Animal Care Facility Photo, Video, and Social Media Guidelines

Purpose

These guidelines describe the conditions under which photography, video and audio recording, and social media use are permitted within the University of Oregon’s (UO’s) animal care facilities and in research and teaching laboratories involving animals. These guidelines additionally describe the permissible use of photography, audio, and video recording while in animal care facilities.

Scope

These guidelines apply to all persons involved in research or teaching using vertebrate animals at University of Oregon.

Backgrounds and Definitions

The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (2011) (“the Guide”) provides guidelines for institutions regarding the environment, housing, and management of laboratory animals used or produced for research, testing, and teaching. Unscheduled lights, novel sounds, unfamiliar smells, or non-routine activity, each of which may be associated with acquiring image or sound recordings, can impact animal health and well-being. This may result in altering animals’ physiology, resulting in modifications of research outcomes. As such, these guidelines set forth requirements intended to safeguard the health and welfare of University of Oregon’s laboratory animals and the integrity of related research.

In addition, these guidelines seek to preserve and protect the security of University of Oregon and the privacy of Principal Investigators (PIs), research teams, and compliance staff, which can be compromised by inappropriate photographing and video and/or audio recording within facilities. These guidelines balance accommodating the scientific needs of those who require photographs or recordings for collection of research data with preserving and protecting security and privacy.

UO’s animal care facilities are not open to the public. Photographing, video recording, and audio recording animals or animal facilities is prohibited, subject to the following exceptions: (1) for purposes directly related to the corresponding approved Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) animal use protocol, (2) for vivarium operations or veterinary medical purposes performed by qualified staff, including training or documentation of clinical cases, (3) for University Communications approved outreach, marketing, promotions, and communication purposes, or (4) personal usage in IACUC-approved University of Oregon courses. Photographing, video recording, and audio recording animals or animal facilities may be done only with UO resources and/or pursuant to a specific work assignment.

Guidelines

Personnel Permitted to Acquire Visual and/or Sound Recording

Only current University of Oregon personnel (faculty, staff, and students) are permitted to capture image and sound recordings of research animals.
Visiting faculty, visiting scientists, prospective employees, prospective students, and the media are not permitted to acquire images or sound recordings in the University of Oregon’s animal care facility and in research and teaching laboratories, unless given explicit permission in writing from the Vice President for Research and Innovation, or their designee, and, in the case of media, appropriate approval from University Communications.

Requests

Requests must be submitted in writing to the Vice President for Research and Innovation or their designee, and, in the case of media, University Communications. The request must include:

  1. A brief narrative description of activities
    1. The what/when/how of the project, including the boundaries/scope (e.g. one-time or multiple visits/products/etc.)
    2. Target audience and distribution of materials (e.g. for an external website/blog)

Depending on the nature of the request, approval steps may include:

  1. The IACUC
  2. Core facility director
  3. OVPRI Communications
  4. Brand management
  5. OVPRI Executive team
  6. Innovation Partnership Services (if external and especially for-profit entities are involved)

Approval may require certain steps to be taken as part of the project, including:

  1. A fee for access consistent with UO policy
  2. A disclaimer tied to distribution
  3. An acknowledgement related to facilities use/dissemination
  4. Post-project review of materials before distribution/dissemination
  5. A contract/agreement or amendment to the facilities use agreement to be executed to perform these activities
  6. An acknowledgment of funding source(s)

Photography and Video and Audio Recording Requirements for Live Animals

General

All personnel shown in photographs or video recordings must be wearing appropriate personal protective equipment and must not be individually identifiable.

No references to personal information may be visible in photographs or video recording, including background items such as cage cards, room numbers, and employee badges or ID cards.
Applicable requirements for animal care remain in effect, including:

  • Appropriate handling and restraint methods for the species must be used and the procedures depicted must be described in an approved IACUC animal use protocol.
  • Animals must have tidy surroundings, clean cages or pens, and clean accessories in all photographs and video recordings. Water bottles and feeders must be full if visible.

Data Collection

All photography and video or audio recording of live animals for data collection must be referenced in the corresponding approved IACUC animal use protocol(s).

Publications, scientific conferences, grant applications, project collaborators

If an investigator is taking photographs and/or video and/or audio recordings for publications, scientific conference presentations, grant applications, or project collaborators, the investigator does not need to request approval for this usage in an IACUC animal use protocol.

The PI(s) must give approval for photographs, video, or audio recordings to be captured of animals on the PI’s approved IACUC animal use protocol(s).

Shared Spaces

If continuous video or audio recording will be conducted in a room in which multiple investigators’ animals are present, permission must be granted by the other Principal Investigator(s) in the shared space before such recording commences.

