Don't Take Our Word For It...
More Testimonials from Satisifed Customers.
February 7, 2012
Applied Instruments
5230 Elmwood Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46203
Dear Chrystal,
I find the ACS Ventilated Racks to be a superb addition to my Facility.
They are easily moved from room to room. There is virtually no unpleasant odor in the rooms in which we use them (versus Static Racks and Cages).
I can tell you that many Transgenic Core Facilities do not use Ventilated Racks in their Breeding Rooms because of the noise of the motor. Obviously that does not apply to the motor-less ACS System. Therefore we can still protect our animals from the environment and maintain optimum breeding results.
In my case in Radiation Oncology, we often wipe out the immune system (mice) when irradiating and performing our cancer research, the use of these racks is instrumental in allowing post-irradiation survival, which is critical to the advancement of our research.
Sincerely,
Colin McLean.
Director, Defined Flora Mouse Facility
UCLA Radiation Oncology
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We have had OptiMICE system in our facility for well over a year now. This design has allowed us to double our density. We now can get 200 cages in the same foot print as a 140 cage IVC unit.
Currently we are housing normal adult mice, moms with litters and experimental animals from our Neuroscience and Surgical Research groups.
The clear cages allow for easy observation of mice, such as health checks, birthing and experimental observations, reducing the amount of stress on the animals. Animal behavior has remained normal even while the racks are being gently turned to access other cages. This is an exceptional rack system and we have seen the mice acclimate better to these cages, have greater breeding success and the floor plan suites them well and gives them more security for nesting and hiding.
Overall the system has proven to be beneficial to our facility, allowing us to hold more cages it the same foot print than our previous racking system with the added ease of handling and health monitoring, with little maintenance to the units themselves. The customer service from Animal Care Systems has been excellent from the first contact point. They have worked closely with me to design additional items for the cages, and this service has continued to this date.
If I can be of any further assistance please do not hesitate to email me.
Regards,
Ed Delaney
Director of Facility Operations - ARCH
Children's Hospital Boston
300 Longwood Avenue
Boston, Ma 02115
Phone # 617-355-4938
Cell # 617-908-8598
Fax # 617-730-0264
Email: edwin.delaney@childrens.harvard.edu
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Dear Ed,
I would like to congratulate you for the purchase of the new small rodent racks. I find this system superior in more than one way than the previous systems that we had in the animal rooms.
Next to most obvious advantages, like lager front side of the cages, and increased visibility of mice and its behavior, there are some other, less obvious aspects.
work with immunocompromised animals, which require some special attention to the sterility of the procedures. The inner side of the cage lid is very convenient large sterile surface for short term manipulation of the mice. By using it, I don’t have to use special table covers, procedures are faster, I save the time and my lab saves the money.
lso, feeders, when put horizontally on the rack provide good tunnel-like space that satisfy mice instinct to go in protected spaces, so they do not wander around during the manipulations, but stay grouped at one place.
In the beginning some investigators were complaining because of the carousel nature of the rack. The cages were every time on the same place as they left them. We circumvented that problem by using the set of 24 Sharpies, and now every experiment is marked by different color, which improved ease of finding the cages very much, even compared with the previous, shelf like rack systems.
Also, being able to put more animals in one room helps us too, as we don’t have to wander from room to room, but we have our animals concentrated in one room.
For all these reasons I would like to thank you for providing new cage systems in our facility.
Vladimir Vrbanac, DVM
Zetter lab
Vascular Biology Department
Children’s Hospital
Boston
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We still think the most of our OptiMICE racks! They really have proven to be the best. We finally got rid of all our other cage systems for the mice. There is virtually no animal odor in that room, just amazing. The caging has become a part of our occupational health and safety program for the animal facility, because there is little or no dander noted in the room.
Karen Delavan-Boorsma
Geron Corporation
230 Constitution Ave.
Menlo Park, CA 94025
kboorsma@Geron.com
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I’d like to take this opportunity to share with you our experiences with the M.I.C.E. caging system technology.
