October 2002 News

New Euthanasia Guidelines Issued

October 28, 2002 by Augusta Dwyer

The United States National Institutes of Health Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (OLAW) recently issued new guidelines for using carbon dioxide to euthanize small animals in laboratories.

The new guidelines call for researchers to use lower amounts of the gas and to refrain from placing animals in chambers already flooded with it. The OLAW's action was prompted by a review of scientific literature about carbon dioxide use on animals conducted by The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).

"We found that the results of carbon dioxide studies are all over the map," said HSUS Vice President of Research and Education Andrew Rowan. "However, there is an abundance of evidence that carbon dioxide use does cause pain and distress in animals."

Millions of animals -- mostly rats and mice -- are euthanized with the gas in research facilities each year.

"The conflicting findings in the literature indicate that additional problems with carbon dioxide use are likely to be uncovered," said Rowan. "We would like to see this investigated and addressed as soon as possible. If there is evidence that carbon dioxide causes pain and distress, regardless of the technique used, alternatives should be implemented."

For more information see http://www.hsus.org/ace/14735.