Special NAOC workshop on animal welfare

Every ornithologist in the U.S. and Canada who studies live birds must submit animal welfare protocols to a review committee and await approval before beginning the research project. The Ornithological Council devotes a very substantial amount of time to this subject because it is so central to the research life of every ornithologist. The objective of this workshop is to help NAOC participants understand the animal welfare policies in the U.S. and Canada and be able to use this information to improve their own research protocols. Audience members will achieve a better understanding of the protocol review process and effective methods for working with the IACUC. Through structured discussion with audience, instructors will gain insights into wildlife biology including study design and field methodology.

This is a unique opportunity to hold this workshop at no cost! Workshops of this type sponsored by universities, government agencies, and others typically carry registration fees of several hundred dollars.

This is your opportunity to talk with the people who make the policies that your IACUC must implement. Learn from them and help them understand how wildlife biology is very different from the biomedical research for which their policies were intended.

Topics to be covered:
a) “IACUC 101”- An explanation of the animal welfare laws and policies in the U.S. and Canada. Key topics: Which policies and standards apply to any specific study? What is a field study? What constitutes an adequate literature search?
b) Strategies to prepare a successful protocol. Key topics include: justification of sample size, resources, frequently encountered questions from the IACUC.
c) Structured dialogue: Through scenarios developed (and distributed to participants in advance), discussion leaders and audience members will discuss actual field methods and conditions with the instructors and explore the animal welfare issues that arise in each situation

DATE: Tuesday, August 16
TIME: 1 - 5 p.m.

As with all workshops, be sure to plan your travel to arrive early enough to attend the workshops of your choice.