Two years ago we were asked to house and breed SCID mice for an experimental project. We were reluctant to even begin this project as our facility is a "conventional" facility. We have several mouse pathogens present throughout the facility. This fact is established from the results of a bi-annual sentinel program.
On the insistence of the investigator we decided to house and breed the SCID mice in the M.I.C.E. caging system, and to provide them with sulfa drugs in the water. We kept the mice healthy for the period of this project which was approximately 6 months.
We were able to breed them and produce several litters of SCID pups; they survived and were very healthy. I was very impressed by the M.I.C.E. caging system that provided strong bio-security to this population in an environment known to harbor several mouse pathogens that would have killed these immuno-suppressed mice.
Pierre
Pierre Lessard, DVM, MPVM, PhD
Dipl. ACVPM
Director Animal Facility
Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases/UCSF P.O. Box 0915 San Francisco, CA 94143
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We have used the OptiMICE system in our Institute very successfully.
For our particular application we could not accommodate an IVC rack in the room because of its dimensions and so we looked at OptiMICE as a solution.
We can get 200 cages in the same floor area as 112 on an IVC.
We are also about to purchase more OptiMICE racks to replace Thoren Maximisers giving us an additional 900 cages on the same footprint.
With regard to the system, they are very different to a traditional IVC and should be considered in this way as you cannot compare them. They have a number of advantages over the traditional IVC in that there are no mechanical parts, motors etc.
They operate on negative air pressure as the air is drawn through the cage from front to back and exhausted via a central chimney.
Despite being negative pressure the air is filtered and we have successfully maintained health NOD Scid and Athymic Nude mice in them.
They are simple to use and to move around and the technicians like them because they can stand in one place and clean and check the whole rack.
Please do note hesitate to contact me directly if you would like more information.
Allan Thornhill FIAT, RAnTech
Manager BSU, NACWO
Institute of Cancer Research
McElwain Laboratories
15 Cotswold Road
Sutton
Surrey
SM2 5NG
Tel: 020 8722 4306
Fax: 020 8722 4050
Mobile: 07747774041
Email: allan.thornhill@icr.ac.uk
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February 18, 2010
Animal Care Systems
7086 S Revere Pkwy #100
Centennial, CO 80112
Attention: Rich Van Dewater
Director of Sales
Reference: ACS Caging System
Dear Rich:
We have received your cages for our testing procedures on our Lynx Tunnel Cage Washer. In accordance with our testing procedures we have confirmed the fact that we can wash, dry, and automatically flip the cage into our bedding dispenser and properly fill the cage with bedding. We would be happy to discuss this with any customer that may have questions about your caging system.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at 716-751-3100.
Regards,
Donald M. Basil
President
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13 February, 2009
When designing our In Vivo studies laboratory, we identified at the outset that we would install the M.I.C.E. units for rats and mice. This was partly because MICE units were already being used in one of the other laboratories within the faculty, but also because of the experienced, professional and consultative approach demonstrated by Graham and the staff of AACS (Australia). They were extremely helpful in providing rapid turnaround of quotes, and then when our order was placed, we were kept fully informed of the delivery status of the equipment.
Having now had over 18 months of experience with the units, I can honestly say that we have no issues with the product. The ease of cleaning of the caging (we use an industrial dishwasher) and effective removal of animal odours from the laboratory ensures that our laboratory space is maintained at the highest standards of cleanliness.
A particular advantage of this system is its highly modular nature lends it to ready expansion; we currently have a reasonably small installation (a 14-cage MICE for rats unit, and a 28-cage MICE for mice unit), however if the need arises, we are able to increase our holding capacity with minimal modification to our current setup.
David Shackleford, PhD
Biopharmaceutics Section Leader
Centre for Drug Candidate Optimisation
Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Monash University
381 Royal Parade, Parkville, VIC 3052
P: +61 3 9903 9065
F: +61 3 9903 9052
http://www.pharm.monash.edu.au/mips/cdco
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August 2008
To Whom It May Concern,
Monash Animal Services (MAS) is a department within Monash University charged with the responsibility for providing quality laboratory animals and technical services to the University’s research base. MAS is comprised of nine centrally managed facilities and seven regional facilities. MAS employ approximately 80 staff in predominantly technical positions.
