Laboratory Animal Care Facility (CRC)
Access Policies
- Fill out the cardkey access form (Word) and follow the directions for processing
- Once you have cardkey access you need to apply for building access through either Larry Valles for access through 24/2 Cummington St. or through the Biology Office, currently Deirdre Jamesfor access to 590 Commonwealth Ave.
- Once you have access to both the building and the LACF, do not forget your card: No Card, No Access
- Do not loan out your BU ID card. This will result in suspension of both the borrower and loaner’s access to the Facilities.
- For a change in access, eg a different facility or different hours, please have the PI contact lacf-list@bu.edu
- Open toed shoes are NOT allowed in the animal facilities. You will be turned away!
- Animals are very sensitive to noise and odors. Please do not use loud voices, loud music, scraping of chairs or other equipment, and try to avoid strong smelling hand lotion, perfume, hairspray, etc.
Animal Densities
The housing of mice must not exceed a density greater than recommended by the 1996 NRC "Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals", unless approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. This overcrowding policy clarifies standards and procedures to help ensure compliance with the Guide. Generally:
- For paired breeding conditions, a breeding pair with a litter per cage is the maximum allowed.
- Under harem breeding conditions, a mouse box containing more than one pregnant mouse, with a visibly extended abdomen, is considered overcrowded. This is necessary to prevent two litters in one mouse box.
- Boxes with more than one litter are considered overcrowded.
- See Animal Care Policies and Guidelines for details.
- When cages are observed as overcrowded, they will be marked with an "Overcrowded Cage" card and the LACF technician emails the researcher, and LACF staff. If correction of the condition is not corrected within 48 hours, the LACF staff will separate the animals and the PI will be charged a service fee.
- The LACF staff will adjust the census, duplicate the cage card, and identify the new cage with a card indicating the date the overcrowding was corrected. While every effort will be made by the LACF staff to duplicate and identify separated animals correctly, their only mission in this instance is to ensure that full compliance with federal mandates is maintained. Should an investigator fail to rectify one or more overcrowded cages, the LACF assumes no liability whatsoever in the maintenance of research data on the affected animals cage card.
