MSU is one of many research facilities cited by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for violating the Animal Welfare Act, but officials say the citations are minor.

The violations from the July 23 and Aug. 1 inspections include incomplete descriptions of animal use, lack of trained personnel involved with animal care, having expired medication and failure to evaluate all animals daily.

"The supposed violations were pretty minor, but we take them all seriously," said Lonnie King, dean of the MSU College of Veterinary Medicine. "If we have problems or failings, we will make sure they get resolved.

"We constantly are under review from the USDA, so this is nothing."

Passed in 1966, the act requires "minimum standards in housing, nutrition, veterinary care and transportation" for animals, USDA spokesman Darby Holladay said.

This year's inspection was geared toward teaching practices with animal care because of a petition filed against the USDA by the Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights, or AVAR.

"We're using this petition as a wake-up call to the USDA and to the schools to pay attention to what they should be doing," AVAR National Director Teri Barnato said.

David Bristol, director of academic affairs and associate dean of the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine, said the USDA's inspections gave the school a learning experience. His veterinary school also was cited for various minor violations.

"When the USDA went around, they found that things differed across the country," he said. "As a result of all this, there will be more uniform interpretation."

AVAR is concentrating efforts on eliminating experiments that cause pain or distress to animals, whic is the ultimate goal, Barnato said. The Western University of Health Sciences in California uses live animals for students.

"We do not kill any animals in the process, instead, we use models and cadavers," University President Philip Pumerantz said.

Currently, the MSU program uses a balance of models and live animals for research and education, said Janver Krehbiel, senior associate dean for administration and associate dean for academic programs at MSU's College of Veterinary Medicine. Krehbiel said the school will continue using live animals for some procedures.

"We've done that for a number of years, and there is not a valid model available that will help students learn to deal with bleeding in time of surgery," he said.

Inspections from the USDA are conducted by the animal care unit of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and concentrate solely on compliance with the Animal Welfare Act. The USDA annually inspects research institutions, circuses, zoos and any person licensed to care for animals.

Holladay said AVAR's attempt to increase alternatives to live animal research is not detailed in the act.

"Animal care only enforces what it can enforce by Congress," Holladay said.