Animal Welfare & Veterinary Sciences: Important Websites

The Animal Welfare Information Center (AWIC) is mandated by the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) to provide information for improved animal care and use in research, testing, and teaching. You can search the AWIC website, or browse topics such as companion animals, government resources, humane endpoints & euthanasia, research animals, zoo and marine animals. Information on news items, services and workshops is also provided.

CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. CITES was drafted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1963 at a meeting of members of IUCN (The World Conservation Union). CITES is an international agreement to which States (countries) adhere voluntarily. This website includes a Checklist of CITES Species that allows the exploration of more than 35,000 species of animals and plants and their degree of protection.

This is the US Fish & Wildlife Service's official website for endangered species information. This website includes lists of US and foreign species, many fact sheets for downloading, detailed listings of their services, grants, permits, laws, and news; with a search box for fast access to species information.

The Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) is an organization of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science (AALAS). IACUC website provides information on institutional animal care and links to relevant laws and regulations, organizations, training, and many other related institutional committees.

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species provides taxonomic, conservation status and distribution information on plants, fungi and animals that have been globally evaluated using the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria. This system is designed to determine the relative risk of extinction, and the main purpose of the IUCN Red List is to catalog and highlight those plants and animals that are facing a higher risk of global extinction. This website has good search features, large photo gallery, listings of initiatives, news, and links to related resources.

This resource for scientists is provided by the National Institutes of Health in support of the Intramural Animal Care and Use (ACU) program of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This site is intended to serve as an information resource for NIH scientists, Animal Care and Use Committee (ACUC) members, veterinarians, animal science specialists, and other NIH staff involved in the conduct of biomedical research at NIH.

TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network, is the leading non-governmental organization working globally on trade in wild animals and plants in the context of both biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. TRAFFIC was established in 1976 and its mission is to ensure that trade in wild plants and animals is not a threat to the conservation of nature. Their website contains information on wildlife trade, enforcement networks, publications, media reports, and a news archive.