Laboratory Animal Facility Equipment

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Laboratory Animal Facility Equipment

• LAT Chapter 6

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Facility Equipment

• Surgery suites
• Necropsy
• Incinerator facilities
• Equipment for unique research needs

• Animal rooms
• Mechanical areas
• Cage wash area
• Diet preparation

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Small Animal Room Set-up
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Water Treatment Area
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Rack Washer Cage Washer
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Prep, Surgery, Recovery
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Lab, Necropsy
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Animal Facility Designs

• Non-husbandry-related functions
• About 25 percent of the total floor space
• Legal requirements must be taken into account.
• waste disposal, noise, odor control, and facility
  security
• Design determined by the nature of the research.
• safety of its employees, the animals, and the
  surrounding community
• Space requirements and traffic flow
• Protection of the animals from common diseases

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Animal Facility
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Conventional Facilities

• A conventional facility has no special design
  provisions for clean/dirty traffic flow.
• The animal rooms have one doorway through which
  clean items enter and dirty items exit.
• Properly directed air flow is important in any
  animal facility.
• Negative air pressure inside, combined with
  positive pressure outside, helps keep airborne
  contaminants inside the room from reaching
  animals located in other areas of a conventional
  facility.

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Circulation Shared
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Clean/Dirty Facility

• One-way traffic flow
• Each animal room has entrance and exit door.
• Entrance door leads from the clean corridor to
  the animal room.
• Exit door leads from animal room to a dirty
  corridor.
• Shower-in and shower-out may be required
• Air pressure clean hallway gt animal room
  gtdirty hallway

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Circulation Clean/Dirty
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Barrier Containment Facilities

• Barrier keeps contamination out.
• Containment keeps contamination inside.
• Keep the flow of traffic in one direction - from
  clean to dirty.
• Germ-free barrier
• shower-in
• enter through one-way air lock
• protective apparel
• work done under a laminar flow hood

• all materials autoclaved
• waste out separate route
• air pressure positive to the
• surrounding areas

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Circulation Directional
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Airlock
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Modified SPF / Containment

• Modified SPF
• a barrier with less stringent procedures
• animals purchased only from SPF vendors
• Containment
• Requires protective apparel to protect the
  person.
• Personnel may be required to shower-out.
• Materials must be decontaminated.
• Negative air pressure
• Air out may require sterilization or HEPA
  filtration.

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Preventing Cross-Contamination

• Protect from contamination
• 1) Store feed, bedding and cages away from waste.
• 2) Wear protective clothing when working in
  animal areas.
• 3) Separate quarantine and receiving from animals
  on study.
• 4) Disinfect contaminated gloves, boots and
  equipment.
• Prevent allergen and pathogen exposure
• 1) Wear protective clothing while handling
  animals.
• 2) Remove contaminated protective clothing before
  entering lunch rooms, offices etc.
• 3) Do not wear uniforms or work shoes home.

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Caging Systems

• permit freedom of movement and normal posture
• identical housing for each animal on a study
• weight and number of animals housed per cage
• AWA, The Guide, USDA, PHS, AAALAC
• comfortable, safe, escape-proof, with easy access
  to food and water
• ventilation and be kept dry and clean
• materials sturdy, durable, smooth, impervious
• inspection of occupants without disturbing them
• normal interaction

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Primate Units
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Primate Units, Too
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Rabbit Rack
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Caging Systems (Selection)

• age, weight, and size of the species
• purpose for which it is to be used
• short-term or long-term housing, individual or
  group housing, collection of clinical or
  metabolic samples, administration of test
  materials, or moving animals from one location to
  another
• endure repeated use and sanitation and use in a
  variety of research programs for long-term
  applications

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Micro Isolator Cage
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Solid / Wire Hanging Cages
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Caging Systems (Transport, Activity)

• Transport Cages
• Food or water is not usually provided.
• Specialized transport cages fit up to opening of
  cage.
• Activity Cages
• rodent - an attached wheel-shaped section
• nonhuman primates - bars, ropes, swings, and
  sometimes toys
• dogs and other larger animals - runs

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Dog Feeder / Transport Cages
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More Transport Caging
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Caging Systems (Recovery / Inhalation)

• Recovery Cages
• to hold an animal after surgical manipulation.
• also called therapy cages or intensive care units
  
• heated floor, plexiglass door for easy viewing,
  can be fitted with environmental controls, port
  access for IV therapy or physiological monitors
• Inhalation Cage/Environmental Chambers
• for exposure to test materials
• Test material in as a vapor, mist, or gas.
• Animals inhale the substance, pulmonary function
  measurements can be performed.

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Restraint Equipment

• Holds animals securely but comfortably.
• Used to collect samples or administer materials.
• Collection and administration site access.
• Allows techs use of both hands for procedure.
• Complete sanitation between uses
• Design depends on species and duration of
  restraint.
• Plastic rodent cylinders, cat bags, pig slings,
  and nonhuman primate chairs are all classified as
  restraint equipment.
• Favorable response if conditioned.
• Keeps comfortable and stress-free.

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Restraint Equipment
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Restraint Cone
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Broome Restraint Tube

• Broome Restraint Tube

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Stockinette

• Stockinette Restraint

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Towel Wrap

• Towel Restraint

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Maintenance Equipment Use

• Equipment monitoring - air, fume hood, light, and
  water
• Calibrate scales and maintain instruments.
• Rotate equipment in storage.
• Pre-rinsing
• Urine precipitates form opaque scale.
• Use acid cleaners (descalers) before washing.
• 82.2C surface temperature needed for effective
  sanitation.
• Room cleaning
• Tools are room-specific.
• Log or record cleaning schedules.
• All permanent surfaces in the room are sanitized.

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Room Monitor
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Additional Reading

• 1. Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory
  Animals. National Academy Press, Washington,
  D.C., 1996.
• 2. The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management
  of Laboratory Animals, 6th Edition, Trevor Poole,
  editor, 1987.