spring 2021
BIO-8014 Aquatic Animal Welfare - 5 ECTS

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Application deadline

PhD students at UiT register for classes and exam in StudentWeb before 1 February.
The registration starts in middle of December.

Type of course

Theoretical and practical subject.

Admission requirements

This course is open for PhD students enrolled at UiT.
This course is not open for singular course students.

Course overlap

If you pass the examination in this course, you will get an reduction in credits (as stated below), if you previously have passed the following courses:

BIO-3503 Aquatic Animal Welfare 5 stp

Course content

The first part of the course deals with legislations and regulations in animal experimentation and which types of experiments are under the Animal welfare act and the legislations and regulations which apply to the hold of live fish and decapods. The biological part of the course includes lectures on pain perception, stressors and stress responses, health and welfare, anaesthesia/immobilisation, acclimation, environmental needs and tagging methods. The course also encompasses seminars in which the various topics in the lectures, including ethical issues and considerations, are discussed. Seminars also include work with experimental design (including the three R's) of a given research topic, and compilation of an application to the Norwegian animal research authority on the same research topic. Finally the course includes a one day excursion to the research station in Kårvik for practical demonstrations of experiment preparation, fish handling, blood sampling, anesthesia etc.

Recommended prerequisites

BIO-1006 Animal- and plant physiology, BIO-2002 Physiology II (Animal Physiology)

Objectives of the course

The course is mandatory for researchers who carry out experiments with aquatic animals (fish and decapoda) and fulfil the Ministry's requirements for researches, FELASA category C.
The course should give the students a sufficient knowledge and background for conducting legal, environmentally safe end ethically acceptable experimental work with live fish and decapods.

Students who has completed the course should:

  • Know about the legislations and regulations in animal experimentation, including the Animal welfare act (Dyrevelferdsloven) and the Aquaculture management regulation (Akvakulturdriftsforskriften).
  • Know the authorities that maintain legislations and regulations, and how to apply to the Norwegian food safety authority (Mattilsynet) for permission to do experiments.
  • Have a sound and respectful attitude to the ethical aspects of working with live animals.
  • Have sufficient knowledge about relevant and important aspects of fish and decapode biology, including pain perception, stressors and stress responses, health and welfare, anaesthesia/immobilisation, acclimation, environmental needs and tagging methods.

Language of instruction and examination

English

Teaching methods

Obligatory attendance on lectures, seminars and excursion.

Assessment

3 hours written exam (counts 50%) and a home exam (counts 50%).
The home exam is a description of one experiment included in the candidate's PhD study, followed by an assessment of its cost-benefit, if and how the three R's has been regarded, degree of pain and consequential use of anesthetics, need for implementation of humane endpoints etc.
Grade: Pass/fail.
  • About the course
  • Campus: Tromsø |
  • ECTS: 5
  • Course code: BIO-8014