Publication Ethics

The Journal of Applied Tropical Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science is committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics and academic integrity. The journal follows internationally recognized principles of responsible scholarly publishing, including the ethical standards and core practices recommended by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). COPE emphasizes integrity in areas such as authorship, peer review, conflicts of interest, data reliability, corrections, retractions, and editorial independence.

This publication ethics statement applies to authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher.

Duties of Authors

Authors must ensure that:

  1. The manuscript is original and has not been published or submitted elsewhere.
  2. The work does not contain plagiarism, data fabrication, data falsification, or inappropriate image manipulation.
  3. All authors have made significant scholarly contributions to the work.
  4. All sources, data, methods, and references are properly acknowledged.
  5. Any potential conflicts of interest are clearly disclosed.
  6. Research involving animals has received appropriate ethical approval from a recognized ethics committee.
  7. The manuscript contains sufficient detail to allow other researchers to verify or replicate the study where applicable.
  8. Any errors discovered after submission or publication are promptly reported to the editorial office.

Authorship should reflect substantial contribution to the conception or design of the study, acquisition or analysis of data, drafting or critical revision of the manuscript, final approval of the submitted version, and accountability for the integrity of the work. These principles are consistent with widely used international authorship standards such as the ICMJE recommendations.

Duties of Editors

Editors are responsible for:

  1. Making fair, objective, and transparent editorial decisions.
  2. Evaluating manuscripts based on academic merit, originality, relevance, and ethical compliance.
  3. Maintaining confidentiality of submitted manuscripts.
  4. Avoiding conflicts of interest in editorial decisions.
  5. Selecting qualified and independent reviewers.
  6. Ensuring that allegations of research or publication misconduct are properly investigated.
  7. Issuing corrections, expressions of concern, or retractions when necessary.
  8. Protecting editorial independence from commercial, institutional, or personal influence.

Duties of Reviewers

Reviewers are expected to:

  1. Provide objective, constructive, and timely evaluations.
  2. Maintain confidentiality of manuscripts and review materials.
  3. Declare any conflict of interest before accepting a review assignment.
  4. Assess the manuscript’s originality, methodology, interpretation, relevance, and contribution.
  5. Avoid personal criticism of authors.
  6. Inform the editor of suspected plagiarism, duplicate publication, ethical concerns, or data irregularities.

Duties of the Publisher

The publisher supports editorial independence and ensures that commercial interests do not influence editorial decisions. The publisher is responsible for maintaining the journal platform, archiving published content, supporting ethical publishing practices, and assisting editors in handling misconduct cases.

Research Involving Animals

Research involving animals must comply with applicable national and institutional ethical standards. Authors must provide a statement confirming that the study has been reviewed and approved by an appropriate animal ethics committee. The ethical approval number, committee name, and approval date should be included in the manuscript.

Conflict of Interest

Authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any financial, institutional, personal, or professional relationships that may influence the research, review, or publication process. Transparency in conflicts of interest is important for maintaining public trust in scientific publishing.

Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern

The journal may issue a correction, retraction, or expression of concern when necessary. Retraction may be applied in cases of plagiarism, data fabrication, data falsification, unethical research, duplicate publication, or serious errors that invalidate the findings.