What is the purpose of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals?

What is the purpose of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals?

The purpose of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (the Guide), as expressed in the charge to the Committee for the Update of the Guide, is to assist institutions in caring for and using animals in ways judged to be scientifically, technically, and humanely appropriate.

How do rats deal with laboratory?

Rats should be picked up by placing a hand around the chest with the thumb placed under the chin and the index finger around the neck to safely secure the head. An alternative way is to lift the rat around the shoulders and support it with the same hand, using the other hand to support the hind part of the body.

Why do they use mice for testing?

The mouse has many similarities to humans in terms of anatomy, physiology and genetics. The mouse genome is very similar to our own, making mouse genetic research particularly useful for the study of human diseases. Mice are cost effective because they are cheap and easy to look after. Adult mice multiply quickly.

Why are rats used?

Why do we use rats? The laboratory rat has made invaluable contributions to cardiovascular medicine, neural regeneration, wound healing, diabetes, transplantation, behavioural studies and space motion sickness research. Rats have also been widely used to test drug efficacy and safety.

Why are rats used for brain research?

For decades, scientists have routinely used rats as a main model for brain research. “Its brain is larger than that of a mouse, so it’s easier to study the structures,” said Joyce Peterson, a spokeswoman for the Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine.

What happens to lab rats after testing?

Most lab rats are killed after they are used for testing. The vast majority are reportedly frozen and incinerated, though, on rare occasions, rescuers may spare their lives so that the rats can live as companion animals.

What is the guide for animal research?

The Guide incorporates new scientific information on common laboratory animals, including aquatic species, and includes extensive references. It is organized around major components of animal use: Key concepts of animal care and use. The Guide sets the framework for the humane care and use of laboratory animals.

What is rat handling?

Rat Handling & Restraint When picking up adult rats, grasp them gently but firmly at the base or center of their tail. Do not pick them up by the tip of the tail. Place the animal on a surface such as the wire cage top or lid, or on your arm.

Do Lab rats bite?

Bites received from rats and mice Rats naturally carry bacteria in their mouth and can transmit them through bite wounds causing infection. A common rat oral bacteria in North America, Streptobacillus moniliformis, causes Haverhill Fever approximately 2-10 days after exposure.

Why are white rats used in experiments?

Albino rats were first used in a scientific experiment in 1828 for a fasting study to measure the quality of proteins inside the body. With this distinction, rats are known to be the first animal domesticated for scientific purposes.

How are mice used in scientific laboratories?

Even with differences between the two species, carrying out basic research in humanized mouse models of disease gives scientists valuable information. Using mice as surrogates allows researchers to first see how patients might respond to treatment before giving them the drug — a vital step in ensuring patient safety.

Why do we test on rats and not monkeys?

As a minimum requirement, mice used in experiments must be of the same purebred species. Another reason rodents are used as models in medical testing is that their genetic, biological and behavior characteristics closely resemble those of humans, and many symptoms of human conditions can be replicated in mice and rats.

Why are rats important to the environment?

Rats often hoard seeds in underground stores for later consumption and then never return, so those seeds become new vegetation. In North America specifically, kangaroo rats exhibit this behavior and are responsible for seed sprouting, which is vital to a sustainable ecosystem.

Are rats clean animals?

Rats are very clean. “People often think of rats as dirty sewer creatures, but they’re actually quite clean and good about grooming,” Graham said. “In fact, rats groom more frequently and thoroughly than cats.”

What are benefits of rats?

Rats are rodents that do actually serve a purpose in the ecosystem. They are scavengers and opportunistic eaters. They will eat garbage and other things that people throw away. Plus, rats are important as part of the predatory ecosystem.

Is it cruel to test on rats?

More than 110 million mice and rats are killed in U.S. laboratories every year. They are abused in everything from toxicology tests (in which they are slowly poisoned to death) to painful burn experiments to psychological experiments that induce terror, anxiety, depression, and helplessness.

What are laboratory animals?

In the Guide, laboratory animals (also referred to as animals) are generally defined as any vertebrate animal (i.e., traditional laboratory animals, agricultural animals, wildlife, and aquatic species) produced for or used in research, testing, or teaching.

How do you restrain a lab rat?

Rats can be restrained by grasping firmly at the base of the tail. Holding the tail distal to the base can result in a degloving (stripping off the skin) injury. This restraint is suitable for moving the rat over a short distance or a cursory examination. To calm a rat place it on your lab coat.

What happen if you bite a rat?

Even if the bite seems minor, it’s best to see a doctor as soon as possible. Rat bites are prone to turning into potentially serious infections. You should also get a tetanus shot, especially if it’s been more than five years since your last one (or you don’t remember the date of your last tetanus shot).

Why are rodents used for lab research?

Rodents have long been the preferred species of lab animals in biomedical research, with sporadic experiments on common brown rats stemming back 150 years. Though laboratory animal research continues to pose ethical questions, particularly with respect to animal welfare, the scientific achievements linked to lab rats are innumerous.

What is the guide for the care and use of laboratory animals?

The purpose of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals(the Guide), as expressed in the charge to the Committee for the Update of the Guide, is to assist institutions in caring for and using animals in ways judged to be scientifically, technically, and humanely appropriate.

Is there a universal rat model for lab research?

There is subsequently no universal rat model for all laboratory research, but a plethora of inbred/outbred stocks and strains suited to specific purposes.

How well do we know about pathogens of laboratory rodents?

Knowledge of the varied and unwanted effects of natural pathogens in laboratory rodents has steadily increased over the past 130 years of conducting animal research. The historic struggle against pathogens of laboratory rodents is often divided into three periods. The first (1880–1950) was when mice and rats became common research animals.