All facilities and companies in which laboratory animals are bred and kept, animals are killed for scientific purposes or animal experiments are carried out must appoint one or more animal welfare officer(s).
The animal welfare officers fulfil their duties in particular by advising the institution for which they work and the persons employed there, as well as by issuing statements on animal experiments for the approval authority.
The animal welfare officers at Leipzig University Medicine also ensure that the legal requirements are complied with in the interests of animal welfare (Section 5 Laboratory Animal Welfare Ordinance (Tierschutz-Versuchstierordnung - TierSchVersV)). They advise and support the animal care and scientific staff/employees who carry out animal experiments in all matters relating to animal welfare. To this end, the animal welfare officers have unrestricted access to all processes relevant to animal welfare. The animal welfare officers are already involved in the planning of animal experiments and have unrestricted access to the animal facilities. They can also view the researchers' records at any time. The animal welfare officers also work to ensure that all possible measures to improve animal welfare are implemented, for example by improving husbandry conditions, making improvements to the way experiments are carried out or by providing training and further education in laboratory animal science for all persons involved.
