Life & Health Sciences
Veterinary & Animal Science Research: Regulators, Journals, Funders
Veterinary and animal science research covers the health, welfare, production and diseases of animals, across companion, livestock, laboratory and wild species. Its research practice is shaped by a layered set of regulators, standard-setters and professional bodies, and anyone planning a project needs to know which applies.
For animal health, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) is the global reference. It was created by an international agreement in 1924, and Wikipedia gives its membership as 183 as of May 2023. WOAH runs the World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS). In the United States the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service supports the National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa, and on Plum Island, which diagnose domestic and foreign animal diseases. The FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine regulates animal drugs and animal food additives. In the UK the Veterinary Medicines Directorate authorises veterinary medicines.
Work that uses animals sits under a separate oversight layer. In the US the Animal Welfare Act requires an Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee at each research facility, and the Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare implements the Public Health Service Policy for funded work. In the UK the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 requires personal, project and establishment licences. Reports of such studies are expected to follow the ARRIVE guidelines developed by the NC3Rs, and AAALAC International offers voluntary accreditation.
Literature is spread across society journals such as JAVMA, Veterinary Record and the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, and across CAB Abstracts, which covers veterinary sciences alongside agriculture. Production-side work is often funded through programmes such as USDA NIFA. This hub covers research practice only and gives no clinical or treatment advice.
New to the field? What is Veterinary & Animal Science? →
Reviewed 5 November 2026 by CASRAI Editorial Board
- Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (JAVMA)(read 5 November 2026)
- Veterinary Record(read 5 November 2026)
- Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine(read 5 November 2026)
- Journal of Dairy Science(read 5 November 2026)
- American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)(read 5 November 2026)
- Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS)(read 5 November 2026)
- AAALAC International(read 5 November 2026)
- USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)(read 5 November 2026)
- NC3Rs(read 5 November 2026)
- National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL)(read 5 November 2026)
- World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS)(read 5 November 2026)
- ARRIVE guidelines 2.0(read 5 November 2026)
- Animal Welfare Act (US)(read 5 November 2026)
- Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (UK)(read 5 November 2026)
- PHS Policy and OLAW(read 5 November 2026)
- WOAH standards and disease data(read 5 November 2026)
- Veterinary Medicines Directorate (UK)(read 5 November 2026)
- FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine(read 5 November 2026)
- One Health and the Quadripartite(read 5 November 2026)
- CAB Abstracts(read 5 November 2026)
Field at a glance
Journals
- Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (JAVMA)
- Published by the AVMA, which also publishes the American Journal of Veterinary Research (AJVR).Website ↗
- Veterinary Record
- Peer-reviewed veterinary medicine journal founded in 1888, published by Wiley for the British Veterinary Association since January 2021.Website ↗
- Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine
- Bimonthly, open access since 2015; official journal of ACVIM, ECVIM, ECVN and ECEIM, published by Oxford University Press from 2026.Website ↗
- Journal of Dairy Science
- Monthly journal of the American Dairy Science Association, in publication since 1917, covering dairy animal care, nutrition and management.Website ↗
Societies
- American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)
- Founded 1863; represents more than 105,000 veterinarians, publishes JAVMA and AJVR, and accredits US veterinary schools.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS)
- UK regulator of veterinary surgeons, established by royal charter in 1844; duties set out in the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966.Website ↗
- AAALAC International
- Private nonprofit running voluntary accreditation of animal care and use programmes; about 1,000 organisations accredited worldwide.Website ↗ · Our guide →
Funders and programmes
- USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)
- Formed in 2009; funds research, education and Extension through competitive grants such as AFRI and formula funds to states.Website ↗
- NC3Rs
- UK centre for the 3Rs of animal research, established in 2004; developed the ARRIVE guidelines.Website ↗ · Our guide →
