Revisions to AVMA policies on adopting research animals, end-of-life care receive approval

The AVMA Board of Directors (BOD) approved revising a number of policies at its November 13-15 meeting at AVMA headquarters in Schaumburg, Illinois, including “Adoption of Research and Teaching Animals.”

As part of reviewing the policy, the AVMA’s Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) worked with the American Society of Laboratory Animal Practitioners’ (ASLAP) Animal Welfare Committee. Those conversations resulted in widening the scope to all species and adding language placing emphasis on the research institution’s ability and responsibility to take the lead on these adoption efforts, according to the recommendation background materials.

Part of the policy now states: “The AVMA encourages research organizations and teaching institutions to develop adoption programs when feasible and appropriate. These organizations/institutions are most familiar with their respective animals and are best able to provide individualized assessment to ensure that each animal is matched with the most appropriate adopter.”

In addition, the Board changed the policy’s mention of “institution” to “research organization and teaching institution” to be more inclusive.

Aquatic medicine

Another revised policy the Board approved was on “Use of Aquatic Animal Therapeutic Agents.” Following a review by the Aquatic Veterinary Medicine Committee, it recommended changes to better categorize therapeutic agents and update wording to highlight current issues, according to the recommendation background.

This includes noting AVMA’s support for:

• Safety and efficacy studies of unapproved drugs for potential approval in aquatic animals through the investigational New Animal Drug Program.
• The Food and Drug Administration's review process of drug indexing for non-food-producing aquatic species and non-food early life stages of food-producing aquatic species to obtain legal marketing for eligible products.
• On-label use of pesticides and disinfectants that are licensed through the Environmental Protection Agency to control pests of aquatic animals (in the environment).

Role of veterinarians in emergency situations

The policy “Addressing the Role of Veterinary Medicine in Human Health Care Following Catastrophes Involving Mass Human Casualty” has been refocused to “Addressing the Role of Veterinary Professionals in Support of Human Health Care During Emergency Situations.”

The policy now states: “During a catastrophic event, the veterinarian’s training and capability in emergency management, wound care/treatment, pharmaceutical and medical supplies, and knowledge of population and public health can be used to augment the capacity of the human healthcare system.”

Members of the Committee on Disaster and Emergency Issues (CDEI) determined the policy should not be limited to situations involving mass casualties, because veterinary expertise and resources may be beneficial even when mass casualties are not encountered, but the human medical system is still overwhelmed. Specifically, the capabilities of veterinary diagnostic laboratories were noted, which was one of the lessons learned during the COVID-19 response.

Human-animal interaction policies

The Board approved a policy on “Veterinary End-of-Life Care,” which was significantly shortened to emphasize its most salient points. The Steering Committee on Human-Animal Interactions (SCHAI) also recommended removing references to external documents not overseen by the AVMA, in part because of concerns about some material becoming dated.

In addition, revisions included “... broadening applicability of the policy to cover species beyond companion animals, as other sectors of veterinary medicine, such as zoo medicine, apply hospice and palliative care strategies to numerous species within their facilities,” according to SCHAI's recommendation. Recognizing the mental and emotional stress on the people involved, the SCHAI incorporated the mention of the option to include other professionals to support human caregivers. This should not interfere with the veterinary team but allow them to focus more on the patient.

Now the policy states, in part: “The veterinary end-of-life care team must include a veterinarian providing expertise in palliative care and pain management. It is desirable to include trained staff and other counseling and care professionals as appropriate; however, advice regarding veterinary care should only be provided by veterinary professionals.”

The Board approved revisions to the policy on “Pets in Senior, Disabled, and Multifamily Public Housing,” which is also overseen by the SCHAI.

The SCHAI noted in its recommendation for revisions to that policy that support for laws ensuring these populations’ access to companion animals “continues to be helpful to discourage efforts for their repeal and is needed to assist vulnerable populations in retaining their companion animals.”

A new introductory paragraph highlights the relevance of such laws to maintaining the human-animal bond, stating: “The AVMA recognizes the value of mutually beneficial relationships between people and animals, particularly for seniors and individuals with disabilities or other support needs.”

Entity changes and convention cities

The Board revised the composition of the Animal Agriculture Liaison Committee slightly to add a seat for an individual with expertise in poultry layers, with that representation to come from United Egg Producers. In addition, a seat for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security was removed as it had been vacant for more than four years.

In addition, the Board approved changes to the composition of the Committee on International Veterinary Affairs (CIVA). At its September meeting, the Board voted to sunset the director of international affairs (DIA) position, effective at the end of the 2024-25 Association year.

A precursor to the DIA had been in place since 2001, when the Board approved a recommendation from the AVMA Task Force on Global Accreditation to establish a “leader position to conduct surveillance of national and international education, accreditation, and licensing activities and initiatives,” according to JAVMA News coverage from that time. When the CIVA was established in 2007, the globalization monitoring agent became chair of the committee.

The position title changed in 2009 to the DIA. The charge to the DIA has evolved further sine then to include fostering development and implementation of the AVMA’s international strategies. This was done through interactions with other CIVA members and by working closely with the AVMA director of global outreach, a staff position established in 2017, and other relevant AVMA entities, staff, and volunteer leadership. Over time, many of the DIA’s responsibilities have been taken up by the director of global outreach, other AVMA executive staff, and officers.

After the Board sunset the DIA position earlier this year, the CIVA conducted a review of its composition and noted that when it was first established, committee membership included two representatives from the AVMA Council on Education (AVMA COE). This was largely because of the overlap in the committee’s initial charge and the activities of the council. Later, the number of AVMA COE representatives was reduced from two to one. Now, “with the required firewall between the AVMA COE and other AVMA entities strengthened over the years, there has been, appropriately, less opportunity for full exchange of information,” according to the recommendation.

Moreover, the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges representative provides communication on international veterinary educational issues broader in scope than accreditation. As such, the CIVA recommended, and the Board approved, discontinuing the COE seat and replacing both that position and the sunset DIA position with two new at-large representatives. The committee will also elect its chair and vice-chair from its membership each year, which aligns with the process used by the majority of other AVMA entities.

The nomination period for the two new at-large CIVA positions is now open through March 1, 2025.

Finally, the Board approved adding Indianapolis to the five-city rotation for AVMA Convention.

The 2025 AVMA Convention will take place in Washington, D.C., from July 18-22, followed by the 2026 AVMA Convention in Anaheim, California, and 2027 AVMA Convention in Minneapolis. From there, the six-city rotation will begin among Boston, Chicago, Denver, Indianapolis, and San Diego.