Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals - Office of ...

3Environment, Housing,and ManagementThis chapter provides guidelines for the environment, housing, andmanagement of laboratory animals used or produced for research,testing, and teaching. These guidelines are applicable across speciesand are relatively general; additional information should be sought abouthow to apply them to meet the specific needs of any species, strain, or use(see Appendix A for references). The chapter is divided into recommendationsfor terrestrial (page 42) and aquatic animals (page 77), as there arefundamental differences in their environmental requirements as well as animalhusbandry, housing, and care needs. Although formulated specificallyfor vertebrate species, the general principles of humane animal care as setout in the Guide may also apply to invertebrate species.The design of animal facilities combined with appropriate animal housingand management are essential contributors to animal well-being, thequality of animal research and production, teaching or testing programsinvolving animals, and the health and safety of personnel. An appropriateProgram (see Chapter 2) provides environments, housing, and managementthat are well suited for the species or strains of animals maintainedand takes into account their physical, physiologic, and behavioral needs,allowing them to grow, mature, and reproduce normally while providingfor their health and well-being.Fish, amphibians, and reptiles are poikilothermic animals: their coretemperature varies with environmental conditions and they have limitedability (compared with birds and mammals) to metabolically maintain coretemperature. The majority of poikilothermic laboratory animals are aquaticspecies—for example, fish and most amphibians—although some, such as41