Archives, facilities and data
- National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL)
- USDA APHIS laboratories in Ames, Iowa, and on Plum Island, New York; diagnose domestic and foreign animal diseases and certify laboratories.Website ↗
- World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS)
- WOAH system used to notify and monitor animal diseases worldwide; data is reachable through its database interface.Website ↗
Standards and formats
- ARRIVE guidelines 2.0
- NC3Rs reporting checklist for in vivo animal research, split in 2020 into the Essential 10 and the Recommended Set.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- Animal Welfare Act (US)
- Main US federal law on animals in research and exhibition; requires an IACUC at each facility and excludes rats, mice, birds and farm animals.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (UK)
- Regulates procedures on protected animals through personal, project and establishment licences.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- PHS Policy and OLAW
- The Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare implements the Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- WOAH standards and disease data
- Intergovernmental body headquartered in Paris with 183 members, founded 1924 as the OIE; lists codes and manuals under standards.Website ↗
- Veterinary Medicines Directorate (UK)
- Defra executive agency that authorises veterinary medicines and runs the suspected adverse reaction surveillance scheme.Website ↗
- FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine
- Regulates animal drugs and animal food additives; approves new animal drug applications on safety, effectiveness, quality and labelling.Website ↗ · Our guide →
- One Health and the Quadripartite
- Collaborative approach to human, animal and environmental health coordinated by FAO, WHO, WOAH and UNEP.Website ↗
Preprints and indexes
- CAB Abstracts
- CABI database covering agriculture, environment and veterinary sciences from 1973, with over 11 million records.Website ↗
31 pages across 7 topic areas
Research Integrity & Compliance
- AAALAC vs. IACUC: Voluntary Accreditation vs. Mandatory CommitteeComparison
IACUC is the legally mandated committee that approves individual animal-use protocols; AAALAC International is the voluntary, external body that accre…
- AAHRPP vs. AAALAC: Human vs. Animal Research AccreditationComparison
AAHRPP and AAALAC are both voluntary peer-review accreditors, but AAHRPP accredits human research protection programs (IRBs) while AAALAC accredits an…
- Animal Research Ethics: The 3Rs, IACUC Oversight, and the Law
How the 3Rs, IACUC review, the Animal Welfare Act, and PHS Policy together form the ethical and legal framework governing animal research in the US.…
- AVMA Euthanasia Guidelines in Laboratory Animal Research
How IACUCs use the AVMA Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals (2020 Edition) as the review standard: the acceptable/conditionally acceptable/not re…
- Barbering in Mice: Welfare Significance and What an IACUC Protocol Should Require
Barbering (whisker and fur trimming) in mice is a stereotypic behavior with real welfare and study-validity stakes -- here is what cage-level risk fac…
- Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals: What It Covers and Who Must Follow It
The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (8th edition, National Academies Press, 2011) is the reference standard PHS Policy and AAALAC acc…
- Home Office Animal Research Licence (ASPA 1986): A Compliance Guide
How the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 works in practice: the establishment, project, and personal licence system, Home Office/ASRU regulati…
- IACUC Post-Approval Monitoring vs. Semiannual Program ReviewComparison
PAM is an institution-designed, continuous check on individual active protocols; the semiannual review is a federally mandated, twice-yearly audit of…
- IACUC Training: Personnel Qualification, Species-Specific Modules, and Occupational Health Requirements
What IACUC training actually requires for personnel working with research animals: the PHS Policy IV.C.1.f mandate, species-specific and hands-on comp…
- IACUC vs. IBC: Animal Welfare vs. Biosafety Oversight ComparedComparison
IACUC and IBC are both mandatory institutional committees but review different risks: IACUC covers animal welfare under the Animal Welfare Act and PHS…
- IRB vs. IACUC: Human-Subjects Review vs. Animal-Research Oversight ComparedComparison
IRB and IACUC are both mandatory institutional review committees, but they answer to different laws and review different subject populations: IRB cove…
- Occupational Health Program Requirements for Research Animal Personnel
What a compliant occupational health program for animal research personnel actually requires beyond IACUC coursework: risk assessment, medical surveil…
- The IACUC and Animal Research Oversight: A Compliance Guide
