Canadian Council on Animal Care

guidelines on:
the care and use of
fish in research,
teaching and
testing
This document, the CCAC guidelines on: the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, has been
developed by the ad hoc subcommittee on fish of the Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC)
Guidelines Committee.
Mr John Batt, Dalhousie University
Dr Kristina Bennett-Steward, Bioniche
Mr Cyr Couturier, Memorial University
Dr Larry Hammell, University of Prince Edward Island
Dr Chris Harvey-Clark, University of British Columbia (Chair)
Mr Henrik Kreiberg, Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Dr George Iwama, Acadia University
Dr Santosh Lall, National Research Council
Dr Matt Litvak, University of New Brunswick at St John
Dr Don Rainnie, University of Prince Edward Island
Dr Don Stevens, University of Guelph
Dr Jim Wright, University of Calgary
Dr Gilly Griffin, Canadian Council on Animal Care
In addition, the CCAC is grateful to former members of CCAC Council: Ms Susan Waddy, Fisheries
and Oceans Canada; Dr Jack Miller, University of Western Ontario; and Dr Choong Foong, Dalhousie
University; and to Dr David Noakes, University of Guelph who provided considerable assistance in
preliminary phases of this project. CCAC thanks the many individuals, organizations and associations
that provided comments on earlier drafts of this guidelines document. In particular, thanks are extend-
ed to representatives of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Environment Canada, the Canadian
Aquaculture Institute, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and the Canadian Society of Zoologists.

© Canadian Council on Animal Care, 2005

ISBN: 0–919087–43–4

Canadian Council on Animal Care

1510–130 Albert Street
Ottawa ON CANADA
K1P 5G4

http://www.ccac.ca
CCAC guidelines on: the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005

TABLE OF CONTENTS

A. PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 3.5 Redundancy in aquatic life

support systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
4. Types of Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
SUMMARY OF THE GUIDELINES
4.1 Flow-through systems . . . . . . . . . . .27
LISTED IN THIS DOCUMENT . . . . . . . .3
4.2 Recirculation systems . . . . . . . . . . .27
4.3 Static systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
B. INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 4.4 Mesocosms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
1. Definition of Fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 5. Fish Housing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
2. Rationale for Guidelines on the 5.1 Fish well-being . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
Care and Use of Fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 5.2 Tank/enclosure design . . . . . . . . . .28
3. Ethical Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
3.1 Principles of the Three Rs . . . . . . . .14 D. FACILITY MANAGEMENT,
4. Responsibilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 OPERATION AND
4.1 Responsibilities of investigators . .15 MAINTENANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
4.2 Responsibilities of the animal
1. Security and Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
care committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
2. General Maintenance of the Facility . . .31
4.3 Role of the veterinarian . . . . . . . . .17
3. Environmental Monitoring
5. Government Regulations and
and Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Policies on the Use of Fish . . . . . . . . . . . .17
3.1 Management of water quality . . . .33
5.1 International . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
3.2 Temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
5.2 Federal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
3.3 Oxygen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
5.3 First Nations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
3.4 Supersaturation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
5.4 Provincial/territorial . . . . . . . . . . . .20
3.5 pH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35
5.5 Municipal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
3.6 Nitrogen compounds . . . . . . . . . . .35
3.7 Carbon dioxide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36
C. AQUATIC FACILITIES . . . . . . . . . .21
3.8 Salinity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36
1. Water Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
3.9 Toxic agents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
2. Water Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
3. Engineering and Design . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
E. CAPTURE, ACQUISITION,
3.1 Structural materials . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
TRANSPORTATION AND
3.2 Room ventilation and airflow QUARANTINE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
in aquatic areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
3.3 Mechanical and electrical 1. Capture of Wild Stock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 2. Killed Specimens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
3.4 Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 3. Piscicidal Compounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
 4. Acquisition of Hatchery Fish . . . . . . . . .39 3.3 Anesthesia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
5. Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 3.4 Surgical equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . .54
6. Quarantine and Acclimation . . . . . . . . . .40 3.5 Incisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54
6.1 Quarantine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 3.6 Suture materials and techniques . .54
6.2 Acclimation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41 3.7 Pathophysiology of surgery
and wound healing in fishes . . . . .55
F. HUSBANDRY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42 3.8 Postoperative care . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
4. Administration of Compounds
1. Record-keeping and Documentation . . .42
and Devices by Various Routes . . . . . . .56
1.1 Standard Operating Procedures . .42
4.1 Branchial diffusion
1.2 General checklists . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42 ("inhalation") . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56
1.3 Assessment of fish well-being . . . .42
4.2 Oral . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56
2. Density and Carrying Capacity . . . . . . .42
4.3 Injection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57
3. Food, Feeding and Nutrition . . . . . . . . .43
4.4 Implants, windows
3.1 Nutrition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43 and bioreactors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57
3.2 Food and feeding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43 5. Tagging and Marking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57
3.3 Feed quality and storage . . . . . . . .43 5.1 Tissue marking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
3.4 Larval weaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 5.2 Tagging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
3.5 Use of medicated feeds . . . . . . . . . .45 6. Collection of Body Fluids . . . . . . . . . . . .58
4. Broodstock and Breeding . . . . . . . . . . . .46 7. Use of Infectious Disease Agents,
4.1 Induction of spawning . . . . . . . . . .46 Tumorigenic or Mutagenic Agents,
and Toxic and Noxious Compounds . . .59
G. HEALTH AND DISEASE 8. Endpoints and Criteria for Early
CONTROL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47 Euthanasia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59
8.1 Recognition of "pain", "distress"
1. Fish Health Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47
and "stress" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59
1.1 Disease prevention . . . . . . . . . . . . .47
8.2 Choosing an appropriate
1.2 Disease diagnosis and endpoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60
identification of pathogens . . . . . . .47
9. Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62
1.3 Injuries and other disorders . . . . . .48
10. Negative Reinforcement Modalities . . .62
11. Exercise to Exhaustion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62
H. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES . .50
12. Environmental Extremes . . . . . . . . . . . . .62
1. Handling and Restraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50 13. Genetically Modified Fish . . . . . . . . . . . .62
1.1 Restraint of dangerous species . . .51
2. Restricted Environments . . . . . . . . . . . . .51
I. EUTHANASIA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
3. Surgery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51
3.1 Surgical preparation and
skin disinfection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52 J. DISPOSITION OF FISH
3.2 Water quality during surgery . . . .53 AFTER STUDY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65

ii
 1. Consumption of Fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65 APPENDIX B
2. Release of Fish to Wild . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65 ZOONOTIC DISEASE-
3. Fish as Pets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65 TRANSMISSION OF FISH
4. Transfer of Fish Between Facilities . . . . .65 DISEASES TO MAN . . . . . . . . . . . .77
5. Disposal of Dead Fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65

APPENDIX C
K. REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66
GUIDELINES FOR CONTAINMENT
FACILITIES (FOR PATHOGEN
L. GLOSSARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73 STUDIES) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79

M. ABBREVIATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . .75 APPENDIX D

WATER QUALITY CRITERIA FOR
APPENDIX A OPTIMUM FISH HEALTH – FOR
RELEVANT GUIDELINES COLDWATER, WARMWATER AND
AND ORGANIZATIONS . . . . . . . . .76 MARINE SPECIES OF FISH . . . . .84

iii
iv
the care and use of
fish in research,
teaching and
testing
A. PREFACE

The Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC) The guidelines have been developed by the
is the national peer review agency responsible CCAC subcommittee on fish and were
for setting and maintaining standards for the reviewed by a total of 69 experts. A preliminary
care and use of animals used in research, teach- first draft was agreed on by the subcommittee
ing and testing throughout Canada. In addition and circulated to experts in June 2002 (including
to the Guide to the Care and Use of Experimental representatives of the organizations listed in
Animals, vol. 1, 2nd ed., 1993 and vol. 2, 1984, Appendix A), and a second draft was circulated
which provide the general principles for the for widespread comment in June 2003. A final
care and use of animals, the CCAC also publish- review was carried out in August 2004 involv-
es detailed guidelines on issues of current and ing all individuals who had previously provid-
emerging concerns. The CCAC guidelines on: the ed significant input to the development process.
care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing The development of these guidelines also
is the seventh of this series. This document involved consultation with the Canadian
supersedes Chapter I - Fish, Guide to the Care and Association for Laboratory Animal Science
Use of Experimental Animals, vol. 2 (CCAC, (CALAS) and the Canadian Society of
1984). Zoologists (CSZ) through workshops held at
annual meetings in Québec City (June 2003),
These guidelines aim to provide information for Acadia University (May 2004), and Hamilton
investigators, animal care committees, facility (June 2004). Consultations were also held at the
managers and animal care staff that will assist Aquaculture Association of Canada and
in improving both the care given to fishes and AquaNet annual meetings in Québec City
the manner in which experimental procedures (October 2004), and at the CCAC Workshop on
are carried out. the Fish Guidelines in Vancouver (April 2005).

The present document has drawn substantially The guidelines have been organized in a format
from the work of organizations listed in that should facilitate easy access to relevant sec-
Appendix A. Their contributions to the devel- tions. Early sections provide an ethical
opment of these guidelines are gratefully overview relevant to the use of fishes in
acknowledged. research, teaching and testing. This is followed
 by a brief overview of regulations and responsi- this document prior to the beginning of the
bilities relevant to the care and use of fishes in main text.
science in Canada. The remainder of the docu-
ment provides guidelines to assist in caring for The refinement of animal care and use guide-
fishes in laboratory facilities, followed by lines is a continuous process. These guidelines
are intended to provide assistance in the imple-
guidelines to help in the development and
mentation of best practices, and should not be
review of experimental protocols. An overview viewed as regulations. Where regulatory
of the CCAC guidelines on: the care and use of fish requirements are involved or where it is
ccac guidelines

in research, teaching and testing is provided absolutely imperative to adhere to a particular

through a summary of the guidelines listed in guideline, the term must has been used.

