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Contents Overview of Canisius College Animal Facility

The Canisius College Animal Facility exists for the care and housing of rats, mice, and other small animals on the third floor (Rooms 320-333) of the Health Science Center. This facility provides husbandry and equipment for animals used in teaching and research at Canisius College.

General Rules

1. All animals will be treated in the most humane manner possible with consideration to both the physical and psychological comfort of the animals. All applicable external regulations will be complied with, including those from the USDA, PHS and the New York State Department of Health. Each investigator is required to understand and fully conform with all animal regulations and policies. Negligence in these matters or in the required record keeping will result in cancellation of privileges by the IACUC.

2. Animals are not to be ordered or obtained for any project prior to IACUC approval of a project.

3. Prior to ordering animals, investigators will provide assurance to the IACUC that appropriate caging and other facilities are available.

4. Investigators must cooperate with Animal Care personnel in observing the housekeeping and sanitation rules under which the Animal Facility staff operates.

Procurement of Laboratory Animals

1. The source for each supply of new animals must be specified during the prospective IACUC protocol review process. Ordinarily animals will be obtained from vendors who provide evidence of disease-free breeding conditions and animals.

2. Before ordering any animals, investigators must insure that space is available for the animals they wish to order.

3. Before the arrival of new animals, each investigator is responsible for setting up the cages into which the animals will be placed.

4. Each investigator (or his/her designee) is responsible for being present to receive new animals when they are delivered. Immediately upon arrival, the animals are to be unpacked and checked for signs of disease or injury. Any animals exhibiting signs of disease or injury must be immediately reported to the vendor for information and/or possible replacement.

5. Animals cannot be used for 3 days after arrival to allow for their recovery from the stress of shipping.

6. Inventory sheets will be updated each time animals enter or leave our facility. Additionally, every Friday an actual count of animals will be made and the results recorded.

Temporary Animal Removal

No animals may be taken outside of the Canisius Health Science Center without prior approval of the Canisius IACUC. In the event that such approval is obtained, upon return the animals must be quarantined for a minimum of two weeks. During this period, a separate broom, mop and mop bucket is to be utilized for the quarantine room and these items are to be kept within the room. All personnel entering the room are to wear gloves, aprons and overshoe-covers which are to be disposed at the doorway when leaving the room.

Experimental Treatments and Procedures

1. All animal treatments and procedures must have prior approval from the College IACUC, and this review and approval must be obtained prospectively for all stages of a project before any portion of the project can commence.

2. All experimental procedures (meaning all steps which extend beyond routine husbandry) are the responsibility of the individual investigator. Animal care personnel ordinarily play no role in support of experimental procedures and treatments.

3. Dead animals and/or animal tissues are not to be included in the waste stream which is handled by animal-care and/or housekeeping personnel. Animal carcasses (derived from euthanasia procedures or any other means) and animal tissues are to be placed in the designated freezer for subsequent incineration. The Biology Laboratory Manager is to be notified whenever such items are placed in the freezer.

The Use of Hazardous Agents

At present, the Animal Facility personnel and procedures are not prepared or equipped for protocols which employ hazardous agents such as infectious microbes, toxic chemicals and radioisotopes.

Before any new protocol which employs hazardous agents would be considered, it would first undergo a feasibility review by an ad hoc committee which would include the Biology Department Chair, the IACUC Chair, the Biology Department Laboratory Manager, and the Consulting Veterinarian.

Consulting Veterinarian Responsibilities

The Canisius College consulting veterinarian is to:

1. Serve as member of the College IACUC.

2. Make periodic unannounced inspections of our facilities and operations (with the timing and frequency of such visits left to the judgment of the consulting veterinarian).

3. Participate in conducting the annual training sessions which the College provides for animal-related personnel.

4. Provide all clinical veterinary medical care.

5. When requested, perform necropsies on animals dying of unknown, non-experimental causes.

6. When requested, perform microscopic examination of animal tissue to aid in diagnosis and detection of diseases.

Animal Care Personnel

1. Shower and changing facilities are available in the locker room of the Animal Facility.

2. Clothing and other personal belongings are to be kept in the lockers assigned to each employee. Personal effects may not be kept in animal rooms or storage areas.

3. Animal care personnel are expected to wear aprons, lab coats, gloves and dust masks when carrying out their duties. These are provided in the locker room in the Animal Unit.

4. Eating, drinking, the use of tobacco, and/or the application of cosmetics are not permitted in animal rooms or animal research laboratories.

5. Radios are not allowed in animal housing areas.

Emergency Contact Numbers

A list of all relevant personnel who may need to be contacted in the case of irregularities and/or emergencies must be posted next to each telephone in the Animal Facility. The work and home telephone numbers of each applicable investigator must be clearly posted in each animal holding area.