The Central Animal Facilities provide a range of services to researchers at Monash and for over 250 departments/institutions Australia wide. Servicing over 1,000 researchers and over 2,000 research projects, underwriting an estimated $200m of research.
The Central Animal Facilities breed mice, rats, guinea pigs and rabbits and are responsible for the management of the National Non-Human Primate Breeding and Research Facility. In addition to breeding animals, the Central Facilities provide a range of services including –
- Animal agistment (general husbandry for all species)
- Custom experimental breeding programs
- Surgical facilities and services
- Breeding high quality virus free mouse and rat lines
- Specialised technical services including chimera production, ICSI, IVF and cloning in rodents
- Animal procurement for users from local, national and international services.
One of the integral components of managing a successful animal facility is the equipment. In the past we have used a combination of Individually Ventilated & Static Caging. During recent times and with the expansion and refurbishment of existing facilities we have reviewed a variety of different caging systems that would better suit our growing needs.
We initially chose the OptiMice system due to it’s’ space efficiency which literally doubled our rooms stocking density. Another important consideration, as the University works towards a “Greener Monash”, is that this EVC system reduces energy consumption as it does not rely on individual motors to pump HEPA filtered air into the cages, but rather uses the facility’s existing HVAC system to draw air through the cages, whilst providing individualised cage protection.
In addition to this, other features which appealed to us included clear cages for ease of observation, the ability to divide cages and fewer components which mean less parts to maintain and replace.
The cages have been placed in our high barrier area and in particular, to house the post irradiated mice, which need a very high degree of care. It is difficult to quantify whether the animals find it a better caging system, but to date there have been no complaints and the animals seem quite content with this style of cage.
Lastly, but importantly for us when considering purchasing any new equipment from a supplier is the after sales service and I must say the level of service and response time from both the ACS team in the US and more importantly on a local level AACS, Graham Murray, has been second to none. He has been hands on during every step of the process, from initial queries by providing quotations and room layouts, to the purchase including overseeing the shipping process and installation, to ensure the systems were running correctly. We have had this caging system in operation now for two years with the only issue being initially when we had a couple of design issues with the feeder and water bottle, which were since promptly rectified. I have also had favourable reports from the staff regarding the ease of use of the OptiMice system as opposed to the older systems we have in place.
We are also currently in the process of purchasing OptiMice & OptiRat systems to completely fit out the latest animal facility development at Monash University - Animal Research Laboratory at the new Science Technology Research and Innovation Precinct.
I have no hesitation in recommending this system to other institutions wanting to adopt this system in their animal facilities and would be more than happy to be contacted for further information on our experiences.
Yours Sincerely,
Rachel Borg
Operations Manager
Monash Animal Services
Faculty of Medicine, Nursing & Health Sciences
Monash University, VIC 3800
Building 41, Clayton Campus, Wellington Road, Clayton
Telephone +61 3 9902 0220 Facsimile +61 3 9905 5736
Email Animal.Services@adm.monash.edu.au
www.mas.monash.edu.au
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We have been using OptiMICE cage for almost three years and we would like to convert all of our animal rooms in the future. We decided to purchase this caging system for several reasons. We have small amount of space available in our animal rooms, our HVAC is old, and we work with transgenic/barrier mice.
My staff and I prefer this caging system over the Thoren and static caging. The staff find themselves changing cages faster, easier to observe sick animals, new litters, water and food and the cages are also easier to handle and it is lighter.
We change cages on Monday and Tuesday and it the past the facility smell awful. On Monday morning, when I enter the OptiMice rooms, I do not find the “mice smell” that are in the other mice rooms. It is also easier when we have to count the mice during censes day and locate specific cage for service.