2
 SUMMARY OF THE
GUIDELINES LISTED IN THIS DOCUMENT

B. INTRODUCTION and comply with, relevant international, federal

3. Ethical Overview and provincial/territorial legislation and policies
governing the capture of fishes and/or their
Guideline 1: transfer from one water body or jurisdiction to

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
Fishes used in research, teaching and testing another.
must be treated with the respect accorded to p. 17
other vertebrate species.
p. 14
C. AQUATIC FACILITIES

4. Responsibilities Guideline 7:
Aquatic facilities are complex systems that
Guideline 2:
must be well designed to minimize stress to the
Projects involving the use of fishes for research, fishes, promote efficient operation of the facility,
teaching or testing should be described within a and ensure a safe working environment for
protocol. Protocols should be approved by an personnel.
animal care committee prior to the commence-
ment of the work. p. 21
Section 4.1 Responsibilities of investigators, p. 15
2. Water Quality
Guideline 3:
Before working with fishes, investigators, techni- Guideline 8:
cal staff and post-graduate students must be prop- If fresh or sea water is drawn from an open body
erly trained and have their competency evaluated. of water or a municipal source, it should be test-
Section 4.1 Responsibilities of investigators, p. 16 ed for, and treated to remove, contaminants and
pathogens.
Guideline 4:
p. 21
Investigators are responsible for, and must com-
ply with, occupational health and safety regula-
tions regarding the protection of personnel from 3. Engineering and Design
known or suspected physical and biological
hazards. Guideline 9:
Section 4.1 Responsibilities of investigators, p. 16 In designing and constructing aquatic facilities,
assistance should be sought from people with
Guideline 5: experience in this field.
Investigators should be aware of the potential p. 22
risks associated with zoonotic agents present in
fishes. Guideline 10:
Section 4.1 Responsibilities of investigators, p. 16 Construction materials for facilities housing fish-
es should be selected carefully for resistance to
corrosion and water damage.
5. Government Regulations and Policies on
the Use of Fish Section 3.1 Structural materials, p. 23

Guideline 6: Guideline 11:

Anyone acquiring or transporting fishes, or con- Materials in aquatic facilities which are potential-
ducting research on fishes, must be familiar with, ly toxic to fishes should be reduced to the mini-

3
 mum. Any toxic material should be listed, and aerated and filtered water and assuring the con-
the list must be available to staff. tinuation of life support.
Section 3.1 Structural materials, p. 24 Section 3.5 Redundancy in aquatic life support systems, p. 26

Guideline 12: Guideline 18:

Air handling systems should be engineered to Critical systems, including pumps, should be
ensure that aquatic areas are well ventilated and duplicated to ensure that failures cause only
humidity is controlled, and to ensure that aerosol minimal interruptions in service.
transfer between tanks and through the facilitity
ccac guidelines

is minimized. Section 3.5 Redundancy in aquatic life support systems, p. 26

Section 3.2 Room ventilation and airflow in aquatic areas,
p. 24 4. Types of Systems
Guideline 13: Guideline 19:
All electrical systems must be professionally An adequate water supply of suitable quality
installed to appropriate code standards (federal, should be provided for the fish at all times.
provincial/territorial and municipal building
codes) for operation in moist environments, and p. 27
must include proper grounding and ground-
fault interrupters on all circuits. Extension cords 5. Fish Housing
should be avoided, and electrical wires should be
fixed safely, away from water and from person- Guideline 20:
nel circulation areas.
Aquatic environments should be designed to
Section 3.3 Mechanical and electrical requirements, p. 25 meet the established physical and behavioral
requirements of the fishes in terms of shelter,
Guideline 14:
social grouping, overhead cover and lighting.
Electrical components and equipment should be
located outside the splash zone, and should be Section 5.1 Fish well-being, p. 28
housed in moisture-proof enclosures. Electrical
Guideline 21:
fixtures should be secured with gaskets to pre-
vent incursion of water, and should be located The shape, colour, depth, and volume of tanks
above pipe runs. should be appropriate for the species and life
Section 3.3 Mechanical and electrical requirements, p. 25 stage being held.
Section 5.2 Tank/enclosure design, p. 28
Guideline 15:
Machinery that produces noise and vibration Guideline 22:
should be isolated from areas housing fish. Tanks should have smooth, inert, sealed interior
Section 3.3 Mechanical and electrical requirements, p. 25 surfaces.
Section 5.2 Tank/enclosure design, p. 29
Guideline 16:
Light should be phased on and off, and should Guideline 23:
incorporate wavelengths and intensities appro- Tanks should be self-cleaning, or adequate
priate for the species where this is known. Where means for the regular cleaning of tanks should be
task lighting is needed for people working in the incorporated into the design.
room, it should be restricted in its dispersion
throughout the room or be placed at a lower Section 5.2 Tank/enclosure design, p. 29
level than the tank surface.
Guideline 24:
Section 3.4 Lighting, p. 25
Tanks should be equipped with a covering that
Guideline 17: prevents fishes from jumping from the tank, e.g.,
All aquatic facilities should have an emergency tank nets or rigid coverings.
contingency capacity, capable of maintaining Section 5.2 Tank/enclosure design, p. 29

4
D. FACILITY MANAGEMENT, OPERATION 3. Environmental Monitoring and Control
AND MAINTENANCE Guideline 31:
1. Security and Access An environmental monitoring system is essential
for aquatic facilities and should be designed to
Guideline 25: suit the water management system.
Access to fish facilities should be designed to p. 32
minimize traffic through the area. Access should
be restricted to those personnel required for Guideline 32:
maintenance of the facility and the care of the Water quality monitoring systems should be able

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
fishes, and those using the facilities for experi- to detect and react to changes in water quality
ments or teaching. before they become life-threatening to animals
housed in the system.
p. 31
p. 32

2. General Maintenance of the Facility Guideline 33:

Water quality parameters should be monitored at
Guideline 26: an appropriate frequency for the facility, and
All architectural and engineering specifications should allow predictive management of water
and drawings of the facility should be available quality, rather than only reactive management of
to those in charge of running the facility, as crises in water quality.
should all operating manuals for special equip- p. 32
ment such as pumps, chillers and computer con-
trol systems. Guideline 34:
p. 31 Good water quality measuring equipment
should be available, regularly calibrated and
Guideline 27: well maintained. Records of water quality
should be maintained and should be retrievable
Aquatic facilities must have written maintenance for retrospective analysis in the event of
schedules developed specifically for the facility. problems.
p. 31 p. 33

Guideline 28: Guideline 35:

Facilities should be kept in a clean and orderly Water quality must be monitored and main-
manner. Tanks should be disinfected before and tained within acceptable parameters for the
after every experiment. species being held.
p. 31 Section 3.1 Management of water quality, p. 33

Guideline 29: Guideline 36:

The staff responsible for operating an aquatic Fishes should not be subjected to rapid changes
in temperature, particularly to rapid increases in
facilitiy should have the specialized knowledge,
temperature.
experience and training for proper function,
operation and maintenance of the water system. Section 3.2 Temperature, p. 33

p. 31 Guideline 37:

Guideline 30: Fishes should be kept in water with an adequate

concentration of oxygen.
Sufficient numbers of staff must be available for
Section 3.3 Oxygen, p. 34
animal care and facility management and main-
tenance 365 days a year for both routine and Guideline 38:
emergency needs. Aquatic systems are susceptible to acute or
p. 31 chronic supersaturation. Individuals responsible

5
 for operating aquatic systems should understand dental introduction, exotic diseases and other
the causes of gas supersaturation and how to detrimental outcomes, and how to minimize
mitigate potential problems. these risks.
Section 3.4 Supersaturation, p. 34 p. 38

Guideline 39
3. Piscicidal Compounds
Water pH should be maintained at a stable and
optimal level as changes in pH may influence Guideline 46:
other water quality parameters.
Alternatives to the use of piscicidal compounds
ccac guidelines

Section 3.5 pH, p. 35 should be sought, such as anesthetic agents with

minimal environmental and non-target species
Guideline 40: impacts.
Free ammonia and nitrite are toxic to fishes and p. 38
their accumulation must be avoided.
Section 3.6 Nitrogen compounds, p. 35
4. Acquisition of Hatchery Fishes
Guideline 41:
Guideline 47:
Salinity changes are inherently stressful for fish-
Fishes should come from hatcheries with defined
es, and should be conducted slowly and with
health status and preferably known genetic his-
attention to the physical status of the fishes.
tory. Hatcheries should be encouraged to devel-
Section 3.8 Salinity, p. 36 op husbandry and management practices consis-
tent with those used in the production of other
Guideline 42:
laboratory animals.
When there is reason to believe hazardous mate-
p. 39
rials or infectious agents have accidentally
entered the water system, that system should be
isolated and tested. 6. Quarantine and Acclimation
Section 3.9 Toxic agents, p. 37 Guideline 48:
Guideline 43: After transport and before use in experiments,
Chemical products should be safely stored away fishes should be acclimated to laboratory
from the aquatic housing area and the water conditions during a period of quarantine and
supply. acclimation.
Section 3.9 Toxic agents, p. 37 p. 40

Guideline 49:
E. CAPTURE, ACQUISITION, As far as possible, fish from various sources
TRANSPORTATION AND QUARANTINE should not be mixed.
p. 40
1. Capture of Wild Stock
Guideline 50:
Guideline 44:
Quarantine areas should be subject to extra vigi-
Wild fishes should be captured, transported and
lance in monitoring fish and good record keep-
handled in a manner that ensures minimal mor-
bidity and mortality. ing to detect and respond to any health problems
in quarantined fish.
p. 38
Section 6.1 Quarantine, p. 40
Guideline 45:
Guideline 51:
Where exotic fishes are obtained from aquarium
suppliers or collection sources, local, provin- The duration of quarantine should be appropri-
cial/territorial and federal authorities should be ate to assure the health of the fishes.
consulted to determine the risk of escape, acci- Section 6.1 Quarantine, p. 41

6
Guideline 52: lished nutrient requirements for the species, if
Quarantine areas should be managed according available.
to rigorous infectious agent control practices. Section 3.2 Food and feeding, p. 43
Section 6.1 Quarantine, p. 41
Guideline 58:
Feed bags should be labeled with date of manu-
F. HUSBANDRY facture and guaranteed analysis information.
Small aliquots of feed should be retained for
1. Record-keeping and Documentation
independent testing when large feed lots are
received.

