Canadian Council on Animal Care
Encyclopedia
The Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC) is a Canadian organization that is responsible for "setting and maintaining standards for the care and use of animals in science" within the country. The organization provides ethical standards
for the usage of nonhuman animals in laboratories. Its goal is to prevent harmful conduct on animals.
The CCAC was established in 1968 by the National Research Council at the request of the Medical Research Council. Its initial goal was to "investigate the care and use of experimental animals in Canada", with a mandate to "to work for the improvement of animal care and use on a Canada-wide basis". The organization is a non-legislated, participatory, peer review
system—all experimental care and use of animals in Canada is subject to its rules and regulations.
The organization explains its position on the use of animals in research:
The CCAC uses assessment panels, which meet with personnel from research institutions such as colleges and universities, to evaluate animal care and use within the facilities. While there, the panels interview individual investigators and observe specific techniques. If an institution does not meet the standards set by the CCAC, then the CCAC issues recommendations to the offending institution, typically for housekeeping or facility maintenance concerns.
Research in which vertebrate
s or cephalopod
s are used in Canada are subject to the requirements of the CCAC; however, research can be exempt if shown to be necessary. The CCAC was funded entirely by annual grants from the Medical Research Council and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, two of Canada's largest granting agencies, from the organization's inception in 1968 to 1994.
Ethics
Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
for the usage of nonhuman animals in laboratories. Its goal is to prevent harmful conduct on animals.
The CCAC was established in 1968 by the National Research Council at the request of the Medical Research Council. Its initial goal was to "investigate the care and use of experimental animals in Canada", with a mandate to "to work for the improvement of animal care and use on a Canada-wide basis". The organization is a non-legislated, participatory, peer review
Peer review
Peer review is a process of self-regulation by a profession or a process of evaluation involving qualified individuals within the relevant field. Peer review methods are employed to maintain standards, improve performance and provide credibility...
system—all experimental care and use of animals in Canada is subject to its rules and regulations.
The organization explains its position on the use of animals in research:
The CCAC uses assessment panels, which meet with personnel from research institutions such as colleges and universities, to evaluate animal care and use within the facilities. While there, the panels interview individual investigators and observe specific techniques. If an institution does not meet the standards set by the CCAC, then the CCAC issues recommendations to the offending institution, typically for housekeeping or facility maintenance concerns.
Research in which vertebrate
Vertebrate
Vertebrates are animals that are members of the subphylum Vertebrata . Vertebrates are the largest group of chordates, with currently about 58,000 species described. Vertebrates include the jawless fishes, bony fishes, sharks and rays, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds...
s or cephalopod
Cephalopod
A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan class Cephalopoda . These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral body symmetry, a prominent head, and a set of arms or tentacles modified from the primitive molluscan foot...
s are used in Canada are subject to the requirements of the CCAC; however, research can be exempt if shown to be necessary. The CCAC was funded entirely by annual grants from the Medical Research Council and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, two of Canada's largest granting agencies, from the organization's inception in 1968 to 1994.