About the IACUC
The Animal Welfare Act requires that minimum standards of care and treatment must be provided for certain animals used for research, teaching, or exhibition purposes. All activities and procedures that use vertebrate animals at Fort Hays State University must comply with public laws, policies and guidelines, and be reviewed and approved by the FHSU Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) to ensure that such activities are in compliance with all federal, state and FHSU regulations, policies and standards in to ensure proper animal care and use. The IACUC is also responsible for conducting inspections of all areas where animals are housed and used, reviews the institutional program for animal use and reports its findings.
COVID-19 Guidelines Regarding Research with Live Bats
Research conducted since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic has shown that the strain of the virus currently affecting humans likely originated from a similar virus that is prevalent in horseshoe bats of Asia. The structure and size of the viruses are remarkably similar, suggesting mutation and subsequent jump directly from bats to humans, or possibly from bats through a second animal vector known as the Pangolin, to humans. As a result of this research, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and subsequently the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, has put in place guidelines for ANY research involving the handling of live bats. Scientists are unsure at this time whether or not the virus is transmissible from humans back to bats. To protect bats that occur within the United States generally, and Kansas specifically, all research that involves the handling of live bats must be approved by the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks. The scientific collecting permit issued by KDWP will have specific instructions pertinent to the specific study.
Meeting Schedule and Submission Deadlines (FY22)
The IACUC has scheduled meetings two times per fall and spring semesters. Scheduled meetings typically occur at the beginning (late August; late January) and end (early December; early May) of the semester. Unscheduled meetings may be requested (and will be updated as needed in the table below). All protocols should be submitted to IRBNet approximately 10 days in advance of the scheduled IACUC meeting date.
Deadline for Submission to IRBNet |
IACUC Meeting Date |
September 10, 2023 |
September 20, 2023 |
November 19, 2023 |
November 29, 2023 |
February 18, 2024 |
February 28, 2024 |
April 25, 2024 |
May 7, 2024 |
Contact IACUC@fhsu.edu if you have any questions about scheduling an IACUC meeting and/or about animal use and care in at FHSU.