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
Guideline 53:
Detailed Standard Operating Procedures should Section 3.2 Food and feeding, p. 43
be developed for the maintenance and care of all
fishes and for sanitation of tanks, rooms and Guideline 59:
equipment. Feed should be stored in dedicated areas that are
Section 1.1 Standard Operating Procedures, p. 42 dark, temperature and humidity controlled and
pest-free to ensure its nutritional quality. Feed for
Guideline 54: immediate use and feed in feeders should be
similarly protected. Feed used for daily feeding
Checklists should be used for each group of fish
should be kept in sealed-top containers to protect
so that records are maintained of all cleaning,
maintenance and experimental procedures. it from humidity and light, and frequently
replaced with feed from storage.
Section 1.2 General checklists, p. 42
Section 3.3 Feed quality and storage, p. 43
Guideline 55:
Guideline 60:
Basic physical and behavioral parameters indica-
tive of well-being in fishes should be monitored Fishes must be fed at appropriate intervals and
daily and written records should be maintained. with a nutritionally adequate, properly sized
Any perturbation of these parameters should feed. Optimal feeding techniques are essential
be investigated and the causes identified and for good health and well-being, and to prevent
corrected. the fouling of water with uneaten feed.
Section 1.3 Assessment of fish well-being, p. 42 Section 3.3 Feed quality and storage, p. 44

Guideline 61:
2. Density and Carrying Capacity Whether fishes are fed manually or automatical-
ly, they should be observed regularly to deter-
Guideline 56:
mine whether they are responding as expected,
Each species should be housed at a density that and whether the ration is sufficient or overfeed-
ensures the well-being of the fish while meeting ing is occurring.
experimental parameters. However, in some
Section 3.3 Feed quality and storage, p. 44
cases, the ideal environment for maintaining a
given species will have to be developed using Guideline 62:
performance-based criteria such as growth rate.
Established maximum densities should not be Medicated feeds must only be used under veteri-
exceeded. nary prescription and supervision.
p. 42 Section 3.5 Use of medicated feeds, p. 45

3. Food, Feeding and Nutrition 4. Broodstock and Breeding

Guideline 57: Guideline 63:

Fish feed should be purchased from sources that Holding systems and environmental conditions
manufacture feed according to standards for broodstock should be appropriate for the
employed in the feed industry for fish and species. Particular attention should be paid to the
other domestic animals, and according to pub- importance of environmental cues for the main-

7
 tenance (or manipulation) of endogenous repro- Guideline 69:
ductive rhythms. Particular attention should be paid to monitoring
p. 46 fishes following any potentially stressful event.
Guideline 64: Section 1.2 Disease diagnosis and identification of
pathogens, p. 48
Where possible, rational genetic management of
broodstock should be used. For broodstock, a Guideline 70:
strict disease and health control program should
be implemented with veterinary advice to ensure Handling procedures should be carried out only
by competent individuals using techniques that
ccac guidelines

the production of healthy progeny and preven-

tion of disease transfer through water sources, minimize the potential for injury. Efforts should
fish or eggs. be made to minimize morbidity and mortality
caused by osmoregulatory compromise, sys-
p. 46 temic acidosis, and opportunistic infections of
damaged skin that can result from handling and
G. HEALTH AND DISEASE CONTROL traumatic injuries.
1. Fish Health Program Section 1.3 Injuries and other disorders, p. 48

Guideline 65: Guideline 71:

All facilities must have a fish health monitoring Health management measures should be used to
program. ensure that behavioral interactions with negative
p. 47 consequences such as aggression are avoided.
Section 1.3 Injuries and other disorders, p. 49
Guideline 66:
Strategic measures for disease prevention should Guideline 72:
include: 1) a formal written agreement with a A Standard Operating Procedure should be
fish health professional (usually a veterinarian) established for any standard treatments, and
responsible for the management of morbidity include the definition of endpoints should fish be
and mortality problems at the facility; 2) a pro- adversely affected.
gram for the detection and management of dis-
ease conditions and water quality problems Section 1.3 Injuries and other disorders, p. 49
related to physiological stress; 3) strategic appli-
cation of disease control measures, such as quar-
H. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES
antine, immunization, and prophylactic treat-
ments; and 4) a system of regular monitoring and 1. Handling and Restraint
reporting for health assessment purposes.
Section 1.1 Disease prevention, p. 47 Guideline 73:
Fishes should be fasted prior to handling.
Guideline 67:
p. 50
A health management program should focus on
early diagnosis and identification of the causal Guideline 74:
agents, stressors and mechanisms so that correct
control measures can be initiated. Personnel involved in handling fishes should
undergo training in methods to ensure their
Section 1.2 Disease diagnosis and identification of expertise and to minimize injury and morbidity
pathogens, p. 47 to fishes in their care.
Guideline 68: p. 50
Fish health management programs should strive
to identify both clinical and subclinical/adventi- Guideline 75:
tious pathogens which may occur as a result of Fishes should be handled only when necessary,
experimental stressors. and the number of handling episodes should be
Section 1.2 Disease diagnosis and identification of minimized.
pathogens, p. 48 p. 50

8
Guideline 76: Guideline 83:
Fishes should be handled in a fashion that mini- Surgical sites should be prepared in a fashion
mizes damage to their mucus-skin barrier. that minimizes tissue damage and contamina-
p. 50
tion of wound areas.
Section 3.1 Surgical preparation and skin disinfection, p. 52
Guideline 77:
Guideline 84:
Restraint and handling of fishes should be car-
ried out in a manner to minimize visual stimula- Attention should be paid to the use of asepsis,
tion. Where feasible, fishes should be protected disinfection and the use of sterile instruments to

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
minimize wound contamination and maximize
from direct light and rapid changes in lighting
the healing response.
while being restrained.
Section 3.1 Surgical preparation and skin disinfection, p. 52
p. 51
Guideline 85:
Guideline 78:
During prolonged surgery, water quality should
In general, fishes should not be kept in air contin- be maintained at a high level, with minimal bac-
uously for more than 30 seconds. terial and organic burden. Water for anesthesia
p. 51 should be from the same source as the tank water
to minimize shock caused by differences in tem-
Guideline 79: perature, pH, electrolytes, etc.
Those who work with dangerous species must be Section 3.2 Water quality during surgery, p. 53
trained and competent to do so. Appropriate
Guideline 86:
emergency items (e.g., antivenom, an appropri-
ate first aid kit, etc.) must be on hand. Anesthetics should be used in experiments
where there is expected to be noxious stimuli,
Section 1.1 Restraint of dangerous species, p. 51 and in experiments entailing extensive handling
or manipulation with a reasonable expectation of
2. Restricted Environments trauma and physiological insult to the fish.
Section 3.3 Anesthesia, p. 53
Guideline 80:
Every effort should be made to provide fishes Guideline 87:
held in restricted environments with as non- Anesthetics should be chosen on the basis of
stressful an environment as possible, within the their documented ability to provide predictable
constraints of the experimental design. results, including immobilization, analgesia and
rapid induction and recovery, while allowing for
p. 51 a wide margin of safety for the animals and the
operators.
3. Surgery Section 3.3 Anesthesia, p. 53

Guideline 81: Guideline 88:

Surgery should be performed by individuals Regardless of the application, anesthetics should
with appropriate training. be tested on a small sample of fish, as the effect
of an anesthetic can vary with local water condi-
Section 3.1 Surgical preparation and skin disinfection, p. 52 tions, as well as the species, life stage, and size of
the fish.
Guideline 82:
Section 3.3 Anesthesia, p. 54
Before surgery is attempted on living animals
that are expected to recover, suture and surgical Guideline 89:
techniques should be practiced on inanimate Personnel working with anesthetic agents in fish
materials or dead specimens until competency is must be adequately trained and protected with
attained. personal protective equipment.
Section 3.1 Surgical preparation and skin disinfection, p. 52 Section 3.3 Anesthesia, p. 54

9
 Guideline 90: Guideline 97:
Any incisions should avoid the lateral line and Care should be taken during injection to intro-
should follow the longitudinal axis of the fish. duce the needle in spaces between the scales.
Section 3.5 Incisions, p. 54 Intramuscular injections may be made into the
large dorsal epaxial and abdominal muscles, tak-
Guideline 91: ing care to avoid the lateral line and ventral
In general, strong, inert, non-hygroscopic monofil- blood vessels. Intraperitoneal (IP) injections
ament suture material and atraumatic needles should avoid penetrating abdominal viscera as
ccac guidelines

should be used for closure of incisions in fish skin. substances that cause inflammation may lead to
adhesion formation.
Section 3.6 Suture materials and techniques, p. 54
Section 4.3 Injection, p. 57
Guideline 92:
Guideline 98:
In laboratory or applicable field situations, fish
must receive careful attention and monitoring Implanted materials should be biocompatible
following surgery. and aseptic, and should be implanted using ster-
ile techniques.
Section 3.8 Postoperative care, p. 55
Section 4.4 Implants, windows and bioreactors, p. 57
Guideline 93:
Fish should be held in a manner that reduces or 5. Tagging and Marking
eliminates intraspecific interactions in tanks, and
meets appropriate living conditions for the Guideline 99:
species. Investigators must aim to minimize any adverse
Section 3.8 Postoperative care, p. 55 effects of marking and tagging procedures on the
behaviour, physiology or survival of individual
Guideline 94: study animals. Where such effects are unknown,
The costs and benefits of the use of prophylactic a pilot study should be implemented.
antibiotics post surgery should be carefully p. 57
considered.
Section 3.8 Postoperative care, p. 56 Guideline 100:
Marking techniques which cause significant tis-
Guideline 95: sue injury, such as branding, tattooing or clip-
Social factors, such as size differences, ability to ping important fins, should only be used if evi-
feed or exclude other fish from feed, and agonis- dence is provided to an animal care committee
tic behavior, should be considered in experimen- indicating that alternative methods cannot
tal design and when maintaining social groups achieve the desired result.
of recovering fish.
Section 5.1 Tissue marking, p. 58
Section 3.8 Postoperative care, p. 56

