Animal Tracking System-Frequently Asked Questions

1. When do I use a transfer request as opposed to an acquisition request?
2. When do I use a purchase request as opposed to using the purchasing option under the animal acquisition page?
3. When submitting a purchasing request; why are we asked to select a vivarium when the housing location for the transaction is requested below?
4. Once I submit my purchase request, will my animals automatically be ordered?
5. Why won’t my recharge/DaFIS account number work?
6. Can I enter all of the animals that I have acquired or used in a given period of time as one lump sum?
7. How often should I enter animals into the ATS?
8. Can extra animals generated through purchase or breeding be transferred to another protocol?
9. When would an animal be considered “without use” as compared to “with use”?

When do I use a transfer request as opposed to an acquisition request?

Anytime an animal is transferred from one protocol to another (this could be the same or different PI) or one housing location to another, a transfer request needs to be submitted. An acquisition request must be used for transactions that are not purchases or transfers. When declaring animals, animals should be counted once they have been weaned, hatched, reach larval form, are physically large enough to be counted (fish) or if they are used in an experiment prior the above specifications, the animal must be counted on the breeding protocol and research protocol at the time of use. Field studies that involve the capture and release of animals even if they are never brought back to a UCD facility must also be declared.

*An exception to this would be if animals are used under a teaching protocol and the animals are originating from a herd/colony of animals maintained for this purpose. In this case, the animals would be acquired under the acquisition declaration and the source would be breeding. The breeding option includes colony animals. If in doubt which option you should use, contact the IACUC office: [email protected]

When do I use a purchase request as opposed to using the purchasing option under the animal acquisition page?

Almost all animal purchases will be entered as a purchase request. An exception to this would be smaller departments that rarely acquire animals by purchasing them and they do not order animals through CLAS (Please note all animal purchases must be entered into the ATS and approved prior to animals actually being ordered). Purchase requests for animals from non-approved vendors must receive approval from the health monitoring coordinator prior to being ordered.

When submitting a purchasing request; why are we asked to select a vivarium when the housing location for the transaction is requested below?

The vivarium selected near the top of the request form is where the request will be routed for the purchase. All facilities who order their animals through CLAS would select one of the CLAS subunits as the vivarium so the request is routed to CLAS. For departments that do not purchase animals through CLAS, the vivarium selected would be the facility/department requesting the purchase. For example, if someone in CABA submits a purchase request and they do not order animals through CLAS, the vivarium selected would be CABA.

The housing location listed at the bottom of the purchasing request is the location the requester would like the animals to be housed once they arrive. This may or may not be the same location as the vivarium listed above.

Once I submit my purchase request, will my animals automatically be ordered?

Only animals ordered through CLAS will generate an actual purchase order. All facilities ordering animals outside of CLAS will still need to continue completing whatever process is already in use to ensure animal orders are submitted to the departmental purchasing agent.

Why won’t my recharge/DaFIS account number work?

Neither the IACUC office nor CLAS has access to PI account information. Please contact your department’s purchasing office to get help regarding active account numbers.

Can I enter all of the animals that I have acquired or used in a given period of time as one lump sum?

Yes, a single entry can be made in the ATS system when declaring animals. Enter the total number of animals acquired or used within a given period of time. The reporting start and end dates should correspond to the period in which the number of animals being reported was calculated.

How often should I enter animals into the ATS?

Animals should be entered into the animal tracking system on a quarterly basis. The total number of animals acquired or used within that three month period can be entered into the ATS as a single lump sum entry.

Can extra animals generated through purchase or breeding be transferred to another protocol?

Yes, extra animals can be transferred from one protocol to another. Note that typically extra animals that were purchased from an approved vendor and were not used experimentally would be considered “without use” while extra animals that were bred under an approved breeding protocol would be considered “with use” when completing the transfer request.

When would an animal be considered “without use” as compared to “with use”?

Typically the only time an animal would be considered “without use” is when it was purchased but never used experimentally or as a breeder. If an animal is used as described in the protocol, then it is considered to be “with use”. For example, animals originally under breeding protocols that were used for breeding that are then transferred to a research protocol are considered “with use”.