 Medical Care
Guidelines
Preventive Medicine
Animal procurement: Newly acquired animals can introduce disease into
established colonies. In addition, production colonies maintained by
suppliers occasionally experience outbreaks of disease. The Office of the
Campus Veterinarian (OCV) monitors animal health quality from different
suppliers and maintains quality control data provided by vendors. This
information can be provided to investigators to assist in choosing
appropriate sources of animals.
Quarantine and stabilization: With some species of laboratory
animals, quarantine is necessary to minimize the introduction of disease
into established colonies. The extent of the quarantine period is
determined by the species and by knowledge of the animal's source and
previous history as well as by regulatory requirements. Arriving animals,
regardless of source, should be allowed a stabilization period before use.
Such a period allows the animal to recover from shipping stress, adapt to
its new surroundings and become physiologically stable. A minimum
acclimation period of 72 hours is required for all species. Animals under
going treatment will require additional time for recovery and will be made
available with approval of the campus veterinarian.
Separation of species: Physical separation of animals by
species is generally recommended to reduce the possibility of transmission
of latent diseases and to prevent possible inter-species aggression or
distress. This separation is usually accomplished by housing different
species in separate rooms. Even when animals of the same species are
obtained from multiple sources, their microbiological status may differ,
in which case separate housing as provided by barrier caging or separate
rooms may be advisable. Animal Transport: All
personnel involved in animal care and use are required to ensure that
animal transport through public access areas is conducted in a safe and
appropriate manner. Public access areas include roadway and areas outside
the animal facilities. All transportation of animals and empty carriers,
and transport cages should be planned to minimize transit time, reduce the
risk of zoonoses, avoid the visibility of animals to the public, and
protect the animals against physical trauma. Use service elevators when
available.
A. Requirements
for Transport Equipment
| Species |
Transport Equipment |
| Cats, Dogs,
Pigs |
covered large animal transport cage |
|
Rabbits |
covered large animal transport cage |
|
Rodents |
covered transport cage or shoebox
cage |
| Dead
animals |
opaque durable double plastic bag of
appropriate size |
Please note that
isolation gowns and biohazard bags are not acceptable for covering rodent
cages. If rodents are coming from non-barrier areas, please place cages
in an opaque plastic bag or cover with an opaque cloth drape. If rodents
are coming from a barrier-maintained area, they must be placed into an
opaque plastic bag before they are taken from the room in which they are
housed. Use double bags to transport dead animals. If the animals were
used in research involving biohazardous materials, follow the disposition
procedures as recommended by the Environmental Health and Safety Office
(x82648) and the Radiation Safety Office (x85746).
B. Requirements
for Transport Vehicles
Transporting animals
in vehicles not specifically designated for animal transportation (e.g.,
personal or rented vehicles) is strongly discouraged.
The following
contains general guidelines when a commercial transport company is not
used:
- Cargo space
must be constructed and maintained in a manner that protects the health
and well-being of the animals, including precluding the entry of exhaust
fumes;
- Animal cargo
space must have a supply of air that is sufficient for the normal
breathing of all animals;
- Air supply to
the animal cargo space shall not be shared with the air supply of the operator(s) to minimize the transmission of zoonotic agents by aerosol;
- Ambient
temperature of the vehicle must be maintained between 45°F and 85°F;
- It
is required to sanitize the transport vehicle after transportation of
the animals;
- If
a passenger vehicle is used, place plastic or similar material on the
floor under the transport cage to minimize contamination;
- For
transporting large species of animals, a cargo van is preferred provided
the transport cages can be adequately secured to prevent movement.
Surveillance, Diagnosis, Treatment and
Control of Disease
A veterinary medical surveillance program is in effect for all animals
maintained at UCR. Animal health is monitored daily, including weekends
and holidays, for signs of illness, injury, or abnormal behavior. In cases
where such observation will interfere with experimental objectives, prior
arrangements must be made with the OCV to ensure adequate monitoring of
animals and environmental systems. A mouse and rat sentinel monitoring
program is in effect in all vivarium. Samples are periodically taken from
each sentinel cage and submitted for comprehensive testing. If evidence of
infectious pathogens are discovered and confirmed in the sentinel animals,
investigators are notified. Health surveillance information, including
information provided to us by our vendors, is maintained on file and
available to investigative staff upon request. For more information on the
surveillance, diagnosis, treatment, and control of animal diseases,
including the possible affects of disease on experimental animal models,
contact the Office of the Campus Veterinarian (909-787-6332).
Emergency Care
Health problems noted by animal should be reported immediately to the
vivarium staff including the animal's identification, room number where it
is located, the species, nature of the clinical problem, and the telephone
number of the person making the report.
 Anesthesia and Analgesia
Animal procedures are reviewed by both the OCV and the
Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) to ensure
that proposed anesthetics and/or analgesics are appropriate for the
species and research objectives. The OCV is available upon request
to provide assistance with, or training in the proper administration and
use of anesthetics.