6. Collection of Body Fluids

4. Administration of Compounds and
Guideline 101:
Devices by Various Routes
Sedation or anesthesia should be used to restrain
Guideline 96: fish for collection or cannulation purposes. It is
If a treatment compound is to be administered important to realize that both restraint and anes-
orally, the volume dose rate should not exceed thesia may alter physiological parameters such
1% body weight (1 mL/100 g). as serum glucose and various hormone levels.
Section 4.2 Oral, p. 56 p. 59

10
8. Endpoints and Criteria for Early obtaining a consistent response when using neg-
Euthanasia ative reinforcement modalities in fishes.
p. 62
Guideline 102:
Investigators should eliminate, mitigate or
minimize potential pain and distress whenever 11. Exercise to Exhaustion
feasible and consistent with good scientific
Guideline 108:
practice.
Studies involving the forced swimming of fishes
Section 8.1 Recognition of “pain”, “distress” and “stress”,
to the point of exhaustion, often in conjunction

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
p. 59
with negative reinforcement, should be conduct-
Guideline 103: ed with strict adherence to guiding principles of
minimization of distress of animals. Fishes used
A defined endpoint should be established for in exercise to exhaustion studies should be mon-
studies which involve potential pain and/or dis- itored continuously.
tress to the animal. A pilot study should be used
to identify clinical signs to be used as the end- p. 62
point and to establish appropriate monitoring of
the animals. 12. Environmental Extremes
Section 8.2 Choosing an appropriate endpoint, p. 60
Guideline 109:
Guideline 104: Studies involving the exposure of fishes to envi-
When conducting research with defined, early ronmental extremes should select the earliest
pre-lethal endpoints, a list of parameters should endpoint possible.
be established to permit an objective assessment p. 62
of health status.
Section 8.2 Choosing an appropriate endpoint, p. 60
13. Genetically Modified Fish
Guideline 105: Guideline 110:
In any study where there is expected morbidity Genetically modified fishes may have changes
and mortality, the criteria for early euthanasia in physiology and anatomy as the result of
should be clearly defined. their genetic alteration, and should be closely
Section 8.2 Choosing an appropriate endpoint, p. 61 monitored.
p. 63
9. Monitoring
Guideline 111:
Guideline 106: Genetically modified fishes must not be permit-
Depending on the study and the time of morbid- ted to enter the food or feed chain unless they
ity, monitoring should be done at least daily. have undergone a thorough safety assessment
Frequency of monitoring should allow for the and have received authorization for sale, manu-
timely removal of fish before severe morbidity facture and/or import as a food or feed by
occurs. Frequency of monitoring should be Health Canada and the Canadian Food
increased where mortality is expected to be Inspection Agency.
high. p. 63
p. 62

I. EUTHANASIA
10. Negative Reinforcement Modalities
Guideline 112:
Guideline 107: Where feasible, the euthanasia of fishes should
Pilot studies and literature searches should be consist of a two-step process, with initial anes-
used to establish the least invasive method of thesia to the point of loss of equilibrium, fol-

11
 lowed by a physical or chemical method to cause 2. Release of Fish to Wild
brain death.
Guideline 115:
p. 64
In general, research fishes that have been kept in
Guideline 113: captive environments must not be released into
If a physical technique of euthanasia is used the wild. Release into the wild is only permissi-
when killing fishes, it should entail the physical ble under appropriate licence under the Fisheries
destruction of brain tissue by pithing or crushing (General) Regulations or similar provincial/ter-
the brain. ratorial regulations.
ccac guidelines

p. 64 p. 65

J. DISPOSITION OF FISH AFTER STUDY 4. Transfer of Fish Between Facilities

1. Consumption of Fish Guideline 116:
Guideline 114: Fishes should undergo health assessment before
Fishes destined for food and subjected to seda- being transported between facilities. Appropri-
tion or anesthesia should be held for the desig- ate regulatory approval and permits must be in
nated withdrawal time before being killed. place before any transfer.
p. 65 p. 65

12
 B. INTRODUCTION

The greatest challenge in providing guidelines on: These guidelines apply to fishes held in facilities
the care and use of fish is the wide variety of fishes for research, teaching and testing, as well as to
used in Canada and the diversity of their habits, fishes that are studied in their natural habitats.
behavior, life history, and environmental and
husbandry requirements. In addition, the scien-

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
tific information required to define the preferred 1. Definition of Fish
conditions for fish well-being is limited. While
For the purpose of these guidelines, fishes are
considerable research has been conducted on defined as all bony and cartilaginous fish genera
culture strategies and environmental and water (classes Chondrichthyes [cartilaginous fishes],
quality requirements, such studies have general- Agnatha, and Osteichthyes [bony fishes]). Fish
ly been aimed at determining conditions that eggs, embryos or larvae that have not developed
optimize production in aquaculture systems, beyond exclusive reliance on their own yolk
rather than improving the welfare of fishes, and nutrients are not covered by these guidelines.
have not usually addressed the difference Similarly, invertebrates (except cephalopods) are
between tolerance and preference (Fisher, 2000). not covered under the CCAC system of surveil-
lance, but institutions are encouraged to foster
An important consideration in these guidelines respect for these animals by ensuring that hold-
is the naturally high mortality rates of juveniles ing facilities and levels of husbandry meet stan-
in species whose ecological strategies include the dards equivalent to those used for fishes.
generation of large numbers of progeny to
ensure adequate survival in the wild. In
addition, many experimental populations of 2. Rationale for Guidelines on the
species with usually high survival contain indi- Care and Use of Fish
viduals that will not thrive to adulthood even
under the best environmental conditions. In The use of fishes as experimental subjects has
some situations, a population-based (or a group increased substantially over the past two
of study fish) approach to well-being may be decades. This increase in use is a result of the
rapid development of the aquaculture industry,
appropriate, but individuals that are not likely to
requirements for testing involving fishes as indi-
thrive should be euthanized as soon as they are
cators of environmental change, and the use of
identified.
fishes as a replacement for mammals in biomed-
ical, pharmacological and genetic research
Another consideration for these guidelines is the
(DeTolla et al., 1995; Fabacher & Little, 2000). The
general acceptance by the public of the current trend toward the use of fishes as a replacement
killing methods used in harvesting wild fishes or for studies that would previously have used
in recreational angling. In general, the public mammals as experimental subjects is not dis-
appears to be willing to accept these killing couraged. However, it must also be recognized
methods for food production but not when fish- that fishes have the capacity to perceive noxious
es are used for research. These guidelines accept stimuli. Noxious stimuli are those stimuli that
that for research, teaching, and testing use of any are damaging or potentially damaging to normal
animal, including fishes, more emphasis will be tissue (e.g., mechanical pressure, extremes of
placed on individual well-being than is general- temperature and corrosive chemicals). Whether
ly accepted for the commercial harvesting or pro- or not fishes have the capacity to experience any
duction of animals for food. It is recognized, of the adverse states usually associated with pain
however, that in some instances investigators in mammals is subject to a great deal of debate in
may obtain fishes from people involved in com- the scientific literature (FAWC, 1996; FSBI, 2002;
mercial or recreational harvesting and have little Rose, 2002; Braithwaite & Huntingford, 2004).
influence over the capture methods. Nonetheless, fishes are capable of behavioral,

13
 physiological and hormonal responses to stres- number of animals necessary to obtain valid
sors (including noxious stimuli) which can be information. This requires the use of a sound
detrimental to their well-being. These CCAC research strategy, including: identification of key
guidelines both support the leadership role that experiments that determine whether a particular
Canadians play in fish research, and ensure that line of enquiry is worth pursuing; use of pilot
the welfare of fishes is carefully considered dur- studies; staging of in vitro to in vivo experiments
ing the use of fishes for research, teaching and where possible; and implementation of staged
testing, recognizing that better welfare will result increase in test stimuli where possible (Balls et al.,
in better science. 1995). The numbers and species of animals
ccac guidelines

required depend on the questions to be explored.

Field studies, aquaculture studies and laboratory
3. Ethical Overview studies require different statistical designs; field
Guideline 1: studies and aquaculture production typically
Fishes used in research, teaching and testing require the use of larger numbers of animals. The
must be treated with the respect accorded to life stage of the fishes used in each study will
other vertebrate species. also affect the numbers of animals needed.
Studies of early life stages typically require large
The CCAC's surveillance system for animals numbers of individuals. In all cases, studies
used in research, teaching and testing is based on should be designed to use the fewest animals
the principles of humane science, i.e. the Three necessary. Heffner et al. (1996) and Festing et al.
Rs of Russell and Burch (Russell & Burch, 1959) - (2002) provide discussions on the appropriate
Reduction, Replacement and Refinement. For the treatment of samples and experimental units.
CCAC, these principles are laid out in its policy Investigators are encouraged to consult with a
statement on: ethics of animal investigation (CCAC, statistician to develop study designs that have
1989). The ethics of animal investigation applies to the appropriate statistical power to accomplish
all species covered by the CCAC system, i.e. all the research objectives (Nickum et al., 2004).
vertebrates and cephalopods.
The CCAC policy statement on: ethics of animal
In addition, the CCAC system takes a "moral investigation (CCAC, 1989) also requires adher-
stewardship" approach to the use of animals ence to the following principles:
in science as explained in the CCAC Experi-
mental Animal User Training Core Topics - • animals must be maintained in a manner that
Module 2, Ethics in Animal Experimentation provides for their optimal health and well-
(http://www.ccac.ca/en/CCAC_Programs/ being, consistent with the demands imposed
ETCC/Module02/toc.html). by the experimental protocol;
The first guideline statement in the CCAC guide-
lines on: institutional animal user training (CCAC, • animals must not be subjected to pain and/
1999a) states, "Institutions must strive through or distress that is avoidable and that is
their training programs to sustain an institution-
not required by the nature of the relevent
al culture of respect for animal life".
protocol;