Kathy Tang
Manager, Laboratory Animal Research Service
New York Blood Center
310 East 67th Street
NY, NY 10065
(212) 570-3022 Phone
(212) 570-3368 Fax
ktang@nybloodcenter.org
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I am animal facility user since 2006. In August of 2008 Cell Signaling Laboratory (where I am completing my postdoctoral training) has purchased rotating racks for mice cages storage. Cages in the new racks are easily accessible, their capacity of cages storage is greater in comparison to the previously used racks. In addition, exhaust and air-flow system significantly improve the overall room condition eliminating odors. My evaluation of the rotating rack system is very good.
Patrycja Dubielecka, PhD.
Senior Research Fellow
Cell Signaling Laboratory
New York Blood Center
310E 67th street
10065 New York
T 212 570 3240
F 212 570 3355
pdubielecka@nybloodcenter.org
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The Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre (Peter Mac) is Australia's largest specialist Cancer Centre. Peter Mac offers the full range of multidisciplinary treatments and clinical care for people with cancer, as well as education and research programs. Peter Mac is the only such comprehensive cancer centre in Australia, and today provides services to nearly half of all the cancer patients in Victoria via five sites, four in metropolitan Melbourne and one in Bendigo.
The research department at Peter Mac has been extremely successful in obtaining research funding and has undergone enormous growth in the recent 10 years. In recent years several spaces had been transformed into animal facilities but space was still running out, in mid 2006 the Research Department decided that it needed to carry out a major re-fit to create more space for mouse based research.
The transgenic animal facility held 2000 ‘Thoren’ cages and was deemed at capacity – through extensive consultation with many manufacturers it became clear that the most cost and space efficient solution was a re-fit with the ‘OptiMICE’ caging systems. The re-fit took the facility from a 2000 cage facility to a 4200 capacity facility in exactly the same ‘foot-print’.
The ‘OptiMICE’ facility has now become the breeding facility for all of our genetically modified mouse strains.
The exceptional air-flow that requires no electrical back-up has allowed us to move to a 14 day cleaning cycle (rather than 7 days) that has been published (by ‘Jax’) as the preferred cleaning regime for breeding animals.
It also has meant a huge increase in staff productivity – the staff find the cages easy to work with, quick to change and due to the size of the cages they only need cleaning fortnightly with a complete check every week; and so only one extra staff member has been employed even though the caging numbers have more than doubled.
The animal technicians enjoy working with the system it is clear and easy to see the animals, organising the animals in order is easy with the ‘dial-up’ system and the system is extremely quiet and there is no smell within the facility.
In the six months that we have had this system fully operational we have seen a definite improvement in many of our colonies but in particular the ‘rag’ breeding colony (litter survival rates) and a decrease in aggression amongst stock males that are group housed.
We are more than impressed with the customer support offered by both the local and US Animal Care Systems teams -on a local level through Mr Graham Murray (A.A.C.S) and in the USA by several of the A.C.S team.
I have no hesitation in recommending this system to other animal facilities and would be more than happy to be contacted for further information on the system.
Yours
Tracy Helman
Animal Facilities Manager
Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre
Locked Bag 1 A’Beckett Street
Victoria 8006 Australia
Ph: (61 3) 9656 1860 or mobile 041 111 1984
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To whom it may concern
QIMR has recently installed a complete Optimice/MICE system within its remodelled animal facility. Installation was completed using a central extract ductwork system employing the proprietary accessories supplied with, and available for, the caging system.
Ventilation rates were determined using the data supplied for effective ventilation of the cage system as supplied by the manufacturers and final balancing of the system was effected by use of individual rack mounted balancing dampers. The system balance was achieved with minimal effort and we achieved the optimum ventilation rate for each rack without any problems. Overall control of the extract system was achieved by the use of a pressure controller within the ductwork system and a variable speed drive applied to the main extract fan.
