On this page: Draft SOPs for review | Analgesia | Anesthesia | Surgery | Euthanasia | Experimental Guidelines | Animal Care | Veterinary Care | Monitoring Log template | Occupational Health and Safety | Farm SOPs | Controlled drug SOP | Controlled Substances Requirements | PHAC Biohazard info | ALPHA Certificate | McGill Animal Incident Report Form | Template Crisis template
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) provide a detailed description of commonly used procedures. SOPs offer investigators an alternative to writing detailed procedures in their protocol.
Note that the use of the words ‘should’ and ‘must’ in these SOPs is consistent with their defined use in Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC) guidelines. The term 'should' indicates an obligation, for which any exceptions must be justified to, and approved by, an Animal Care Committee. The term 'must' indicates a mandatory requirement.
Any deviation from the approved procedures must be clearly described and justified in the Animal Use Protocol application in AMS. Approval of the protocol indicates approval of the deviation from the SOP for that project only.
The following Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) were created and/or revised by the Veterinary Committee and approved by the Animal Policy and Welfare Oversight Committee (APWOC), 3 McGill FACCs or a specific FACC where applicable. They are reviewed every 3 years at most.
The SOPs here are mainly for McGill University sites. If you are in an affiliated Research Institute, please contact your FACC Coordinator to find out if these (or which) apply to your site and where to find your local SOPs.
The Coordinator at:
- The RI-MUHC (MGH and Glen site) as well as the Shriners Hospitals for Children can be reached via this facc.admin [at] muhc.mcgill.ca (email).
- The Douglas Mental Health University Institute can be reached via this tara.thomson.comtl [at] ssss.gouv.qc.ca (email).
- The Lady Davis Institute of the JGH can be reached via this darleen.element [at] ladydavis.ca (email).
If you have questions or have a recommendation to make, please send an animalcare [at] mcgill.ca (email) or talk to the Veterinarian in your area.
DRAFT SOPs FOR APWOC REVIEW:
None.
APPROVED SOPS BELOW:
Analgesia:
Anesthesia:
SOP 118-Fish and Aquatic Amphibian Anesthesia
SOP 120-Rodent Anesthesia Protocol Lung Physiology Measurements
Surgery:
SOP 205-Rodent Tumor Resection
SOP 208 - Rodent Mammary Fat Pad Injection
SOP 209- Cranial Surgery in Non-Human Primates
SOP 210- Care of Cranial Implants and Chambers in Non-Human Primate
Euthanasia:
Experimental Guidelines:
McGill's EHS SOP 401- Controlled Substances
SOP 402- Tissue Collection for Genotyping - Mice
SOP 403- Guidelines Blood Collection Volumes and Frequency
SOP 404-Substance Administration
SOP 405- Monoclonal Antibody Production - Mice
SOP 406- Polyclonal Antibody Production - Rabbits
SOP 407- Polyclonal Antibody Production - Rats
SOP 408- Water Control in Non-Human Primates
SOP 409- Maintaining Clinical Records
SOP 410- Humane Intervention Points
SOP 415- Humane Intervention Points for Rodent Cancer Models
SOP 416- Social Defeat Model - Mice
SOP 417- Food and Water Restriction in Rodents
SOP 418- Humane Intervention Points for Animals Used in Training
SOP 419- Humane Intervention Points for Rodents Models Involving Paralysis
SOP 420- Estrous Cycle Assessment in Rodents
This Monitoring Log is to be prepared by the Facility Animal Care Committee as per the approved Animal Use Protocol: 
Monitoring log TEMPLATE
CMARC NHP Activity Tracking and Procedures Requiring Anesthesia Log
Animal Care:
SOP 501- Animal Transport and Use Outside of Animal Facilities
SOP 502- Environmental Enrichment Program for Mice
