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A U.S. Department of Agriculture inspector examines ferret cages. A new policy mandates that inspectors do lighter inspections at certain lab animal facilities. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
USDA now only partially inspects some lab animal facilities, internal documents reveal
May. 5, 2021 , 8:00 AM
In February 2019, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) made a significant and apparently secret change to how it oversees laboratory animal welfare,
Science has learned. Instead of fully inspecting all of the nearly 1100 facilities that house monkeys, rabbits, and other creatures used in biomedical research, it mandated partial “focused” inspections for labs accredited by a private organization of veterinarians and scientists called AAALAC International.