We have found the system to be very effective under forced extract conditions and also have run the system for over 24hours without the forced extract fan in operation without any adverse conditions becoming apparent within any of the rack mounted cages. Failure of any part of the rack system ventilation is very easy to determine as an occupied cage mists up to show that there is no airflow through the cage, as we have determined after an inadvertent partial disconnection of the vent hose by one of our operators.
As with all essential ventilation systems we have spare motors on site in the event of a motor failure. We can complete a motor change within two hours of failure and this allows us ample time should the current cage ventilation system fail since the cages will retain a certain amount of natural ventilation as previously noted under our 24hour test.
Essentially, the cage system is well constructed and requires little or no maintenance. The set up installation of the racks was simple and the final commissioning took less time than expected.
Regards
Alan Stockman
Building Services Engineer
Queensland Institute of Medical Research
The Bancroft Centre 300 Herston Rd, Herston Q 4006
Tel: (61-7) 3362 0150 Fax: (61-7) 3362 0154
Mobile: 0418 786 043 After Hours: (61-7) 3807 3375
Website: www.qimr.edu.au
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The Queensland Institute of Medical Research is one of the largest medical research institutes in the southern hemisphere, with programs in areas such as cellular and molecular sciences, epidemiology and population health, human genetics, cancer biology, biotechnology, infectious diseases and vaccine development.
We have had the Mice and Optimice caging systems in use in our animal facility since October 2005.
The focus of animal based research at QIMR covers work in the areas of Transgenic Mouse production, maintenance of several breeding lines, cancer research, tropical /infectious diseases and vaccine technology. We currently have 6000 cages in operation and will expand housing capacity to over 16000 cages in the near future, with the addition of a new experimental facility.
A large component of our animal based research is conducted using Nude and SCID mice. Previously these strains of mice were housed in static micro isolator cages, which resulted in increased variables within the research.
We also have several strains of Knockout and Transgenic strains with phenotypes which render them, immuno-compromised, environmentally sensitive and poor breeders.
Our experience with the caging systems from 2005 has produced positive outcomes in all areas of our animal based research. We have noted an increased production rate in all breeding lines, a reduction in variables in research outcomes and reduced aggression in grouped males. We have also found the changing of cages on a fortnightly basis has produced a sounder environment for the housing of mice, as the disturbances of standard husbandry practices, previously carried out on a weekly basis, were a contributing factor in many of the variables in our research outcomes. The use of change stations and biohazard cabinets when accessing mice has also eliminated the exposure to common air exchange and maintained the individual containment of each cage.
The cage design allows technical staff the ability to observe the animals in each cage without removing them from the rack. The cage also provides environmental stimuli for the animals as the design includes platforms and climbing areas, resulting in more activity. This increased activity in healthy mice allows the identification of animals that require attention due to illness. Components, such as the UNImice dividers have also allowed us to reduce the housing of singularly caged animals and increase the overall holding capacity of the facility.
The MICE and Optimice systems have proven to be an invaluable asset in the future of animal based research at QIMR.
Suzanne Cassidy
Facility Manager
Queensland Institute of Medical Research
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Nude Mice in the OptiMICE Cage System
Nude mice are used by several research groups at QIMR for immunology and tumor expression studies. The use of nude mice invariably raises concern in the selection of housing to maintain the immune-compromised status of the strain.
In our experience, the nude mouse phenotype also exposes the strain to environmental obstacles which must be overcome from a closely monitored husbandry aspect.
The nude mice at QIMR are housed in the OptiMICE cage system. Prior to upgrading to the OptiMICE system we housed nude mice in static micro-isolator caging. In comparison of the 2 cage styles, we have found a reduction in result variables since changing to the OptiMICE system. We have also observed a decrease in skin and eye conditions for nude mice held for longer experimental periods. This must also take into consideration, the change in type of bedding now used and the decreased frequency requirements for cage changing.
We have found that environmental enrichment is an essential component when housing nude mice, importantly enrichment which allows the mouse the means to seclude itself from direct airflow.
This is particularly important to assist thermo-regulation in mice undergoing experimental procedures which impact on overall health.