SOP 503- Environmental Enrichment Program for Rats
SOP 504- Environmental Enrichment Program for Rabbits
SOP 505- Environmental Enrichment Program for Hamsters
SOP 506- Environmental Enrichment Program for Guinea Pigs
SOP 507- Environmental Enrichment Program for NHPs
SOP 514 on Marmoset Daily Care was abolished. Please refer to SOP 513
SOP 516 - Marmoset Cage Changing
SOP 517- Marmoset Room Sanitation
SOP 531 - Animal Acquisition Receiving and Acclimation
SOP 532- Vermin Control Program
SOP 533 - Microbiological Monitoring Program
Removed: SOP 535 - Animal Facility Regulations
SOP 536 - Procedure Room Maintenance
SOP 537 - Working in Laminar Flow Hood or Animal Transfer Station or Biological Safety Cabinet
SOP 540 - Operating Room Maintenance
SOP 541-Vendor Approval for Animal Feed and Bedding Suppliers
Veterinary Care:
SOP 601-Veterinary Care Program
SOP 602- Rodent Health Monitoring Program
SOP 603- Rodent Quarantine Program
SOP 604- Bioexclusion Levels for Rodents
SOP 606- Reporting Concerns Regarding Animal Care and Use
DOW B NHP Activity Tracking and Procedures Requiring Anesthesia log
SOP 608 -Mouse Breeding Colony Management
SOP 609 - Rat Breeding Colony Management
SOP 610 - Testing of Biological Material
SOP 611- Excluded Pathogens - Rodent Facilities
SOP 612 - Working with Immunodeficient Mice
SOP 613- Working with Rodents in the Imaging Facility
SOP 616- Rodent Identification
SOP 619 - Common Rodent Treatment
SOP 622 - Marmoset Health Monitoring Program
SOP 623 - Marmoset Breeding Colony Management
SOP 626- Macaque Health Monitoring Program
SOP 631- Macaque Herpes B Testing
SOP 632 - Animal Welfare Assessment
SOP 636 - Storage and Transport of Primate Tissues
Occupational Health and Safety:
SOP 701- Macaque-Related Injury
SOP 702 - Animal Related Injury
SOP 703 - Use of Viral Vectors in Neuroscience - Rodents
SOP 705- Animal Biosafety Level 2 - Rodents
SOP 706 - Use of Hazardous Agents in Rodents - General
SOP 707 - Occupational Health Program
SOP 708 - Use of Streptozotocin in Rodents
SOP 709- Waste Anesthetic Gas Scavenging
SOP 710 - Personal Protective Equipment Requirements
SOP 715 - Use of Cisplatin in Rodents
Farm SOPs are approved by the MacDonald Campus FACC only.
Dairy Facility SOPs
DC-101 Bio Security Cattle Complex
DC-121 Flushing Gutters in the Dairy Barn
DC-131 Environmental Monitoring and Maintenance
DC-208 Heifer Pen_Stall Sanitation
DC-210 Acquisition of Dairy Cattle
DC-211 Loading and Transporting Cattle
DC-212 Handling and Moving Cattle
DC-215 Selecting Appropriate Stalls for Tethered Cattle
DC-301 Body Condition Scoring for Dairy Cows
DC-302 Lameness Scoring for Dairy Cows
DC-303 Injury Scoring for Dairy Cows
DC-304 Cleanliness Assessment for Dairy Cows
DC-305 Mastitis Monitoring and Detection
DC-307 Extra Teat Removal Calves
DC-360 Outdoor Exercise Habituation of Tie-Stall Cattle
DC-361 Outdoor Exercise of Tie-Stall Dairy Cattle Approved
DC-400 Heat Detection and Breeding
DC-405 Pre-Partum Preparation of Dairy Cattle
DC-406 Post-Partum Care of Dairy Cattle
DC-502 Milk Replacer Preparation
DC-601 Milk House Pre-Milking Set Up
DC-602 Milk House Post-Milk Wash
DC-605 Preparing Cows for Milking
DC-610 Milking Cows with Box Stall Milker
DC-611 Milking Staphylococcus Aureus Positive Cows
DC-612 Milking Antibiotic Treated Cows
DC-613 Accidental Milking Antibiotic Treated Cows into Milking System
DC-617 California Mastitis Test (CMT)
DC-701 Substance Administration for Dairy Cattle
DC-702 Blood Sample Collection
DC-712 Pre- and Post-Operative Procedures and Long-Term Care of Fistulated Cows
DC-713 Rumen Content Collection from Fistulated Cow
DC-715 Controlled Internal Drug Release Silicone Device Insertion
DC-A-1A Environmental Monitoring Log