General Husbandry Considerations

A. Food

Unless otherwise specified in an IACUC-approved protocol, all mammals and birds are to have ad lib food and water. Fish are to be maintained with automatic feeders providing frequent small amounts of food throughout the day. As described below, daily checks are to be made to confirm that food and water is continuously present and conditions are normal.

All animal food will be kept in specifically designated locations which are to be separate from those used for human food. When food is stored, all associated labels must visible. Food supplies are to be rotated so that the oldest food is used first. Any food which arrives without an associated expiration date (such as frozen bait-fish for feeding turtles, fresh grocery vegetables for feeding birds, etc.) will be labeled with the date of arrival and will be kept in storage for no more than three months, even if frozen.

Food containers are to be completely emptied before refilling, and sanitized at least once a month. Let dry completely before refilling.

B. Environmental Factors

For each project, details pertaining to animal husbandry must be included in the IACUC application, and must receive prior approval. As a general rule, all animals must be housed in cages whose composition and size meet or exceed those specified in the PHS "Guide".

All animal rooms are equipped with 24-hour, automatic clocks which control the lighting. Unless otherwise specified in a prospectively approved IACUC protocol, each room is to be maintained on a 12:12 light:dark schedule (or a 12:12 white:red schedule when applicable). The brightness and spectral frequencies of room lighting must comply with the National Research Council "Guide for the Use of Laboratory Animals". With respect to reptiles, full spectrum basking lamps must be provided.

Air flow in each animal room is to be maintained separately from the others (i.e., the air from each room must be vented to the outside and not passed to another room). Additionally, each room is to be maintained at a negative pressure relative to the adjacent hallway. Unless otherwise specified in an IACUC-approved protocol, the air temperature and humidity in each room is to be maintained at those conditions specified in the PHS Guide for the species housed therein.

A temperature sensor in each room is to be monitored continuously by the maintenance department’s computer. Any deviation by more than 2 deg C from the applicable set point requires an immediate corrective response from the maintenance department. Deviations which cannot be resolved by maintenance personnel within one half hour require immediate notification of the applicable investigators and the Biology Department Laboratory Manager. Additionally, each room is to be equipped with an independent min/max thermometer/hydrometer. A daily log must be kept by the animal care staff of each room’s temperature and humidity present at the time of the check and that room’s minimum and maximum levels for the past 24 hours. Any deviations of more than 2 deg C and/or 10 percent humidity must be immediately reported to the applicable investigator and the Biology Department Laboratory Manager.

The rate of air flow, and the total room air changes per hour, must also comply with the Guide and is to be verified by direct measurement by the maintenance department at least once each year.

Procedures for the Care of Rodents

A. Caging

1. Rats and mice will ordinarily be housed in solid bottomed polycarbonate ("shoebox-type") cages.

2. Under normal conditions, rats will be housed in same-sex pairs to allow for a degree of social interaction. (That is, these conditions will be maintained when the applicable protocol(s) do not require alternative housing conditions.)

3. Each cage is to be provided with a cage card indicating the following information: Investigator, Number of Animals in Cage, Date of Birth, Source, Date of Arrival, ID Number, Treatment Condition and IACUC Approval Number. Alternatively, if all animals on a given rack are under the same conditions, a clearly visible summary label can be employed with reference to all of the animals on that rack.

B. Daily husbandry practices

1. Each day a thorough examination of the premises and animals contained therein will be made by the Animal Care Technician assigned. Upon initially entering a room, the room temperature will be noted, and a visual check will be made for any abnormalities (including missing or drained water bottles, evidence of blood in bedding, open cages, burned out light fixtures, etc.). A visual check is to be made of each individual animal in an effort to make an assessment of its state of health. The date and time of this examination, and any abnormalities, are to be entered on the Animal Facility Log. Any abnormalities are also to be immediately reported to the Principal Investigator, who in turn will either take corrective action or report the abnormality to the Consulting Veterinarian.

2. The technician will assure the animal water bottles have an adequate supply of fresh clean water daily. Bottles requiring filling between scheduled changes will be completely emptied and filled with fresh clean water and returned to the same cage from which it was removed.

3. The technician will check the level in each food hopper (as this is a good indication as to whether or not an animal is eating and drinking appropriately). If a feeder appears to be at the same level as the previous day, the technician will closely examine conditions in the cage associated with that hopper. This check will specifically include a removal and examination of the associated water bottle to ensure that it is flowing properly.

4. If animals are being bred, a visual check will be made of each dam and the presence or absence of any pups will be noted.