3.1 Principles of the Three Rs • expert opinion must attest to the potential
According to the CCAC policy statement on: ethics value of studies with all animals, including
of animal investigation (CCAC, 1989), it is the fishes (e.g., scientific merit for research, see
responsibility of the local animal care committee CCAC policy statement on: the importance of
(ACC) to ensure that fishes are used only if the independent scientific merit of animal based
investigator's best efforts to find a non-animal research projects [CCAC, 2000a]; pedagogical
model have failed. value for teaching; and the appropriateness of
the method to provide data for testing accord-
As for any other species covered by the CCAC ing to current regulatory requirements);
system, investigators using fishes are required to
use the most humane methods on the smallest • if pain or distress is a justified component of

14
 the study, the intensity and duration of tion that should be included in a protocol form to
pain/distress must be minimized; and be submitted to an ACC, see CCAC guidelines on:
animal use protocol review (CCAC, 1997a); and
• an animal observed to be experiencing severe, CCAC policy statement on: terms of reference for ani-
intractable pain and/or distress should mal care committees (CCAC, 2000b) or most recent
immediately be killed using an approved revisions. Investigators obtaining fishes from the
method of euthanasia. wild or carrying out field studies should also
consult the CCAC guidelines on: the care and use of
Meeting the principles outlined above requires wildlife, Section B 3.1.1.1 Protocols involving the
that fishes be accorded the same degree of care as use of wildlife (CCAC, 2003a).

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
other animals under the CCAC system. There are
two main ethical drivers for CCAC guidelines: to When working outside of Canada, Canadian
maximize animal well-being, and to minimize investigators are subject to the same guidelines
pain and/or distress. Any factor that disturbs the that apply to work within Canada, as well as to
normal physiological balance of an animal has an the relevant legislation, regulations and guide-
effect on the studies being conducted, and there- lines pertaining to animal care in the country
fore should be avoided or minimized for scientif- where the work is conducted. This also applies to
ic as well as ethical reasons, unless the factor collaborative research projects, whether the work
itself is the subject of investigation. is conducted in Canada or elsewhere (see CCAC
policy statement on: animal-based projects involving
Fishes comprise a great number of species, each two or more institutions [CCAC, 2003b]).
with specific anatomical, physiological and
behavioral characteristics. Investigators and ani-
4.1.2 Studies and activities requiring
mal care staff should therefore acquaint them-
protocols
selves with the characteristics of the species pro-
posed to ensure that appropriate facilities and
4.1.2.1 Work requiring protocols and
husbandry procedures are in place prior to inclusion in animal use inventories
obtaining the animals.
These guidelines provide recommendations for
fishes when they are being used by investigators.
4. Responsibilities Fishes should be treated humanely whether or
Descriptions of the responsibilities of investiga- not they are to be included in animal use proto-
tors, animal care committees (ACCs) and veteri- cols or inventories.
narians are provided here; however, more
detailed information is given throughout these The following require protocols and inclusion in
guidelines to assist both investigators and mem- animal use inventories (i.e. CCAC Animal Use
bers of ACCs to meet their responsibilities. Data Form, see Reporting of Animal Use Data at
www.ccac.ca/en/CCAC_Programs/Assessment/
AUDFen.htm):
4.1 Responsibilities of investigators
4.1.1 Protocols involving the use • fishes held live in confinement for any period
of fish of time (even hours) for research, display,
teaching or testing;
Guideline 2:
Projects involving the use of fishes for • fishes lethally sampled in the field for
research, teaching or testing should be research, teaching or non-routine testing
described within a protocol. Protocols should purposes;
be approved by an animal care committee
prior to the commencement of the work. • fishes caught, sampled or otherwise manipu-
lated and released in the field for research,
Investigators are responsible for obtaining ACC teaching and testing purposes; and
approval before beginning any animal-based
work. For further details concerning the informa- • genetically modified fishes.

15
 4.1.2.2 Work not requiring protocols or investigators using fish as a research animal.
inclusion in animal use inventories Animal users should receive refresher training
on a five-year basis, and additional training
The following will not require protocols or inclu- should be given as needed in order to be able to
sion in animal use inventories: carry out procedures competently.

• fish eggs, embryos or larvae that have not Guideline 4:

developed beyond exclusive reliance on their
Investigators are responsible for, and must
own yolk nutrients;
comply with, occupational health and safety
ccac guidelines

regulations regarding the protection of per-

• wild source or hatchery fishes that have not sonnel from known or suspected physical
been assigned to research studies, and whose and biological hazards.
propagation is sufficiently understood to be
considered routine;
As with any other laboratory, animal care facili-
ties (including aquatic facilities) should have an
• fishes being observed in the field that are not occupational health and safety program. All per-
being handled or interfered with in any way; sonnel using the facility should be familiar with
the requirements of relevant federal, provincial/
• fishes being counted at installations such as territorial and municipal legislation. Chapter
counting fences and traps; VIII of the CCAC Guide to the Care of Experimental
Animals (CCAC, 1993a) provides additional
• fishes being lethally sampled under govern- details on occupational health and safety.
ment or other regulatory mandate for estab-
lished fish inspection procedures, abundance Guideline 5:
estimates, and other population parameters
Investigators should be aware of the potential
required for assessing stocks and for routine
risks associated with zoonotic agents pres-
monitoring of contamination/toxin levels
ent in fishes.
and disease; and
A brief review of fish zoonotic agents is provid-
• fishes already killed in the course of estab-
ed in Appendix B of this document.
lished aquaculture industry or commercial
fishing purposes.
4.2 Responsibilities of the animal
Guideline 3: care committee
Before working with fishes, investigators, The CCAC Terms of Reference for Animal Care
technical staff and post-graduate students Committees (CCAC, 2000b, or most recent version)
must be properly trained and have their com- should be consulted for detailed information on
petency evaluated. the roles and responsibilities of institutional
ACCs. In particular, ACCs are responsible for
According to CCAC guidelines on: institutional reviewing all studies conducted by investigators
animal user training (CCAC, 1999a), investigators belonging to their institution, whether the work is
and students should complete the Core conducted in-house or elsewhere. ACCs should
Components of the Recommended Syllabus for an ensure that appropriate care will be provided for
Institutional Animal User Training Program all animals at all stages of their life and under all
(CCAC, 1999b) and should have completed the experimental situations. ACCs are responsible for
relevant hands-on training to meet the Syllabus ensuring that there is appropriate management of
requirements on the use of fish as a research the facilities housing the animals. In particular,
animal. "Students" refers to post-graduate stu- ACCs should verify that there is a person clearly
dents; undergraduate students are expected to be designated to be in charge of animal care and
supervised by a properly qualified individual. management of the facilities who should also be a
See the CCAC website (www.ccac.ca/en/ member of the ACC. Additionally, members of
CCAC_Programs/CCAC_Programs-ETC.htm) the ACC should visit the animal facilities and
for further information on relevant courses for areas in which animals are used on a regular

16
basis, in order to better understand the work Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)
being conducted within the institution.
• Signed and ratified by Canada in 1992, CBD
sets out broad commitments to the protection
ACCs are responsible for ensuring that veteri- of biological diversity. Categories of pro-
nary care is available to all animals being used grams of work under CBD include Marine
for experimental purposes within the institution. and Coastal Biodiversity and Freshwater
Biodiversity. www.biodiv.org/convention
4.3 Role of the veterinarian Convention on International Trade in Endangered
The CCAC uses the CALAM/ACMAL Standards Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
of Veterinary Care (CALAM/ACMAL, 2004) as • CITES, in force since 1975, has 167 member
the Canadian standards for the role and responsi- countries (as of 2005), including Canada.
bilities of the veterinarian within an institution Member countries ban commercial trade in
using animals for research, teaching or testing, and endangered species and regulate and moni-
assesses participants in its program based on these tor trade in other species that might become
standards. Veterinarians working at institutions endangered. CITES applies not only to live
with large populations of fishes are encouraged to animals, but also to "Parts and parts thereof",
have special training in fish health management in which includes all types of biological sam-
research, teaching or testing environments. ples (skin, hair, bones, blood, serum, etc.).
www.cites.org

Code of Practice for Introduction and Transfer of

5. Government Regulations and
Marine Organisms
Policies on the Use of Fish
• The International Council for the Exploration
Guideline 6: of the Sea (ICES) requests early notification
Anyone acquiring or transporting fishes, or of planned introductions which may affect
conducting research on fishes, must be famil- joint water bodies, in order to carry out inter-
national review. www.ices.dk/reports/general/
iar with, and comply with, relevant interna-
2004/ICESCOP2004.pdf
tional, federal and provincial/territorial legis-
lation and policies governing the capture of
International Aquatic Animal Health Code for
fishes and/or their transfer from one water Finfish, Molluscs and Crustacea
body or jurisdiction to another.
• To facilitate international trade, l'Office
It is important to verify current regulatory infor- International des Epizooties (OIE) uses
mation with the regulatory agencies identified this Code (updated every two years) which
below to ensure compliance with current legal defines minimum health requirements
to avoid the risk of spreading aquatic ani-
requirements.
mal diseases. www.oie.int/eng/normes/en_
acode.htm
5.1 International
Sanitary/Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement
There exist several international agreements,
• This provides agreed-upon rules for General
codes, and conventions that relate to the intro-
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and
ductions and transfers of aquatic organisms. World Trade Organization (WTO) in the use
Requirements are typically incorporated through of SPS measures in international trade.
domestic legislation. Therefore, for activities www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/sps_e/
occurring in or otherwise pertaining to Canada, spsagr_e.htm
verification with Canadian authorities and com-
pliance with Canadian laws should ensure com- Canada-USA Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and
pliance with international standards. Some North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
examples of international agreements, codes and • These agreements provide SPS measures con-
conventions include: sidered acceptable for trade between Canada,

