Laboratory animal health Flashcards
Potential disease risks in an animal facility
Receiving animals with a lower – or unknown health status compared to the facility
No quarantine before moving the new animals into a facility
Personnel moving from “dirty” areas to the cleaner areas without being in quarantine for a suitable period
The movement of materials, food and water without sterilization fx. Autoclave
Personnel not using protective clothing, masks and gloves
Health monitoring: maintenance of the appropriate health status
Health monitoring according to the recommendations from FELASA (2014)
Samples from line animals and sentinels: specific vira, bacteria, endo- and ectoparasites.
Test with appropriate intervals as recommended
No movement of animals with low health status to a barrier with a high health status
Barrier and housing according to the specific health status
Describe how the animal facility is organized to maintain an appropriate health status for the animals and the scientific procedures
The facilities are restricted areas closed for personnel not having a purpose of being inside the facility.
Staff: Many facilities have specific procedures to be followed when entering a barrier – this could be hand wash or full shower, combined with wearing protective clothes dedicated to the specific barrier, such as gown, face mask, gloves and dedicated shoes.
The personnel has to follow specific rules and periods of quarantine stated by the facility according to contact with animals outside the facility such as other rodents and with the different levels of health status within the facility.
Materials, food, water: are entered into the barrier by the use for sterilization methods such as an autoclave and VHP (gas)/spray locks.
Animals: should be put in quarantine before entering a facility – tests for specific unwanted agents according to health status should be performed.
The animals can be hold in IVC cages – and the cages and handling could be done in laminar air flow benched to minimize the risk of the animals getting contaminated with anything unwanted.
PLENUM: Barrier and breeding!
