Animal Ordering

Orders are due Tuesday by 2:00PM. Orders received in LACU (Coleman B106) Wednesday after 10:30am are considered late and there will be a $25.00 late fee assessed for UT customers and a $32.50 late fee assessed for non-UT investigators. The Laboratory Animal Care Unit is the only department authorized to order animals for UTHSC. Animals must be ordered via the on-line ordering system linked below:

Online Animal Requisition Form (Login required):

Access to the ordering system is restricted, contact the LACU at 448-5656 to have your account activated.

Please submit animal orders at least seven (7) days before the day you want them in the facility. This lead time might be longer depending upon the species and other factors (e.g., vendor availability, vendor location, vendors' shipping policies, etc.). Animal orders are placed Tuesday - Thursday for the next week's delivery. Animals will not be delivered on weekends or major holidays. However, special delivery accommodations can be accepted at the discretion of LACU.
Emergency orders received in LACU after the deadline may be accommodated depending on vendor availability and a late fee will still apply.

Animal Requisition Form

• Please contact the LACU Office, Coleman B106 to obtain paper forms.

Rate Schedule Fiscal Year 2009 includes charges for services & products and animal per diem charges.

Animal Procurement Information

The key to animal procurement is an approved IACUC protocol and use of the LACU animal requisition ordering form from which all cage ID cards, caging needs, special orders, and observation are generated. To meet reporting and record requirements placed upon UT by federal legislation (e.g., Animal Welfare Act) and granting agencies (e.g., NIH), as well as to ensure appropriate transportation, delivery, and receipt, all animal orders and/or acquisitions must be placed through the LACU. Animals may not be purchased or otherwise acquired without a fully approved animal use protocol. Also, any requests to import animals from another institution or to send anmals off campus must go through to the LACU.

The LACU uses the following criteria to determine which vendor will be selected to fulfill an order and to ensure the procurement of healthy animals from licensed vendors:

• The ability of the vendor to supply healthy animals. LACU requires the use of pathogen free rodents for research purposes. Rodents with an unknown health status or those suspected of harboring certain murine diseases must go through quarantine and testing or be rederived.
  
  The University requires any potential vendor to provide regular health status reports of their animal colonies. LACU continuously monitors the health status of rodents by conducting regular serology and other health screening tests on sentinel animals.
  
  
• The ability of the vendor to transport animals by means of an acceptable carrier. LACU inspects all arriving animals and will reject any filter container that has been compromised. The vendor will be required to replace animals that arrive in damaged filtered containers, animals that do not meet purchase order specifications, or are sick or injured. LACU prefers to use vendors who can transport animals using their own environmentally controlled vehicles and using specially trained personnel.
  
  
• The vendor must satisfy LACU requirements for quality and consistency and work with the LACU to meet the needs of the research community. This includes willingness of the vendor to meet delivery schedules, to provide animals that meet procurement specifications, and to notify LACU whenever there is possible contamination or other concerns that may affect their production facility.
  
  

Vendor Delivery Dates

All Arriving animals are delivered to the Nash receiving area. Each shipment of animals is inspected by personnel to verify that order specifications have been met, and that the animals have arrived in good health.

MONDAY
Charles Rivers Laboratory/Sasco
Harlan Sprague Dawley
Jackson Laboratory
Myrtle's Rabbitry
NCI
Nichols Hog Farm

TUESDAY
Hilltop Labs
Xenopus
Taconic Farms, Inc.

WEDNESDAY
Nichols Hog Farm

please call LACU for additional vendors and delivery days
B&D Farms
Dekalb Heartland Hatcheries
Oak Hill
Palmetto Pigeon Plant
Spasas

Contact Us

Timothy D. Mandrell, D.V.M.
Director,
Laboratory Animal Care Unit
956 Court Avenue,
Box 17
Room B106,
Memphis, TN 38163

Phone: 901-448-5656
Fax: 901-448-8506