How PHS Policy/OLAW, the Animal Welfare Act/USDA, and voluntary AAALAC accreditation together govern IACUC oversight of animal research — composition,…
- The IACUC Protocol: What to Include, How It's Reviewed, and Why It Gets Sent Back
What an IACUC animal-use protocol must include under 9 CFR 2.31, how it's reviewed, and the most common reasons it gets sent back for revision.…
Laboratory Operations & Safety
- CITES Permits: What Research Labs Need to Know
A CITES permit authorizes export, import, or re-export of a specimen from a CITES-listed species. Here is when research shipments need one, which perm…
- Diagnostic Laboratory: Definition, Types and Oversight
Diagnostic laboratory defined: the CLIA legal definition, test complexity categories, and how human and animal-health labs differ.…
- Histopathology: Workflow, Standards, and QC
Master the histopathology workflow from fixation to staining, covering NSH technical standards, AAVLD quality control, and preclinical study guideline…
- IATA Live Animal Regulations (LAR): What Labs Shipping Research Animals Need to Know
What the IATA Live Animal Regulations (LAR) require for shipping research animals by air: container standards, the Shipper's Certification, labeling,…
- Interstate Certificate of Veterinary Inspection (ICVI): Research Animal Shipment Requirements
What an ICVI is, who can issue one, when research facilities need it for animal shipments, and how state requirements and eCVI systems affect procurem…
- National Poultry Improvement Plan: Testing Guide
Guide to National Poultry Improvement Plan (NPIP) provisions, diagnostic testing standards, 9 CFR regulations, and biosecurity audit requirements.…
- Veterinary Diagnostics: Tests, Laboratories, Accreditation
Veterinary diagnostics explained: lab types, AAVLD accreditation, NAHLN levels and NVSL reference testing, with a checklist for judging a result.…
- Veterinary Pathology: Anatomic vs Clinical, Lab Services and Board Certification
Anatomic vs clinical veterinary pathology, which services AAVLD-accredited labs must offer on site, and how ACVP certification differs from accreditat…
Scholarly Publishing
- Animal Research Statistics: Official Reports
Guide to accessing and interpreting official animal research statistics across regulatory databases, including EU ALURES and UK Home Office ASPA repor…
- APHIS Inspection Reports: Research Facility Guide
A comprehensive operational guide explaining how to access, read, and interpret USDA APHIS Animal Welfare Act inspection reports for research faciliti…
- ARRIVE Guidelines for Animal Research Reporting: The Full 2.0 Checklist
The complete ARRIVE 2.0 checklist for reporting animal research: all 21 items across the Essential 10 and Recommended Set, journal requirements, and h…
- Frontiers in Veterinary Science: Scope, Indexing, Fees and Metrics
Frontiers in Veterinary Science profile: scope, single anonymized review, CC-BY, indexing, metrics and fees by article type, checked 2026-11-08.…
Research Methods & Statistics
- What Is Animal Science? Research Areas, Funding, and Career Paths
Animal science studies domesticated and agriculturally important animals — genetics, nutrition, physiology, and welfare — through the lens of producti…
- What Is Veterinary Science? Research Areas, Funding, and Career Paths
A complete guide to veterinary science: its core definition and subfields, the real funding landscape (NIH, USDA NIFA, NSF, private foundations), rese…
Clinical Research Administration
- FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) Explained: Animal Drug Approval and Veterinary Trials
FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine regulates animal drugs, medicated feed and animal food, and animal devices. This guide covers approval pathways,…
CRediT & Authorship
- Veterinary Medicine Authorship Criteria: How AVMA/JAVMA Define Who Qualifies as an Author
AVMA/JAVMA authorship criteria for veterinary research: the four-part test AVMA journals apply, why funding-only sponsors, referring clinicians, and d…
Grants Management & Research Funding
- 9 CFR: Animal Welfare Regulations Guide
A compliance guide to Title 9 CFR, covering USDA APHIS Animal Welfare Regulations, IACUC mandates, Form 7023 annual reporting, and inspection rules.…
Key terms
- Ag Guide (Guide for the Care and Use of Agricultural Animals in Research and Teaching)
- Animal Bioscience: Journal Profile, Metrics & Scope
- Animal Welfare Act (AWA)
- ANZCCART (Australian & New Zealand Council for the Care of Animals in Research and Teaching)
- Australian Veterinary Journal: Profile & Metrics
- Canadian Veterinary Journal: Journal Profile & Scope
- CPIA (Certified Professional in IACUC Administration)
- IACUC (Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee)
- IACUC Adverse Event and Unanticipated Outcome Plan
- IACUC Semiannual Program Review and Facility Inspection
- Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology
- Journal of the AVMA (JAVMA): Profile & Metrics
- OLAW (Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare)
- PHS Policy (Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals)
- Research Animal
- Veterinary Cytology
