Housing and environment are key focus

The right house to live in

The environment in which animals are maintained should be appropriate to the species, its life history, and its intended use.

AGOOD MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME provides the environment, housing and care that permit animals to grow, mature, reproduce and maintain good health; provides for their well-being; and minimises variations that can affect research results. Specific operating practices depend on many factors that are peculiar to individual institutions and situations. Well-trained and motivated personnel can often ensure high-quality animal care, even in institutions with less than optimal physical plants or equipment.

As mentioned in the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, animals should be housed with a goal of maximising species-specific behaviours and minimising stress-induced behaviours.

A strategy for achieving desired housing should be developed by animal care personnel with review and approval by the IACUC. Decisions by the IACUC in consultation with the investigator and veterinarian, should be aimed at achieving high standards for professional and husbandry practices considered appropriate for the health and well-being of the species and consistent with the research objectives. After the decisionmaking process, objective assessments should be made to substantiate the adequacy of animal environment, husbandry and management.

Microenvironment and Macroenvironment According to the source, “The

Well-trained and motivated personnel can often ensure high-quality animal care.”

Animals should be housed with a goal of maximising species-specific behaviours and minimising stress-induced behaviours.

microenvironment of an animal is the physical environment immediately surrounding it – the primary enclosure with its own temperature, humidity, and gaseous and particulate composition of the air. The physical environment of the secondary enclosure – such as a room, a barn, or an outdoor habitat – constitutes the macro environment.

“Although the microenvironment and the macro environment are linked by ventilation between the primary and secondary enclosures, the environment in the primary enclosure can be quite different from the environment in the secondary enclosure and is affected by the design of both enclosures.”

The source further stated that the measurement of the characteristics of the microenvironment can be difficult in small primary enclosures. Available data indicates that temperature, humidity and concentrations of gases and particulate matter are often higher in an animal's microenvironment than in the macroenvironment. ■