Courses

A course is defined as a set of classes or a plan of study on a particular subject, usually leading to an exam or qualification. Students and instructors may capture photographs and/or video and/or audio recording of animals used in courses for personal usage in accordance with these guidelines. Students and instructors should delete images, videos, or audio recordings after the course has been concluded.

Deceased Animal Photograph Requirements

The animal must be placed on a clean drape and the area surrounding the animal must be free of any bodily fluids. Images of abnormalities/lesions must be framed and/or cropped to direct attention to that specific area of the animal. This reduces the inference of pain or distress.

Security Requirements

The Assistant Vice President for Research Integrity or their designee retains sole discretion to publicize photographs and video and/or audio recordings of research animals to any type of social media, including laboratory websites. UO’s policies on Record Retention apply to the use of photography or video on the UO campus.

Animal Welfare Services will review the proposed use of remote video or audio monitoring to ensure appropriate security safeguards. Remote access should be conducted via the University of Oregon’s Virtual Private Network (VPN). Recordings must not be streamed or saved to personal hand-held devices. It is recommended that portable devices with these types of sensitive images and recordings include two-factor authentication, such as password-protection in addition to required encryption.

All removable storage devices (tapes, flash drives, and similar portable devices) that contain photographs, video, and/or audio recordings of animals must be encrypted and kept in a secure, locked area with access limited to only University of Oregon personnel. The PI should consider retaining a chain of custody log for portable devices.

Computers containing photographs, video, and/or audio recordings must be password-protected. Copies may not be made of images and/or recordings without explicit permission from the PI.
Users taking photographs, video, and/or audio recordings for communications or marketing purposes must follow the above stipulations regarding storage and distribution unless express approval is given from the Assistant Vice President for Research Integrity or their designee.

Social Media

In an effort to provide education about the benefits and risks of social media and to minimize personal and future career risk, suggested guidelines for use of social media can be found at the University of Oregon’s Social Media Guidelines website. These guidelines are intended to support creative and innovative use of social media by staff and to further University purposes in a manner that minimizes personal, professional, and institutional risk. Whether social media is being used for business or personal use, being thoughtful about what and how much to share on a social media platform is important. In some instances, information taken out of context can be damaging to the individual’s reputation and/or the University’s ability to pursue its mission. It is important to remember that posts can appear to be removed or deleted, but in fact could remain available and circulating due to high probability that the site or its contents have been saved or archived, or someone else has saved, downloaded, or shared the information.

Avoiding Unintended Distribution of Images

Although recording of animals or animal activities may be justified or necessary for instructional or scientific presentations or publications, investigators should recognize that what is perceived as appropriate is not necessarily seen that way in the public eye. Special attention should be given to both the secure processing, transport, and storage of negatives, disks, tapes, media cards, etc. and to the dissemination of images or recordings taken by investigators or authorized personnel in the course of their work.

Animal use and housing facilities are confidential. Every effort should be made to avoid showing identifying landmarks for security purposes (e.g., building and room numbers, worker’s name badges, etc.).

Careless or casual use of recorded images or recordings from animal use areas or in the field could unintentionally expose students, staff, and faculty to unwanted attention and harassment or misrepresent the nature of such activities occurring at or by University of Oregon and its affiliates. Investigators and faculty should consider asking students and visitors to read these guidelines prior to entering animal use areas, engaging in animal-related activities, or adding these guidelines to departmental or course-specific policies or agreements.

Individuals are encouraged to report any posting, sharing, or distribution of prohibited or casual images involving the care and use of research animals at the University of Oregon by contacting Animal Welfare Services (541-346-4958 or iacuc@uoregon.edu).

Exceptions

External inspectors with a regulatory need to visit or inspect animal care activities, such as the United States Department of Agriculture, Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare, AAALAC International, and certain research sponsors are permitted to capture photographs and video and/or audio recording as needed.

Unauthorized Photography, Video Recording or Audio Recording

Use of cameras, cell phones, and other mobile devices capable of capturing images/recordings of animals or animal facilities for personal use is strictly prohibited. Anyone found taking unauthorized photographs or recordings will be immediately ushered from the facility and must relinquish to the University of Oregon any images or other recordings obtained without permission.

Consequences for Violating the Above Guidelines

Violation of these guidelines may be considered a serious event of noncompliance that is reportable to the IACUC, funding and accrediting agencies, as well as other regulatory agencies. Violation of these guidelines is a serious matter that may adversely affect both the ability to perform animal work and acquire funding sources.

Failure to comply with this and related guidelines is subject to disciplinary action, up to and including suspension without pay, or termination of employment or association with the University, in accordance with applicable (e.g., staff, faculty, student) disciplinary procedures.

Approvals

Adopted December 2023

Issued By

Stephanie Womack, director of Animal Welfare Services