17
 USA and Mexico. www.nafta-sec-alena.org/ Fish cannot be caught or removed without a per-
DefaultSite/index_e.aspx?CategoryId=42 mit from the appropriate regulatory body.
Investigators seeking to capture fishes for use in
North American Commission (NAC) (Canada and research, teaching or testing should contact their
USA) of the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation local DFO office to determine the proper licens-
Organization (NASCO) ing requirements for their respective region.
• The NAC establishes protocols for the intro- DFO also administers the Fish Health Protection
duction and transfer of salmonids on the Regulations (FHPR) under the federal Fisheries
Atlantic seaboard. www.nasco.int
ccac guidelines

Act. The objective of the FHPR is to minimize the

risk of introducing or spreading diseases of con-
International Joint Commission cern. A license is required in order to release live
• This Commission prevents and resolves dis- fish into any fish habitat, or to transfer live fish to
putes between US and Canada under the 1909 any fish rearing facility. It is important that any-
Boundary Waters Treaty. In particular, the one seeking to import or transport fish contact
Commission relies on applications for DFO for advice on regulatory requirements.
approval of projects affecting boundary and
transboundary waters, and may regulate the Canada now has a National Code on Introduc-
operation of these projects. www.ijc.org/en/ tions and Transfers of Aquatic Organisms (I&T
home/main_accueil.htm Code) (Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 2003) that
includes all species of finfish, molluscs, crus-
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and taceans, echinoderms, and other invertebrates.
Development (OECD) The I&T Code is an agreement between federal,
provincial and territorial governments (signed
• The OECD has developed test guidelines for by the Canadian Council for Fisheries and
human health and for environmental health. Aquaculture Ministers in 2003) to conduct intro-
Investigators conducting studies to generate duction and transfer approval processes in a
data to be submitted for regulatory acceptance stream-lined manner through I&T Committees
should refer to Environment Canada or Health established in each province and territory in
Canada to confirm compliance with the cur- Canada. The I&T Code process implements vari-
rent OECD guidelines. www.oecd.org/home ous federal and provincial regulations. Local
DFO offices or the relevant provincial/territorial
5.2 Federal government should be contacted to determine
the application and approval requirements for
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is responsi- introductions of fish into fish habitat and/or
ble for administering the Fisheries Act and the transfers of fish into fish rearing facilities.
Oceans Act, and is a responsible minister under
the Species at Risk Act (SARA) for aquatic organ- The Wild Animal and Plant Protection
isms. DFO's program responsibilities include, Regulations of International and Interprovincial
but are not limited to, the management of com- Trade Act (WAPPRIITA) is the enabling legisla-
mercial, recreational and aboriginal fisheries tion for CITES in Canada. The import or export
and fisheries habitat protection (including of any animal (including fishes) on the CITES list
regulation of the movement and introduction of requires a CITES permit from the Canadian
fish), and protection and recovery of aquatic Wildlife Service (CWS) of Environment Canada
species at risk. Certain pollution prevention sec- under WAPPRIITA and the appropriate import
tions (e.g., S36) of the Fisheries Act are adminis- or export permit for the provincial or territorial
tered by Environment Canada (for further infor- agency responsible for wildlife.
mation see Section H.7. Use of Infectious Disease
Agents, Tumorigenic or Mutagenic Agents, and WAPPRIITA also provides the authority to protect
Toxic and Noxious Compounds). Although fish- Canadian ecosystems from the introduction of list-
eries management is a federal responsibility, ed harmful invasive species by requiring permits,
there are delegation agreements with a number and makes it an offence to transport an animal or
of provinces regarding inland waters. plant from one province or territory to another, or

18
export from a province or territory, without the 5.2.1 Reintroduction and release
required provincial or territorial permits.
In most instances, fishes may not be released
The Committee on the Status of Endangered into the environment. However, in special cases
Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) develops and such as telemetry studies involving the capture
maintains a national listing of Canadian species and release of wild fishes, appropriate permit-
at risk, based on the best scientific evidence ting is required before capture and release is
available (www.cosewic.gc.ca). COSEWIC con- carried out through the I&T Code process.
sists of representatives from: the wildlife depart- Fishes involved in such studies may also

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
ments of all 13 Canadian provincial and territori- require permanent marking or tagging if they
al governments; federal departments and corpo- have been subjected to treatment with anesthet-
rations concerned with wildlife, including CWS ic agents or other drugs with withdrawal time
(which provides the Secretariat), Parks Canada, requirements.
DFO and the Canadian Museum of Nature; and
three non-governmental conservation organiza- In each province and territory, there are I&T
tions. It is the responsibility of the respective Committees that evaluate requests to introduce
provincial and territorial jurisdictions where the or transfer fishes in accordance with the Fishery
species occurs to take whatever actions are (General) Regulations. Regulations applied by
appropriate to address the threats and limiting the I&T Committees in each province/territory
factors placing a species at risk. The federal gov- may differ. As a watershed may have a disease
ernment implements their responsibility through profile different from other watersheds, fishes
SARA which, upon legal listing, makes it illegal can be moved only between watersheds of simi-
to kill or harm species designated as endangered lar disease status and the permit must accompa-
or threatened. ny the shipment (one for each shipment of live
fish, fertilized or unfertilized sex products, or
Environment Canada and Health Canada are products of fish). I&T Committees also review
responsible for administering the New the potential genetic and environmental impacts
Substances Notification Regulations (NSNR) of such transfers (see above section on National
under CEPA, 1999. The purpose of the NSNR is to Code on Introductions and Transfers of Aquatic
ensure that no new substance is introduced into Organisms).
the environment before an assessment has been
conducted to determine potential risks to the 5.2.2 Containment
environment or human health. New substances
include live aquatic organisms that meet the There are several requirements for containment
CEPA 1999 definition of an "animate product of under various federal and provincial/territorial
biotechnology" and can either be naturally occur- regulations. I&T Committees may issue transfer
ring or genetically modified. Currently, notifica- licenses with conditions listed (e.g., containment
tion is not required under the NSNR when the requirements). DFO and the Canadian Food
fish is to be used for research and development Inspection Agency (CFIA) are currently develop-
only and there is no release from the research
ing containment guidelines for fish pathogens
facility of the living organism, the genetic materi-
which will be implemented through regulations.
al of the organism or material from the organism
In addition, information regarding containment
involved in toxicity. DFO has recently taken
requirements for research involving animate
responsibility for administering the NSNR for
products of biotechnology including genetically
aquatic organisms with novel traits. Investigators
modified fish under the NSNR are further out-
importing or using these organisms should con-
lined in Section H.13 Genetically Modified Fish.
tact the biotechnology office of DFO for regulato-
ry advice. The New Substances Notification
Branch of Environment Canada can provide more Facilities conducting research involving fish
information on the regulatory requirements relat- pathogens are required to consult CFIA
ed to other aquatic new substances. Biohazard Containment and Safety Division,

19
 to ensure appropriate levels of biocontainment 5.4 Provincial/territorial
are in place (see Appendix C). Where this
involves the holding of live aquatic animal Provinces and territories also have legal require-
ments that may need to be met in relation to
hosts, pathogen challenges or treatment trials,
activities involving fish and aquatic ecosystems.
DFO provides science advice to CFIA as stated
Investigators who are uncertain of which agen-
in their Memorandum of Understanding on
cies they are required to contact for appropriate
Biologics.
regulations and permits should contact their
provincial/territorial governments.
5.3 First Nations
ccac guidelines

5.5 Municipal
The Aboriginal Communal Fishery Licenses
Regulations (laws.justice.gc.ca/en/F-14/SOR- Many municipal governments have regulations
93-332/index.html) describe communal licenses governing the holding and use of fish within
for aboriginal communities for fishing and relat- municipal boundaries, as well as regulations per-
ed activities. These regulations are under the taining to effluent and disposal of hazardous
Fisheries Act and are referenced in various waste. Investigators must ensure that they
provincial and territorial regulations. adhere to appropriate municipal by-laws.

20
 C. AQUATIC FACILITIES

Guideline 7: ducted before a fish holding/testing facility is

Aquatic facilities are complex systems that planned within a particular location or building
must be well designed to minimize stress to to ensure that the water supply is suitable. This
the fishes, promote efficient operation of the analysis is usually the responsibility of the engi-

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
facility, and ensure a safe working environ- neer in charge of designing the facility, in consul-
ment for personnel. tation with a knowledgeable fish health profes-
sional. Laboratories capable of carrying out the
The most basic principle in the design of fish- initial comprehensive analysis of the proposed
holding facilities is that a healthy fish population water supply can be found through the Canadian
is dependent on a stress-free environment, which Association for Environmental Analytical
in turn requires the best possible facilities and Laboratories (CAEAL), www.caeal.ca. Water
water system (Wedemeyer, 1996a). Water pro- sources can be tested for a wide range of bacteri-
vides the supporting medium for all aquatic al and chemical contaminants at most regional
species and serves two essential purposes: the hospital laboratories, and some larger municipal-
provision of oxygen for all life processes, and ities may also have water testing laboratories.
dilution and removal of metabolic wastes. Both Water quality guidelines for the protection of
of these functions must be thoroughly addressed aquatic life have been developed by the water
in any fish-holding system. Section C. Aquatic quality task group of the Canadian Council of
Facilities is primarily targeted to land-based Ministers of the Environment (www.ec.gc.ca/
holding systems, rather than to outdoor ponds or C E Q G - R C Q E / E n g l i s h / C e q g / Wa t e r /
open water cages; however, the provision of a default.cfm#dri) and may provide guidance on
stress-free environment is equally applicable to acceptable levels of contaminants. Appendix D,
these types of facilities. although drafted for on-going water quality
evaluation, provides a list of the parameters
which should be tested. Institutions that have
1. Water Supply commissioned the facility should ensure that this
analysis has been carried out. Depending on the
Aquatic facilities should be designed to mini- reliability of the water source, further testing
mize pathogens in the water intake and may may be needed, for example on an annual basis.
require methods of preventing biofouling in The supply should also be evaluated to ensure
water intake and distribution systems. Water that there is sufficient capacity, including periods
intakes located in bodies of water should be posi- of maximum demand or emergency situations.
tioned in areas where they will not pick up To protect fish from potential contaminants,
debris, recycled wastewater or shipping waste other measures, such as a carbon filtering system
(i.e. bilge water and fuel spills), or be subject to or a reverse osmosis system, may be required
breaking waves or ice damage. where problems from the water source have been
detected (Huguenin & Colt, 2002).
2. Water Quality
Tests to determine the chemical composition and
Guideline 8: presence of contaminants/toxins will determine
If fresh or sea water is drawn from an open the treatment necessary to make the water suit-
body of water or a municipal source, it should able for use. Seasonal factors such as phyto- or
be tested for, and treated to remove, contam- zooplankton blooms, tidal cycles, seasonal water
inants and pathogens. mass turnovers and lake turnovers can have
periodic effects (scales of hours, days or months)
A comprehensive analysis of water quality for both sea water and fresh water, and these
parameters (ions, pH, metals, etc.) should be con- need to be anticipated.

