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SOPs
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are step-by-step, detailed descriptions of how specific animal care and use procedures are performed.
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are step-by-step, detailed descriptions of how specific animal care and use procedures are performed.
This Copy Was Generated On: June 25, 2025
Animal Fasting Communication
Unit for Laboratory Animal Medicine
| Approval Date:
June 13, 2025 12:00 am
Summary of Changes
- Updated and revised the wordings to clarify procedures and ensure the document matches our current practice.
Who is Impacted
- Investigative Personnel
- Husbandry Personnel
Impact
- Review of updated information as it is relevant to your duties.
To delineate communications procedures and responsibilities of investigative personnel and ULAM husbandry personnel to coordinate animal fasting periods.
Responsibility
- Investigative Personnel
- Husbandry Personnel
Glossary Definitions
Do Not Feed (DNF) Label
Pre-printed orange or white label found in the ULAM supply box in animal areas.
Special Treatment or Procedure (SToP) Form
A form that indicates special procedure differing from standard operating procedure (SOP). These are typically placed on the inside of the animal room door. See Request for Special Treatment or Procedure (SToP) Form for more information.
Procedures
1. Investigative personnel assume responsibility for removing & replacing feed for fasting intervals
- Describe the fasting interval in the IACUC-approved animal use protocol.
- Consult the husbandry supervisor to review procedural expectations if clarity is needed.
- Complete a Special Treatment or Procedures (SToP) Form if animals have food and/or water restrictions.
2. Communication of fasting between investigative & husbandry personnel
- Communication of a fasting interval for a specific cage occurs via either DNF label placed on a yellow acetate or cage signage containing the following information:
- Remove food, with time, including AM or PM and date.
- Feed after with time, including AM or PM and date
- Investigative personnel contact and phone number and/or email address.
- Investigative personnel record all of the necessary information on the cage signage to ensure fasting is properly completed.
- Husbandry technicians consult the husbandry supervisor if an animal cage is found without food and a DNF acetate or cage signage is not completed correctly.
3. Removal & replacement of feed
- Investigative personnel are responsible for removing feed from the cage at the beginning of the fasting period.
- Fasting of a single animal in a social/group housing scenario:
- Fast all animals in the group in order to maintain social housing during the fasting period if the fasting period is restricted to less than 16 hours.
- Investigative personnel separate the animal requiring fasting from the group for the fasting period if the fasting period is greater than 16 hours.
- Fasting of a single animal in a social/group housing scenario:
- Investigative personnel remove the cage signage and replace feed for the cage at the end of the fasting period.
- Investigative personnel feed animals that are co-housed with the fasted animal once the fasted animal is removed for the procedure.
- For large animals, when this feed ration is provided, investigative personnel must initial on the daily room log.
- Investigative personnel feed animals that are co-housed with the fasted animal once the fasted animal is removed for the procedure.
- Husbandry personnel feeding
- Husbandry personnel will not feed animals in the cage until the fasting interval, as listed on cage signage, has completed.
- Husbandry personnel will resume normal feeding regimen when the fasting interval has ended.
Questions?
Questions or concerns about the content of this document should be directed to the Unit for Laboratory Animal Medicine (ULAM) at (734) 764-0277 or [email protected].