Documentation of Husbandry Procedures

IACUC Policy: 044-06, Effective Date: 01/18/2013, Last Revision: 04/15/2022 

Overview/Purpose

The Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) requires documentation of animal care procedures and verification of environmental conditions for animals maintained in confined housing conditions.

Definitions

• Confined housing: refers to animals confined to a pen, stall, or cage
• Primary enclosure: refers to all items that will come into direct contact with the animal during housing including but not limited to the cage, wire feeder/food bowl, enrichment devices, and water bottle/bowl
• Secondary enclosure: refers to items that may contact animals or are used in the support of the animal housing including but not limited to shelves, incubators, and racks.
• Aquatic species: are organisms that live solely or chiefly in or on the water.
• Semi-aquatic species: are organisms that are partly aquatic, growing or living in or close to water, or carrying out part of their life cycle in water.

Requirements

In most cases, animal care staff document tasks completed in core vivaria or facilities. When animals are cared for by investigator staff within dedicated housing or maintained in investigator housing areas, documentation becomes the responsibility of the individual completing the action. For example, investigators providing feed or water to their animals (in the case of a special diet or food/water restriction study) or changing cages within the University Laboratory and Animal Resources (ULAR) vivarium must document these activities themselves at the cage or room level as appropriate (i.e., purple card stock, room calendar). A completed work schedule/log sheet/electronic log is required for satellite housing areas. When not defined here, activities must be performed at frequencies defined in the IACUC-approved protocol, standard maintenance procedures (SMPs) or standard operating procedures (SOPs).

Documentation Needed for All Species

• Daily observation of all animals for general health (including weekends and holidays).
  • Document abnormal findings and animal deaths. Adverse events must be reported to IACUC as per Principal Investigator (PI) protocol assurances.
• Daily check of water
• Daily check of food, if provided ad lib, or provision of food when not available at all times (species-specific)
• Semiannual verification of automated light schedule excluding outdoor facilities and facilities that have room light sensors monitored continuously by building automation systems (BAS) with alarms generated to personnel. (Documentation is not required in agricultural facilities)
• Cleaning/Sanitization of primary and secondary enclosures (documentation not required in agricultural facilities)

Additional Documentation Required 

Terrestrial Animals (Biomedical Research)

• Daily verification* that room temperature remained within the approved range (outdoor areas excluded)
• Bedding changes when applicable

Aquatic and Semi Aquatic Species

• Daily verification* that water temperature for each static tank or tank system (flowthrough) remained within the approved range
• Daily verification* that room air temperature remained within the approved range (outdoor areas excluded)
• Water quality measurements
• Filter change/wash

* For areas with automated alarm systems, which alert personnel in the case of excursions, manual recording of exact temperatures (i.e. hi, low, current) is not required

Applicable Regulations

• Animal Welfare Act (AWA, Public Law 89-544, 7 U.S.C.)
• Animal Welfare Act Regulations (AWAR, 9 CFR, Chapter 1, Subchapter A)
• Health Research Extension Act of 1985 and Public Health Service (PHS) Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals
• National Research Council Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (THE GUIDE), Eighth Edition. National Academy of Sciences, 2011
• The American Dairy Science Association, the American Society of Animal Science, and the Poultry Science Association Guide for the Care and Use of Agricultural Animals in Research and Teaching, Fourth edition