21
 Fresh water often requires treatment to remove 3. Engineering and Design
chlorine or other disinfectants, reduce suspend-
ed sediments, release supersaturated gases, or Guideline 9:
eliminate pathogens (Fisher, 2000). With munic- In designing and constructing aquatic facili-
ipal water supplies, chlorine or chloramines ties, assistance should be sought from peo-
must be removed; activated charcoal (for large ple with experience in this field.
volume systems) and sodium thiosulfate (for
smaller systems) are commonly used for this It is not possible in these guidelines to provide
purpose (see Hodson & Spry, 1985). the engineering details required for aquatic facil-
ccac guidelines

ities. However, several sources are available that

Another potential problem with municipal water provide information on the important engineer-
ing and design principles of the various types of
is that the pipes through which it passes can
aquatic systems, e.g., Stickney (1994), Pennell &
release metals, which in relatively high concen-
Barton (1996), Ostrander (2000) and Huguenin &
trations can be toxic to fishes. The extent of
Colt (2002). The CCAC guidelines on: laboratory
release and toxicity will vary with water quality.
animal facilities - characteristics, design and develop-
There are generally no problems associated with ment (CCAC, 2003c) should also be consulted for
black iron or plastic supply pipes from municipal consideration of the general principles of facility
sources. Galvanized iron piping, where used, design.
may cause problems of zinc toxicity, and copper
piping or copper and brass fittings may cause The design of the facility is critical, and signifi-
copper toxicity if levels exceed 5µg/L. In addi- cant input from investigators and operational
tion, problems with cadmium toxicity may be personnel is required during the design and con-
encountered if excessive amounts of solder have struction phase to ensure it meets the require-
been used on copper fittings. ments of the fishes being held and the needs of
the investigators and facility managers.
Well water does not require dechlorination, but
it is often depleted of oxygen and may have In aquatic facilities, it is particularly important to
high levels of metal ions or carbon dioxide, ensure that the floor is sufficiently strong to sup-
nitrogen and other gases. Other potential prob- port the weight of the intended tanks plus water.
lems include the presence of ammonia and
excessively high or low alkalinity (Stickney, In addition to requirements for additional space,
1994). If well water is to be used, a pressure requirements for services (water, air, electrical
drop test should be conducted to ensure that the power, etc.) usually increase during the life of a
supply is adequate and reliable. Water taken facility. Therefore, the flexibility to permit later
retrofits should be included in the original
from a well has undergone filtration during per-
design.
colation through the source geological forma-
tion, and water temperature may be fairly con-
The facility design should ensure easy access to
stant throughout the year. Depending on the
all systems for operation and maintenance,
system requirements, this can reduce system including cleaning. Supply lines, drain lines and
complexity and cost by reducing the need for other critical components should not be buried
some filtration, as well as sterilizing and heat- or otherwise made inaccessible.
ing equipment. The major problem with seawa-
ter wells is that site conditions and geology are Modular construction is desirable to allow for
often unfavourable, high flow rates can be diffi- the easy removal of components with minimal
cult to obtain if wells are not carefully situated, disruption of operations.
and they can be subject to draw-down during
periods of high usage. On the other hand, sea- Considerable care should be taken with all fittings
water wells have the advantage that they do not and equipment on the suction side of pumps to
rely on pipe systems subject to storm and ice prevent air leaks that will cause nitrogen supersat-
damage and blockage. uration. Facilities should be designed to be able to

22
add in desaturation equipment when the poten- Main drains should be over-sized to handle tran-
tial for supersaturation exists. sient large flows of water. Gutters should have
covers that are flush with the floor and that per-
Facilities should be designed with dedicated sep- mit water to drain quickly. Drains and gutters
arate quarantine areas for the isolation of new should be designed to self-clean under normal
stock as appropriate. flow, and to permit the use of a 'cleaning pig' to
remove any buildup of waste in the lines. Where
Conventional facilities should incorporate trans- feasible, drains on all tanks should have traps
fer areas, foot and hand cleaning stations, and easily accessible clean-out ports.

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
restricted access and other common sanitary
measures to prevent the introduction and spread It is imperative to incorporate appropriate efflu-
of aquatic animal pathogens of concern. Work ent treatment, following regulatory requirements
for effluent, into the design of the facility. If the
requiring the containment of aquatic animal
effluent is untreated, it should be discharged in a
pathogens requires special design considerations
location that is remote from the system intake to
(see Appendix C).
minimize the chance that effluent disease agents
will be re-circulated through the system. In addi-
Water supply lines should be secure, protected tion, it is essential to take into account the poten-
from disruption and comply with local regula- tial impacts on wild aquatic organisms in water
tions. Where possible, water lines to and from receiving the effluent. For the most part, dis-
aquatic holding tanks should consist of hard, charge to a municipal sewer will provide ade-
permanently fixed pipes to prevent problems quate treatment of fish lab effluents. Calculations
due to hose flattening, air locks, fouling, etc. This of dilutions should indicate that potentially nox-
may not be possible in a research facility where ious materials in fish lab effluents (e.g., disinfec-
flexibility of the facility is of paramount impor- tants) will be diluted to non-toxic concentrations
tance, but the use of hard plumbed lines before in sewers before the sewage reaches the sewage
the main water pump are strongly recommend- treatment plant.
ed. All lines should be prominently labeled to
prevent confusion and potentially lethal effects When effluent treatment is required, an appro-
on fishes. priate back-up system must be in place to ensure
effluent treatment remains valid during times of
Water supply and drain lines should be designed power outages.
to facilitate cleaning by simple, low technology
methods. 3.1 Structural materials
Guideline 10:
Pressure gauges and flow meters should be
installed at points throughout the system to Construction materials for facilities housing
fishes should be selected carefully for resist-
monitor the condition of the lines and the per-
ance to corrosion and water damage.
formance of the pumps and filters. Performance
should be monitored by flow, concentration of
It is critical that suitable construction materials
dissolved gases, temperature, pH, salinity, dis-
be chosen for an aquatic facility, including mate-
solved oxygen, etc. rials used for tanks, tank covers and stands, as
well as plumbing, mechanical and electrical com-
All compressors providing gases to the system ponents. Surfaces should be sealed, smooth, eas-
should have devices to remove moisture, and oil ily cleaned and made of impervious material.
traps to prevent any oil that leaks from compres- Floors should be non-skid, especially when wet.
sors from entering the fish tanks through the aer-
ation system. Food-grade lubricants should be Porous materials, including wood, other organic
used wherever possible. Intakes to compressors material and materials prone to de-lamination
should be located so that only clean air is used, should be avoided as they provide locations for
free of engine exhaust, tobacco smoke or other some pathogens/parasites and can increase the
airborn contaminants. organic matter load in tanks, leading to stressors

23
 and disease problems. If these materials are used, heavy metals. Fisher (2000) provides concentra-
they must be properly sealed with nontoxic, tion ranges generally regarded as safe for fish
opaque sealants. culture. Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes and
other materials must meet human drinking
In particular, the use of wood should be eliminat- water standards and must be adequately flushed
ed in areas that are constantly wet (e.g., stands to eliminate acetone, methylethylketones and
for tanks) to prevent the growth of toxigenic tetrahydrofurans that are released following glu-
moulds and harbourage of pathogens. Wood is ing (DeTolla et al., 1995). High-impact PVC can
likely to rot and weaken in humid conditions. contain lead and other toxicants, and should be
ccac guidelines

avoided in fish holding facilities.

