebrate Animals

All individuals proposing to use live vertebrate animals in their training, teaching or research at Stetson University must submit a complete application to the Institutional Animal Use and Care Committee (IACUC) for review and approval. The form and procedure for submitting an application appear below. However, before the IACUC will review an application, those individuals whose studies involve live vertebrate animals must complete the IACUC training in its entirety.

Furthermore, the IACUC may require some applicants to be medically evaluated and to present evidence of a current tetanus vaccination before the IACUC will review an application. Applicants should consult the Chair of the IACUC in the early stages of project design to determine whether their health status must be evaluated. Moreover, applicants are strongly encouraged to learn about the guidelines IACUC follows to evaluate applications by reading the National Research Council's publication Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (8th ed., 2011; hereafter, referred to as the Guide). This document is available at Stetson's duPont-Ball Library.

The IACUC will scrutinize all aspects of proposed studies that involve live vertebrate animals, particularly if applicants propose sacrificing these animals. Because the IACUC is averse to sacrificing animals, applicants should present a compelling case for doing so. Following a study's approval and during the course of the training, teaching or research project, the IACUC may inspect the animals involved in the study at any time while those animals are in Stetson facilities.

To submit an application to the IACUC for its consideration, please follow the instructions on the Stetson University Application to the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee for Approval of a Research Study Involving the Use of Live Vertebrate Animals:

» Word Document
» PDF

Only applications from those who have completed the IACUC training in its entirety and who submit a complete application by the announced deadline will be considered. Please submit applications (in a Word document or fillable PDF format) electronically to the IACUC Chair (Dr. Missy Gibbs, [email protected]). The Chair will acknowledge the receipt of all applications and will notify applicants of the committee's decision regarding their proposed studies (i.e., approve, revise and resubmit, or not approve). The IACUC will approve proposed studies that indicate compliance with the guidelines in the Guide and with the Animal Welfare Act. Such approval may be contingent upon minor modifications to the proposed protocol. The IACUC may require an investigator to revise and resubmit a proposal that does not fully comply with the Guide and with the Animal Welfare Act if the proposed study can be modified to meet compliance without substantially changing its integrity. A proposed study that does not fully comply with the Guide and with the Animal Welfare Act and that cannot be modified to meet compliance without substantially changing its integrity will not be approved.