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Lab Animal Science

Do you work with animal experiments as a researcher, lab technician or student? The Animal Experiments Inspectorate requires that everyone who works with animal experiments has passed a course in animal science experiments. You can participate in the course with us.

Course Description

The course introduces legislation on animal experiments, and the ethical issues that arise when we use animals for experimental studies. You gain knowledge and hands-on experience in anesthesia, post-operative care and care, including definition of relevant humane endpoints, as well as a basic knowledge of surgical procedures.

Unlike other animal experiment courses, we include both theoretical and practical training in anesthesia and analgesia on ectothermal vertebrates (fish, amphibians, and reptiles), and we include issues in conducting experimental studies on wild animals.

By the end of the course, you will have a good knowledge of the regulatory and ethical issues associated with animal experiments, and you will acquire basic skills for anesthesia and pain management, as well as basic knowledge of surgical procedures.

Purpose

The purpose of the course is to give participants a basic knowledge of the legislation regarding animal experiments, as well as insight on how to care for and use animals in biological and biomedical research.

The course is compulsory for anyone participating in animal studies. The course meets the legal qualification requirements, cf. the Act on Animal Experiments (Act no. 88 of 30/01/2013) and European legislation EUR-Lex - 32010L0063 - EN - EUR-Lex (europa.eu.

Teaching Methods

The course includes lectures, ethical discussions, management of different animals, practical exercises with sedation of fish, amphibians, reptiles and rodents, as well as a preliminary exercise in writing an application to the Animal Experiments Inspectorate.

Target Group

The course is relevant for anyone wishing to participate in animal experiments, including Bachelors, MA thesis students and PhD students.

Educators

Professor Tobias Wang (course coordinator) studies a wide range of physiological issues in many different animal groups and has conducted animal experiments for about 25 years. Tobias Wang, among other things, does research on the effects of various anesthetics and pain-relieving medicine on fish, amphibians and reptiles and wants to improve the welfare of these animals during physiological studies.

Associate Professor Aage Olsen Alstrup is a veterinarian at the PET Center at Aarhus University Hospital and has worked with animal experiments, especially pigs, since 2002. Aage Olsen Alstrup has written a long list of articles on ethical issues related to animal experiments.

Animal Technician Heidi Meldgaard is responsible for the laboratory animal facilities at the Section for Zoophysiology and has participated in a number of studies on anesthetics and analgesics on amphibians and reptiles. Heidi Meldgaard also has more than five years of experience as a surgical nurse.

Furthermore, we often involve other relevant instructors and speakers.