Research & Teaching with Animals

Research and Teaching with Animals

Teaching and research involving animals at Red Deer Polytechnic are conducted according to the highest possible standards in the care, well-being, quality of life, and use of live animals in accordance with applicable laws, the Canadian Council on Animal Care guidelines and policy statements, and the Tri-Agency Agreement on the Administration of Agency Grants and Awards by Research Institutions. Red Deer Polytechnic participates in the programs offered by the Canadian Council on Animal Care and maintains a Certificate of Good Animal Practice®.

Red Deer Polytechnic has entered into a formal animal care agreement with Olds College of Agriculture & Technology for review services. The Olds College Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), with one member from RDP, shall serve as RDP’s Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee.

In addition, Red Deer Polytechnic will have access to the Pedagogical Merit Review Processes at Olds College. Red Deer Polytechnic has established a Scientific Merit Review Committee. Following Scientific Merit Review, proposals move to the Olds College Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee for ethical review and approval.

All courses and research that use animals must develop an Animal Use Protocol and Standard Operating Protocol that must be approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee prior to commencement and then re-approved annually for up to three renewals, at which time any ongoing work must be submitted as a new protocol. Any change, be it minor or major amendment, will require re-approval prior to implementation.

The following policies and procedures govern animal care and use at Red Deer Polytechnic:

Faculty, staff, and students at Red Deer Polytechnic are encouraged to report any incidents of animal use which appear to contradict the stated intended use. Reporting of any such incidents will be done by completing an Animal Incident Report. Animal Incident Reports are to be directed to the Red Deer Polytechnic Animal Care Lead, Olga Mameeva.

Breaches of compliance that cannot be corrected by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee working with the concerned animal users and veterinary/animal care staff must be referred to the Vice President, Academic and Student Experience, at Red Deer Polytechnic.

Application Process

Animal users should begin the application process one to two months prior to the start of activity. The Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee meets three to four times a year, and their meeting dates may not align with the start of the teaching term. Please contact the Animal Care Lead, Olga Mameeva, for the meeting schedule.

All research using animals must first undergo a Scientific Merit Review. When a research project has received funding from a federal or provincial granting agency and has gone through a peer review process for that funding, confirmation of research funding through these types of sources is evidence of scientific merit.

Red Deer Polytechnic animal users must submit an animal use protocol and associated standard operating procedures, pedagogical merit, and/or scientific merit proposal form(s) to the Animal Care Lead, Olga Mameeva. The Animal Care Lead will forward these documents to Olds College Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee for review. The Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee is mandated to approve, reject, propose modifications to, or terminate the approval of any proposed or ongoing animal use that is subject to review under this policy. Animal use for research that has not been reviewed and approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee may constitute non-compliance, representing a breach of responsible conduct of research.

Animal users will be required to submit annual progress reports for approved protocols each year.

Animal users are responsible to follow up with the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee when the research project has been completed to ensure that protocols were followed, there were no concerns arising from the research, and the appropriate reports have been filed.

Post-Approval Monitoring and Hazard Assessment

In their Animal Use Plan, instructors will provide the dates in which animal use will occur during the term. The Red Deer Polytechnic Animal Care Lead and a local community member familiar with the animals used by the Red Deer Polytechnic instructor will plan for an observational visit on one of the dates. At the end of the teaching activity, instructors must complete a short report/survey indicating any adverse events, deviations from Standard Operating Protocol, and reflecting on the adequacy of the Standard Operating Protocol and safety measures in place. If there are any serious concerns with either the visit or the report/survey, the Chair of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee will meet with the instructor to discuss opportunities for either further training or for revision of the Standard Operating Protocol.  

Researchers/Instructors engaged in animal research/teaching in the field will be required to complete a formal Hazard Assessment prior to the activity. The Assessment documentation should be forwarded to Occupational Health and Safety for review. Each day individuals are in the field to conduct research, testing, or teaching, a Field Level Hazard Assessment form must be completed. Field researchers may also be asked to provide photos or videos showing animal care and use in the field. Upon return from the field, animal users must complete a short report/survey indicating any adverse events, deviations from Standard Operating Protocol, and reflecting on the adequacy of the Standard Operating Protocol and safety measures in place. If there are any serious concerns with either the visit or the report/survey, the Chair of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee will meet with the instructor to discuss opportunities for either further training or for revision of the Standard Operating Protocol.

In the event of an injury to a person while conducting animal research or teaching in the field, researchers/instructors must follow Red Deer Polytechnic’s incident/injury reporting procedure on the SAFE RDP App. Researchers/instructors must also inform the Animal Care Lead of reports of injuries related to their research/teaching.

Forms

Please forward all relevant forms, when completed, to Red Deer Polytechnic’s Animal Care Lead, Olga Mameeva. Forms can be located by logging into your Loop account.

Email Finished Forms to Olga