Animal husbandry procedure

Statements on which regulatory guidelines, such as 21 CFR 58 for FDA GLP compliance, will be followed and on Animal Care Committee protocol review Information on the drug substance, which commonly includes the test article name or number, identification criteria, physical description, who is responsible for test article characterization, the concentration(s) to be used, recommended storage conditions, inventory maintenance, formulation procedures, reserve samples, retention samples, analyses for content and homogeneity (if necessary), disposition, and safety precautions Information on the animal species to be studied, animal husbandry procedures, such as housing, food, water, contaminants, environment conditions, acclimation, and justification of selection... 

Test species Information on the animal species to be studied, animal husbandry procedures such as housing, food, water, contaminants, environmental conditions, acclimation, and justification of selection... 

Saibaba, P., Sales, G.D., Stodulski, G. and Hau, J. (1996) Behaviour of rats in their home cages daytime variations and effects of routine husbandry procedures analysed by time sampling techniques. Lab. Anim. 30, 13-21. 

All animal experimental procedures (including handling, housing, husbandry, blood collection, and drug treatment) must be conducted in accordance with national and institutional guidelines for the care and use of laboratory animals. 

Cages, racks, and other equipment must be capable of regular, easy cleaning. The use of disinfectants and pesticides should be avoided, particularly where they may come in contact with the animals, since such biologically active compounds may affect the study results. More detailed information regarding animal husbandry management and procedures can be found in the scientific literature, animal welfare publications, and official documents of the GLP. 

Various groups including the EU and IFOAM are lobbying hard to ensure conformity with their current standards and procedures. The Food Labelling Committee has reached agreement on all areas other than the animal husbandry guidelines and criteria for inclusion of new substances. 

Refinement Use improvements to scientific procedures and husbandry that minimize actual or potential pain, suffering, distress, or lasting harm and/or improve animal welfare in situations in which the use of animals is unavoidable. Refinement applies to the lifetime experience of the animal. There is evidence that refinement not only benefits animals, but also can improve the quality of research findings. Figure 45.8 shows a unique refinement of housing mice. 

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