DC-A-2A Cattle Transport Decision Tree
DC-A-4A Heat Cycle, Signs and Conception rates of Dairy Cattle
DC-A-4B Signs of Heat in Dairy Cattle
DC-A-4C Factors Influencing Heat Detection in Dairy Cattle
DC-A-5A Colostrum Quality Readings
DC-A-5B Newborn Heifer Feeding Log
DC-A-6A Herd Health Scoring Record
DC-A-6B Injury Scoring Record for Dairy Cows
Poultry Facility SOPs:
PU-101 Biosecurity Poultry Unit
PU-202 Environmental Management Broiler
PU-203 Broiler Barn Preparation
PU-204 Sanitation Procedure Broiler Barn
PU-205 Manure Management Broiler
PU-208 Loading and Transporting Broilers
PU-A-0 Donald McQueen Shaver Poultry Unit Floor Plan
PU-A-2A Broiler Temperature Management Chart
Requirements on Record Keeping, Storage and Disposal of Controlled Substances
Refer to the McGill Environmental Health and Safety Office's SOP 401 on Cannabis and Controlled Substances.
Research Institutes of affiliated hospitals should contact their local Safety Office or EHS Officer.
For McGill researchers and instructors:
• All Principal Investigators (PIs) intending to use controlled substances (and cannabis) need to contact the domenic.dulisse [at] mcgill.ca (EHS Cannabis & Controlled Substances Officer) for notification and exemption processing. The PI's information is added to EHS' records and follow ups are performed. All research and teaching involving animals MUST have an approved Animal Use Protocol before being considered for an exemption.
• The EHS' MyLab software migration will allow for this information to be kept and tracked within MyLab. Permits will be issued to PIs using cannabis and controlled substances.
• Training for cannabis and controlled substance will be mandatory for all users. They will be granted a permit contingent on successful completion of the training which is every 2 years.
• An inspection checklist has been created specifically for cannabis and controlled substances in labs. PIs must follow Health Canada’s directive on physical security, while McGill veterinarians do not (they are responsible for the safe keeping of their drugs and reporting to Health Canada).
• A Cannabis compliance committee is being set up with the Director of EHS and will allow for better decision making and department awareness. This will be done for controlled substances in the near future.
• Controlled drug suppliers have been added to the McGill Market Place (MMP) and follow the same rules as radiation materials. Note that all orders must be approved by the cannabis and controlled substance officer.
• A revised SOP #401 for controlled substances is now posted on the EHS site. There is more information on EHS' website for the Cannabis and Controlled Substance Compliance Program (CCSCP) , Environmental Health and Safety, McGill University.
PHAC Biohazard Information
The Public Health Agency of Canada has implemented since December 2015, new regulations pertaining to the use of Human Pathogens and Toxins. Background information can be found on their website and details on the regulation here.
In order to work with Biohazardous Materials in a laboratory setting, researchers must complete an “Application to Use Biohazardous Materials”. These applications are reviewed and approved by McGill's Environmental Health and Safety Office (not the Animal Care Committee). Approval of the Application means that the researcher is compliant with the Biosafety Program which includes lab inspections and training.
Useful links (these two are also available as free Apps for a smartphone or tablet as well):
- Canadian Biosafety Standard (CBS), 2nd edition.
- Public Health Agency of Canada Pathogen Safety Data Sheets (PSDS).
McGill University Animal Incident Report Form:
McGill Animal Care Incident Report Form