Chapter 3

Laboratory Rat Management

Maria-Angeles Aller, Maria Paz Nava, Marta Mendez, Patri Vergara and Jorge-Luis Arias

Abstract

Experiments on animals are the key to Surgical Clinical Research; its objective is to solve the unsolved problems in the clinical area. This chapter covers the ethical principles and investigator responsibilities. The principal environmental conditions, such as housing, husbandry and nutrition, are also described. Current studies indicate that rats and mice value opportunities to take cover, build nests, explore, gain social contact, and exercise some control over their social milieu; the inability to satisfy these needs is physically and psychologically detrimental, leading to impaired brain development and behavioral anomalies.

Total Pages: 7-31 (25)

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