Animal handlers as animal spokespersons

Animal handlers are responsible for feeding, cleaning, and caring for laboratory animals. They also play another important role — they represent the animals in dealing with researchers.

“We serve as spokespersons for the animals. Our primary task is to make sure that the animals receive the best possible care, given their particular situation," says Ingela Bertilsson, animal handler at the Rudbeck Laboratory in Uppsala.

Here, Ingela Bertilsson works along with five other animal handlers. Each is responsible for a different room. Ingela Bertilsson´s room contains racks of plastic cages along the walls to keep mice. Each cage contains two or three mice. A label on each cage indicates when the mice were born, when they were separated from their parents, and who is responsible for them. They also have a reference number indicating that the research project has undergone ethical review.

“The first thing I do every morning is to check the animals and make sure everything is fine. If any appear to be doing poorly, I contact the researcher in charge. Together we discuss how we should deal with it. If we are uncertain, or disagree, we contact the laboratory veterinarian who then decides what to do."

Very engaged

Ingela Bertilsson studied animal care at a college of agriculture. At the outset she had no plans to work with laboratory animals, but became interested during a specialised course that was part of her education.

“We had a very engaged and good teacher who inspired me to work with laboratory animals", she says.

Otherwise, dogs are Ingela Bertilsson´s main interest, and no one can misinterpret her dedication to the animals. She sees it as her duty to speak on the behalf of the animals, and she does not hesitate to state her views.

“If anyone has a viewpoint different from mine, we discuss it. I find it hard to watch animals going around with pain just so scientists can obtain their results."

Physical work

Ingela Bertilsson has worked as an animal handler since 2002. She likes her job even though it often involves repetitive movement and is physically strenuous. Once per week she changes the sawdust and cleans the cages. Ingela Bertilsson does not know how many cages she cleans every week, nor does she want to know.

“I usually take one rack at a time. Otherwise, on Monday morning it would be too difficult to think about how many cages I have in front of me," she says.

Allergic to urine

Hygiene is important. Being a visitor to an animal facility means changing clothes from head to toe and thorough cleaning. Animal handlers always use a hairnet and plastic gloves when they work with the animals.

Each cage has its own ventilation, and sawdust is always changed in a laminar flow cabinet, mainly to avoid having the animals infect each other, but also to protect staff. Nevertheless, Ingela Bertilsson has developed an allergy; not an uncommon problem among animal handlers.

“I have become allergic to mouse and rat urine. I particularly notice it when we have large groups of animals that include many males. But usually it´s not too problematic. I recommend everyone working with animals in this way to use a facemask," she remarks.

Text: Karl-Johan Börjesson

Published: 2009-04-15

Last updated: 2009-04-15

Responsible for content: Mats Ulfendahl, Secretary General of Medicine and health, Swedish Research Council.
Editor: Peter Tillhammar, Swedish Research Council. Contact: Send email to the editorial staff.