C. Scheduled husbandry practices

1. Each Monday, Wednesday and Friday, feeders will be filled from the food barrel.

2. Each Monday, Wednesday and Friday, water bottles are to be removed and replaced with clean bottles. Bottles must not be switched from cage to cage (because of the potential for the spread of disease). Previously used bottles are to be washed in cage washer.

3. Solid bottom (shoebox-type) cages are to be changed on Monday and Friday. Clean cages containing fresh bedding shall be brought to the respective room and animals transferred from soiled to clean cages. Rack shelves are to be wiped when changing cages. The soiled cages are to be taken to the cage cleaning room (the "dirty side") where soiled bedding will be removed and the cages washed in the cage washer. Previously-used cages are not to be emptied of soiled bedding either in the animal rooms or in the halls.

4. All garbage cans are to be emptied no fewer than three times each week (normally each Monday, Wednesday and Friday).

5. Refuse bags are to be transferred to the waste disposal area by the elevator to await transportation by the housekeeping staff to the building dumpster.

6. Floors are to be cleaned thoroughly three times each week by sweeping followed by mopping with an approved disinfectant/detergent. When cleaning floors, the cage racks are to be moved to be sure to clean under them. Excess water should be removed.

7. Floors drains are to be flushed twice after each mopping. Each floor drain will be opened and cleaned once per week.

8. Sinks are to be kept clean and free of debris. Sinks and counter tops will be thoroughly cleaned no fewer than three times each week.

9. Each separate use area within the Animal Facility is to have its own assigned mop and broom. Mops and brooms are not to be taken from area to area.

10. Brooms are to be washed with soap and water once each week.

11. After each use, mops are to be rinsed, wrung and hung to dry. Mops are to be soaked in a 10 percent bleach solution once each week.

12. The external surfaces of each air vent is to be cleaned once each week.

Procedures for the Care of Fish

1. When fish are to be housed on campus, the IACUC must be assured that the water quality in the housing tanks will be maintained at a suitably high level. The user is required to include all practices relating to water quality maintenance in the protocol upon initial application. One of two possible tactics are expected to be carried out:
  • Once weekly water quality tests as outlined in the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council standards, or
  • Once weekly replacement of 10 percent of tank water with fresh dechlorinated water of the same temperature as the water already in the tank.
2. Three times each week (normally on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday), the caretaker is to refill all automatic fish feeders with fresh dried flake food.

3. Three times each week (normally on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday), the caretaker is to provide each tank with supplementary food items (e.g., frozen brine shrimp, blood worms, tubifex worms, vegetables, as appropriate).

4. The functioning of each automatic fish feeder, filter, and aerator is to be checked on a daily basis.

5. Once each week, the caretaker is to scrub algae from fish tank walls.

6. Once per week each filter is to be inspected and cleaned as needed.

Procedures for the Care of Birds

1. Each day the caretaker is to provide fresh water. Each day he/she is also to remove, wash and replace the bird bath with clean fresh water.

2. Each day, the birds are to be provided with fresh vegetables and/or fruit as appropriate.

3. Seed feeders (and grit feeders, if appropriate) are to be checked daily, and at least once each week, all seed feeders and grit feeders are to be refilled.

4. Once per week, the bedding on the bottom of the cage is to replaced. (Spot cleaning – i.e., the replacement of selected portions of the bedding – is acceptable if the bird droppings are concentrated in particular areas.)

Procedures for the Care of Turtles

1. Under normal circumstances, turtles are to be housed in filtered, aerated tanks. Under such conditions, the holding tanks should undergo once weekly partial water changes (10 percent minimum).

2. If turtles are temporarily housed in unfiltered, unaerated tanks (because of the demands of an IACUC-approved protocol), the tank water will be completely drained at least three times each week (normally Monday, Wednesday and Friday) and replaced with fresh water of the identical temperature.

3. Animal care technicians are required to thoroughly wash their hands and forearms immediately after each time they come into contact with turtles or turtle holding tanks.

4. Twice each week (normally Monday and Friday), turtles are to be feed a mixture of the appropriate diet (e.g., whole fish from a bait shop, commercial turtle food, vegetables, etc.).

5. Once each week, each turtle is to be weighed and its weight recorded in the animal care log. In the event that any turtle shows evidence of a loss of weight, the investigator is to be notified.

Procedures for the Care of Other Species

Canisius College does not presently have standardized procedures for the care and husbandry of other species. Any applicant contemplating the use of other species will be expected to include all details concerning husbandry in the IACUC application. The applicant should anticipate a dialog with the IACUC in which the feasibility of properly caring for the applicable species will be explored.