It is also important to note, the nude mice are housed in an area which contains 31 OptiMICE racks and are situated amongst various other strains of mice and disease models. The structuring of husbandry procedures to maintain the immune status of the animals is taken into account by nude and other immune-compromised strains being attended to first in daily facility routines.
Suzanne Cassidy
SAF Manager
QIMR
20 March 2009
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We have been using the new mice cage for the last two years. Comparing to the old one, we found it has two advantages: one is that it takes less space and the other one is the air flow in the room is improved. Overall, I would suggest to use the new system.
Xiuli An, M.D, PhD
Red Cell Physiology Lab
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"I have 4 of these racks in place and have designed a new cancer center animal facility to include these racks. When that facility is operational, I should have about 20 of these racks in place. I agree with all of the points that Eva made. This type of caging system is cost efficient, quiet, efficient, and effective. I understand that the NIAID Rocky Mountain Lab uses these racks as well. I'm very interested in exploring their use for ABSL3.
Tim Mandrell
Timothy D. Mandrell, DVM, Dipl. ACLAM
Associate Professor and Chair
Department of Comparative Medicine
University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Chief, VMU
Memphis VAMC
956 Court, Box 17
Memphis, TN 38163
901.448.5656
901.448.8506 fax
tmandrell@utmem.edu
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We have been using the M.I.C.E. System for the past 4 years in our facility. We started with one rack and we now have approximately 55 racks.
We are gradually converting to all M.I.C.E. cages. Our new Transgenic Facility will be opening next month and we are using the M.I.C.E. system. The following features are what convinced us to switch to M.I.C.E. ventilated racks:
- Not electrically powered so there is no heat accumulation from motors
- Ditto: No problem if there is a power outage
- Ditto, so there is no vibration of the racks
- They come in modular units, so they can be used in smaller and larger
areas. The units hold anywhere from 14 cages to 112 cages
- We do use them for Biocontainment ABSL-2
- The water bottles/sipper tubes are easy to reach for the mice; ditto
food is easy to reach
- The cages provide environmental enrichment, since the mice are able to
climb around the cage on the ledges and on the sipper tubes
- Need changing only once every or every other week so saves man power
- Gentle air changes that does not bother the mice and keeps the animals comfortable
The following features are less desirable but we consider them less significant:
- The cages are large so we can only autoclave fewer units at a time
- A bit more difficult for investigators to use; to remove cage top and replace.
If you want more information you are welcome to call me.
Eva B. Ryden, Ph.D., DVM, DACLAM
Director, Research Animal Facility
Consulting/Attending Veterinarian
East Orange, NJ
University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey
New Jersey Medical School
Phone 973-972-4669
Email rydeneb@umdnj.edu
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"At this point in time I have expanded my use of the ACS caging system. First of course, the closed ventilation system works great. I go on the average of 10 days having 5 mice to a cage. If I have less I can go the full two weeks. That brings me to the next point, it is very labor friendly. Less changes per cage. Most over ventilated system allow you to change every seven days. Regardless of what the other companies may say, their cage sizes only really allows for weekly cage changes. Therefore I saved on the cost of changing cages, then washing the cages and finally on autoclaving cages".
"With the various different size racks am able to be very space efficient with my animal rooms. One room, which housed only about 300 regular cages, now house 490 ACS cages. This allowed me to house more mice and cages in my facility with out having to increase my physical space. This why I now use the ACS cages in my conventional rooms as well".
"It is much easier to view the mice with the ACS cages. That makes the Techs job easier and faster. One important note, in my conventional side I had an outbreak of viruses. However, the conventional room that used the ACS ventilated system did not get affected with any of the viruses. The system really works to keep out viruses".
"Overall, I was able to increase cage space while reducing labor at the same time. My Per Diem revenue increased to a point where the system paid for itself in a little over a year. And of course, health wise it protects the animals extremely well".
"The ACS system is a win win situation for all involved, Budget Manager, Investigators, Techs and Animals".
