All research and teaching involving animals is governed by the Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC) and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Agribusiness (OMAFA). The University of Toronto (U of T) holds a Good Animal Practice (GAP) certificate from the CCAC and is in good standing with Animals for Research Act requirements.
The U of T Animal Care Committees (ACCs) are responsible for promoting best practices and ensuring that federal and provincial requirements are met or exceeded in order to safeguard the welfare of animals used in research and teaching at U of T.
Oversight of the Animal Care & Use Program (ACUP) at U of T is through the University Animal Care Committee (UACC) and the Research Oversight and Compliance Office (ROCO). The UACC reports to the Associate Vice-President, Research Oversight & Compliance. The UACC is charged with setting the policies, guidelines, and standard operating procedures (SOPs) which govern the use of animals in research and teaching at U of T.
U of T has in place two Local Animal Care Committees (LACCs): the Health Sciences LACC and the Biological Sciences LACC.
The LACCs report into the UACC and their primary responsibilities are the following.
- To oversee the local animal care and use programs, including the state and operation of the individual animal research facilities
- To resolve identified compliance issues
- To perform ethics review of all animal use protocol (AUPs) for research and teaching involving animals within the program
If you are planning to submit an AUP, renewal, or major/minor amendment please see Protocol Submission Deadlines & Who To Submit To (Animal Research & Teaching).
- Coordinates the development of all policies, guidelines, and SOPs relating to animal use through the UACC
- Coordinates the ethical review of all AUPs through the two LACCs
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