Personnel must be trained in the proper use of anesthetic vaporizers
prior to operation. All anesthetic vaporizers must undergo yearly
servicing by qualified personnel. Animal study areas housing anesthetic
vaporizers must be inspected yearly by EH&S. Documentation of
servicing and EH&S inspection is required and subject to IACUC
review.
Written documentation of all surgical procedures, including the types,
amounts, and time of administration of anesthetic, analgesic or
tranquilizing drugs used and the physiologic parameters (i.e., heart rate,
respiratory rate, body temperature) monitored during the procedure,
is required. This documentation is subject to inspection by the USDA
veterinary inspectors and the IACUC
during its semiannual inspections of animal facilities and animal study
areas. In addition, all manipulations and drug use must be recorded in the
individual animal's record and in the investigator's experimental
notebook.
The ILAR Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals requires that
any proposal to conduct painful procedures without anesthesia or analgesia
must be scientifically justified by the investigator and approved by the
institutional animal care and use committee. Such procedures must be
directly supervised by the responsible investigator.
Surgery and Postoperative Care
Survival surgery: Survival surgery is defined as any surgery from which
the animal recovers consciousness. Major surgery is defined as any
surgical intervention that penetrates a body cavity or has the potential
for producing a permanent handicap in an animal that is expected to
recover. Minor surgery is any operative procedure in which only skin or
mucous membrane is incised (e.g., vascular cutdown for catheter placement
or implanting pumps in subcutaneous tissue). Because they are minimally
invasive, gonadectomies on rodents and lower vertebrates are usually
considered minor surgical procedures. Multiple major survival surgery is
defined as two or more major survival surgical procedures performed at
separate times on a single animal. The IACUC
permits multiple major
survival surgery only under special circumstances. Cost alone is not an
adequate reason for performing multiple major survival surgeries on an
animal.
Major surgical procedures on mammals other than rodents must be
conducted in OCV and IACUC
approved surgical facilities using aseptic
techniques. These techniques include wearing sterile surgical gloves,
gowns, caps and face masks; using sterile supplies and instruments; and
maintaining an aseptically prepared surgical field.
Minor surgical procedures on mammals other than rodents may be
performed in a suitably located and equipped laboratory area, subject to
approval by the OCV and the IACUC. Appropriate aseptic technique for these
procedures includes a clean uncluttered work area, preparation of the
surgical site including clipping of the hair, disinfection of the skin and
draping of the surgical site with sterile drapes; the use of sterile
supplies and instruments; and the use of sterile gloves and a surgical
mask by the surgeon and any assistants working in the surgical
field.
Surgical Procedures on rodent and non-mammalian species may also be
conducted under the above conditions in laboratories or animal facility
procedure rooms.
Pre- and Postoperative care: Animals (other than some rodents) should
generally be fasted prior to anesthesia and surgery to prevent vomiting,
aspiration, and problems associated with a distended intestinal tract.
Animals should be evaluated by performing a brief physical examination and
recording baseline physiologic measurements of such parameters as body
temperature, heart rate, and respiratory rate prior to the administration
of an anesthetic agent. Animals should be weighed and dosages of agents
administered calculated individually according to body weight
measurements.
Postsurgical care includes clinical observation of the animal to ensure
uneventful recovery from anesthesia and surgery. Once the animal has been
returned to its normal housing area, subsequent care may be necessary.
This may include supportive fluids, analgesics, and other drugs as
required; monitoring of the animal to include daily body temperatures,
clinical observations for signs of pain, abnormal behavior, appetite and
excretory functions, and providing adequate care of surgical incisions.
The investigator is responsible for supportive care unless arrangements
have been made to contract OCV veterinary staff for these services.
Written post-operative records including date, time, person making the
observations, condition of animals, and any treatments/procedures
performed should be maintained for inspection by USDA, IACUC,
OCV, or
other regulatory inspections.
Non-survival surgery: Non-survival surgery is defined as any surgery in
which the animal will not regain consciousness. Such procedures may be
performed in a suitably located and equipped laboratory, subject to OCV
and IACUC
evaluation and approval.
For more information please contact the Office of Campus Veterinarian
(909) 787-6332 and refer to the UC Riverside Laboratory Animal Care and
Use Training Manual.
Euthanasia
Euthanasia is generally performed at the end of a project or, if
possible, during a procedure in which animals experience severe or chronic
pain or distress that cannot be relieved (9 CFR 2.31; PHS, 1986). Since
there may be a need to euthanize animals for unanticipated reasons even on
protocols that do not include euthanasia as part of the planned project,
at least one method must be documented for each species used in a
protocol. The euthanasia method chosen must be appropriate for the species
and research use described by the protocol, and must be consistent with
the current recommendations of the
American Veterinary Medical Association
Guidelines on Euthanasia. If the method deviates from AVMA recommendations, the
deviation must be justified scientifically and approved by the IACUC.
Euthanasia should be performed humanely, quickly and efficiently in a
nonpublic area but generally not in rooms in which animals are
housed. Conditionally acceptable methods must be scientifically justified
by the Principal Investigator and approved by the IACUC.
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