Peter Rodriguez, BBA, LATG
Facility Manager, RAF
UMDNJ
185 South Orange Ave.
Newark, NJ 07103
MSB, A604
(973) 972-0732
(973) 972-2620 (FAX)
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BioCORE,
November 2009
To whom it may concern,
The Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, established in 1994, is an internationally recognised centre of excellence in biomedical research, with a focus on heart disease and cardiovascular biology. Investigators in our Institute have a strong background in animal models, using genetically engineered mice and rats for developmental studies and surgical models of heart disease. Plans began in 2002 for a new building to house the growing institute. The inclusion of a facility to breed and conduct research with rodent models under specific pathogen free (SPF) conditions was a high priority.
Situated in the middle of Sydney, it was recognised that a caging system that made the best use of the limited available space was very desirable. Secondly, we sought a caging system that provided a high standard in housing conditions to promote animal welfare. Thirdly, a system that would reduce the high on-going cost of maintaining the facility was considered an advantage. We determined that the OptiMICE caging system best met our needs in these three areas. With OptiMICE cages it has been possible to fit out the facility with sufficient cage spaces to cover the institutes present needs and to allow for future expansion. The microenvironment within the cages had been well tested and provided clean and quiet conditions suitable for our sensitive mice. Exhaust ventilation through the buildings HVAC system allows the benefits of individually ventilated cages without the disadvantages in energy costs of maintaining multiple air-handling units.
Our rodent facility, the BioCORE, was established in 2008 with a total of74 OptiMICE racks, offering a potential 7400 cage spaces. Several functional areas were designed to cater for breeding (3000 cage spaces), generation of novel mouse models and embryo transfers (700 cage spaces), animals under study (2800 cage spaces), isolation of animals in negative pressure rooms (700 cage spaces), and containment of animals under quarantine (200) cage spaces. We breed and hold approx 140 distinct mouse lines and crosses, some with impaired survival under stress or difficulties in reproduction. The entire facility has been certified Physical Containment 2 (PC2) under guidelines of the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator, and two of our isolation rooms are AQIS Quarantine Approved Premises (QAPs).
Our experience with the OptiMICE cages after one year of operation has been very extremely gratifYing. Animal care staff enjoy working with the cages as they can be handled, stacked and cycled through washing processes with ease. All components were finished to a high quality and have proved durable through one year of operation. The visibility is good, with large spaces on either side of the cage card allowing views into the cage. With constant air-flows maintained, our cage changes times have been extended to two weeks, and sometimes longer for low-density housed animals. Aspen bedding is used throughout the facility with low-dusting enrichment materials. Water bottle lids are secure, with leaking bottles a very rare occurrence. Mice coming from static micro-isolators acclimatised well to these cages when introduced into the facility, and breeding rates over the past year have been extremely good. With no mechanical or electronic parts to the racks we have had little maintenance to perform, and also very few problems with breakages or clogging of the filters.
The constant air-flow through the cage provides a comfortable microenvironment for the animals and the cage design allows the animals to exhibit climbing and tunnelling behaviours and to retreat from light at times. Nesting huts can be accommodated in the cages to provide a suitable environment for breeding. Venting of exhaust air from the cages to the exterior of the building, rather than recirculating in the room has created a pleasant working environment for the staff and researchers. Odours are kept to a minimum and exposure of staff to allergens is also reduced due to handling in animal change stations with HEPA filtered exhaust.
Technical and service support from AACS has been faultless, with any queries or problems rapidly and satisfactorily addressed by Graham Murray and his team. We would not hesitate to recommend this caging system to any facility, particularly if the opportunity exists to establish a purpose built facility, as we have, but also where extra cages can be built into an existing HVAC system.
Please direct any enquiries about the use of the OptiMICE caging system in our facility to BioCORE Manager, Ms Karen Brennan.
Ms Karen Brennan
BioCORE Manager
A/Prof. Sally Dunwoodie
Laboratory Head
Developmental Biology Division
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