Rutgers University Animal Care (RUAC)

Overview of Services

Rutgers University's Animal Care program offers comprehensive animal care including protocol review, a duly-constituted animal care committee, occupational health and laboratory safety, and full-time veterinary care. Animal Care's cores focus on providing high quality, cost-effective services to the research community, offering shared-use services to academic investigators and industry clients. 

Comparative Medicine Resources 

Rutgers comprehensive program of animal care includes protocol review, a duly-constituted animal care committee, occupational health and laboratory safety, and full-time veterinary care.

Our animal care facilities are USDA-registered and accredited by AAALACi, an association widely recognized for its standards of excellence in laboratory animal care and has an Animal Welfare Assurance with the US Public Health Service (PHS), a requirement for conducting any PHS/NIH-funded animal work. Animal Care works closely with the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees (IACUC) to provide the highest quality animal care and veterinary oversight of our research animals in support of this commitment to humane animal research.

Rutgers team of highly skilled veterinarians, veterinary technicians and animal care technicians provide medical care to animals, training and technical services for research staff. 

Veterinarian Services Our veterinarians are available for consultation and assist with a variety of topics including:

• Assist research staff with development of new animal models and protocols
• Ensure appropriate surgical and postsurgical care is provided
• Provide instruction and advice regarding handling and restraint, anesthetic and analgesic drug selection
• Health monitoring which includes:
• Disease prevention and regular surveillance
• Diagnosis, treatment and resolution for sick animals 

Veterinary Technical Services Veterinary technician support team is available to provide support in the following areas (not an inclusive list):

• Anesthesia support
• Breeding and weaning
• Animal identification – ear tag, ear notch, tattoo, microchip
• Tissue collection for genotyping
• Sample collection – blood, urine, other tissues
• Dosing
• Medical treatments
• Drug and supplies ordering
• Euthanasia
• Training on animal handling, procedures, anesthesia, aseptic surgical techniques, and other as required
• Surgical Services

Husbandry Services  - Our certified animal technicians are available to provide wide array of husbandry care and services for all animals. Services include, but not limited to:  

• Cage changing and cage washing
• Providing water and food to animals
• Cleaning and maintenance of animal rooms, equipment and facilities
• Receiving animal shipments and transferring animals to cages to their rooms

 
In Vivo Research Services (IVRS) Core - Rutgers has a wealth of experience, capabilities and models that are routinely used to answer critical invivo research questions. We provide a comprehensive program of animal care including consultation, experimental design, protocol preparation, a duly constituted animal care and use committee, occupational health and laboratory safety, BSL3 in vivo biohazard research, and full-time veterinary care.

Genome Editing Shared Resources (GESR) - GESR serves as one of America's largest, most comprehensive university-based research centers. Its main focus is to provide expertise and technical services required to manipulate the genomes of animals utilizing CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene editing and, eventually, genome edited of various cell lines including human cells. GESR Services include: CRISPR/CAS9 - Mediated Gene Editing in Mouse;DNA Microinjection for transgenic generation; BAC DNA Microinjection for BAC transgenesit; ES Cell Line Injection; CRISPR Targer Validation (for Gene Editing in Mouse); Mouse Cryopreservation; In Vitro Fertilization; Mouse Line Rederivation, Genotyping.  If you wish to request services, please use the following link to GESR's iLab page: https://rutgers.ilab.agilent.com/sc/5198/genome-editing-shared-resource/?tab=about

Gnotobiotic Core - The Gnotobiotic Core at Rutgers University provides investigators with the ability to work with germ-free and SPF mice. Currently the core maintains a germ-free colony with C57BL/6 GF mice. Our germ-free mice are completely free of exogenous, bacterial, fungal and viral microorganism. To ensure they remain free of all exogenous microbes, our germ-free mice are housed in isolation cages and are routinely monitored. These mice are ideal for the study of the microbiome. Gnotobiotic Core also provides investigators with a laboratory that contains a biosafety cabinet and incubator for experimental needs. Gnotobiotic Core provices following types of technical services to researcher as per their protocol needs: Colony management and breeding of germ-free and SPF mice; injections; bleeding; identification; fecal collection; tissue collection for genotyping; sterility testing; sterile supplies for experiments; health monitoring; animal husbandry services.

Aquatic Core - Aquatic Core at Rutgers hosts Zebrafish Facility consists of Aquaneering racks with Tecniplast rack for Quarantine imports. Researchers can house their research fish while our CMR staff provides exemplary daily husbandry care from larval stage through adulthood.

Location

Finance and Adminsitration Offices
Open Monday - Friday; 8:00 - 4:00 pm
679 Hoes Lane West, CABM Bldg. Rm 014
Piscataway, NJ 08854

Leadership

Links and Resources

1. Rutgers University Animal Care
2. GESR
3. IVRS
4. Gnotobiotic Core
5. Aquatic Core

Contacts

Map