Many materials dissolve or corrode in salt water.
Selecting materials for marine applications is an Any silicone sealant must be labelled as being
engineering specialty and such expertise should suitable for use in aquaria (or have this clearly
be sought when building a marine facility. stated in other information available for the
product) as there is a high risk of toxicity from
Guideline 11: compounds added to regular sealants to control
curing and mould growth. If silicone sealant is
Materials in aquatic facilities which are poten-
used, it must be allowed to cure to release any
tially toxic to fishes should be reduced to the volatile toxins.
minimum. Any toxic material should be listed,
and the list must be available to staff. Less obvious sources of toxicity include paints,
untreated fiberglass surfaces, insulating materi-
Many common construction materials are toxic als and wood preservatives (Huguenin & Colt,
to fishes. Huguenin & Colt (2002) provide an 2002). Toxicity can also be introduced into the
excellent review of the biological constraints to water directly from the air through condensation
the selection of construction materials. Materials or aerosols. Creosoted pilings can cause prob-
may leach out or release specific ions, chemicals, lems if located near water intakes. Overhead
or corrosion by-products from their surfaces. All material (air ducts, pipes, paints, galvanized
metals should be sealed or be inert. ducts, etc.) must be chosen carefully as conden-
sation can cause them to drip toxic products into
The application of metals in marine facilities the water. Pressure treated wood must not be
requires consideration of the type of metals and used inside due to its release of toxic vapours
their interactions with both sea and fresh water. and condensates.
The effects of that interaction and the influence
of fish in the systems should also be considered. Because of the difficulty in identifying potential
Aluminum, titanium, stainless steel, steel and toxicants, it may be useful to test new facilities or
cast iron are all commonly used in aquatic facili- additions with small groups of sentinel fish, such
ties, but each has its own unique characteristics as trout, before subjecting the majority of the
which must be considered. Reviews of some of fishes to the new conditions.
these characteristics can be found in Huguenin &
Colt (2002). 3.2 Room ventilation and airflow in
aquatic areas
If concrete structures are used, care must be
taken to ensure the type of concrete is appropri- Guideline 12:
ate for its intended use. Marine grades of con- Air handling systems should be engineered
crete should be used and should be sealed to pre- to ensure that aquatic areas are well ventilat-
vent the incursion of salt, which can penetrate ed and humidity is controlled, and to ensure
and weaken concrete and internal support mate- that aerosol transfer between tanks and
rials such as steel rebar. Salt incursion is a major through the facilitity is minimized.
cause of failure in submerged concrete.
The science of air quality management in aquat-
Pipes, fittings and valves should not contain cop- ic facilities is not highly developed. However, the
per, nickel, brass, zinc or galvanizing treatments airflow should be sufficient to ensure that sur-
as their use can result in toxic concentrations of faces dry properly. Excess humidity hastens

24
structural damage to tanks, room fixtures, etc. under water pipes or tanks as condensation can
and encourages growth of pathogenic bacteria cause water to drip on the equipment.
and fungi. The ventilation should ensure a com-
fortable working environment for personnel. Guideline 15:
Airflow directions should be designed to mini- Machinery that produces noise and vibration
mize the spread of potential aerosols and to should be isolated from areas housing fish.
allow for the safe handling of any dangerous
substances. Pumps and fans can be quite noisy and can cause
vibration. Where possible, all such equipment
Installation of any heating, ventilation and air

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
should be located outside the immediate location
conditioning (HVAC) system has the potential to where the fishes are housed, with sound and
interfere with the ventilation in the other areas of vibration attenuation. Reasonable access to
the building and requires experienced profes- machinery for servicing should be incorporated
sional advice prior to and during installation. into the designs. Ideally, all servicing of equip-
ment should be conducted outside the facility to
3.3 Mechanical and minimize excessive noise, disturbance and con-
electrical requirements tamination of the environment around the fishes
Guideline 13: (Popper, 2003; Smith et al., 2004).

All electrical systems must be professionally

installed to appropriate code standards (fed- 3.4 Lighting
eral, provincial/territorial and municipal build- Guideline 16:
ing codes) for operation in moist environ- Light should be phased on and off, and
ments, and must include proper grounding should incorporate wavelengths and intensi-
and ground-fault interrupters on all circuits. ties appropriate for the species where this
Extension cords should be avoided, and elec- is known. Where task lighting is needed for
trical wires should be fixed safely, away from people working in the room, it should be
water and from personnel circulation areas. restricted in its dispersion throughout the
room or be placed at a lower level than the
Guideline 14: tank surface.
Electrical components and equipment should
be located outside the splash zone, and Fishes are easily startled when light switches are
should be housed in moisture-proof enclo- activated at night and may jump out of open
sures. Electrical fixtures should be secured tanks or incur injuries by bumping into the walls
with gaskets to prevent incursion of water, of the tank. Having lights on automated dimmer
and should be located above pipe runs. controls that allow the lights to be gradually
brought up in intensity over several minutes is
Some equipment is designed to be submersible; important (Stickney, 1994; DeTolla et al., 1995).
however, any electrical component or equipment Lowering the daytime light intensity and having
must have Canadian Standards Association some residual light at night may eliminate the
(CSA) approval for its intended use. All ground need for dimmer controls. Care should be taken
fault interrupters should be tested on a frequent, to ensure that fish are not disturbed by night-
regular basis. time security lighting entering through windows
in the fish holding facilities.
Electric power and sea water are a dangerous
combination due to the extreme corrosiveness Light influences, either directly or indirectly,
and the high electrical conductivity of sea water. almost all physiological and behavioural
All electrical equipment must be properly processes in fishes, including growth, develop-
checked for safe working condition before use in ment (e.g., rate of smoltification in salmon), and
and around sea water. Care should be taken to reproduction. The response of fishes to light is
avoid salt build-up on floors, and floors should complex and light often acts synergistically with
be pitched to promote drainage and avoid pud- other environmental factors, such as tempera-
dles. Electrical equipment should not be placed ture, making it difficult to predict the effect that

25
 inappropriate lighting regimes can have on the Guideline 18:
fishes or the experimental results (Stickney, Critical systems, including pumps, should be
1994). Also, while the influences of light are rea- duplicated to ensure that failures cause only
sonably well understood in some species, e.g., minimal interruptions in service.
salmonids (Pennell & Barton, 1996), in many oth-
ers little is known about how light affects behav- Main system water pumps, filters and other
ior and physiology. essential life support components should have
back up so that they may be replaced without
The natural history of the species, in particular affecting the supply of water or operation of
ccac guidelines

the normal swimming depth, can provide clues the system. It is often better to use spare equip-
to help meet the species preferences for the ment regularly to ensure its operational efficien-
wavelength and intensity of light. Some species cy. If water lines are critical, they should be
of fishes reportedly experience adverse effects duplicated.
from some wavelengths of light. The output of
fluorescent lights can be diminished by using Depending on the complexity of the system and
dummy bulbs to reduce light levels. Security the survival time of the fishes within the system
and night lighting should not create visible in the event of an emergency, facilities may rely
shadows at night in fish tanks, as this can on observation or alarm systems for alerting staff
impact natural biorhythms. Screening or other to changes in critical parameters (see Section D.3.
remedies should be used to protect the fishes' Environmental Monitoring and Control).
natural photoperiod.
Once the monitoring system detects a failure, the
3.5 Redundancy in aquatic life cause(s) should be corrected as soon as possible.
support systems
Guideline 17: 4. Types of Systems
All aquatic facilities should have an emer-
The choice of system (i.e. flow-through, recircu-
gency contingency capacity, capable of main-
lation or static tanks) should take into considera-
taining aerated and filtered water and assur- tion the types of studies which are intended to be
ing the continuation of life support. carried out in the system.
Generators or other emergency power sources It is recognized that some research will require
should be available to support vital functions establishment of simulated ecosystems. This
during power shortages and should be tested should be justifiable and have direct benefits to
regularly. Plans for longer-term power outages research.
must also be in place.
Aquatic systems are either static or flowing.
Considerable planning is necessary to anticipate Flowing systems can be either recirculation or
the problems that develop in any aquatic facility, flow-through systems. Flow-through or single-
and to develop systems and strategies to mini- pass systems are ones in which water continu-
mize the consequences of failures. The strategies ously enters, flows over and exits the areas occu-
employed will depend on the size and type of pied by fishes. Recirculation systems are systems
facility. Knowledge of the length of time that the where a proportion of the water exiting the sys-
water quality is maintained in the event of a tem is recycled after it receives treatment to
power failure is necessary, in order to evaluate restore its quality. An intermediate type of sys-
the level of redundancy required. In addition, tem involves the constant addition of new water
this will be dependent on the staff response time along with the re-use of some percentage of the
in the event of an emergency. As a minimum, water in the system (Fisher, 2000).
back-up life support must be available for the
length of time it would require for staff to The engineering requirements for flow-through
rectify the problem or to euthanize the fishes if and recirculating systems differ substantially
necessary. because the influent (source water) and effluent

26
water quality requirements vary (Fisher, 2000; and chemical waste does not exceed environ-
Huguenin & Colt, 2002). Fisher (2000) provides a mental standards and that potential disease
flow chart of the elements involved in the two organisms are not released (Ackefors et al., 1994;
types of systems. Fisher, 2000). It is expected that all municipal,
provincial and federal waste disposal standards
Guideline 19: will be met.
An adequate water supply of suitable quality
should be provided for the fish at all times. 4.2 Recirculation systems
Water management in closed systems is complex.

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
Water flow within a system should be sufficient
Pennell & Barton (1996) and Huguenin & Colt
to remove suspended solids and wastes and to
(2002) provide useful reviews and bibliographies
ensure that water quality parameters are main-
of water re-use systems; however, since recircula-
tained within acceptable levels. Water flow also
tion technology is changing rapidly, system man-
should be appropriate to enable fishes to swim agers need to stay up-to-date on innovations.
correctly and to maintain normal behavior.
Recirculating systems involve the complete or
For static tank systems, debris should be partial re-use of water by circulating it through a
siphoned off on a regular basis, in order to main- treatment system that reduces biological and
tain water quality parameters within the prede- chemical waste loads to levels comparable to the
termined range for species-specific requirements. influent water (Fisher, 2000). Recirculation sys-
In addition, water should be regularly removed tems use a series of processing stages that pro-
and replaced to avoid the build up of nitroge- vide some or all of the following: 1) separation of
nous material, which can become toxic. large suspended solids (uneaten food and fae-
ces); 2) fine filtration; 3) processing to reduce sus-
4.1 Flow-through systems pended solids, chemical oxygen demand and
dissolved organic carbon, and to re-oxygenate
Flow-through systems offer many advantages
the water; 4) removal of dissolved organic mate-
for fishes used for research or testing, and are
rials (foam fractionation); 5) disinfection; 6) bio-
less complex to build and operate than recirculat-
logical filtration/nitrification/denitrification;
ing systems (Fisher, 2000). However, they require
and 7) toxicant removal with activated charcoal
a continuous supply of large quantities of water (Fisher, 2000). While stages 1 to 7 are ideal, it
of a consistently high quality. Potential sources of should be noted that some partial re-use systems
water include municipal supplies, wells (either do not (and cannot) use all these treatment or
fresh or sea water) or natural bodies of water. processing stages.
Caution should be exercised in use of municipal
supplies as the presence of chlorine can kill fish- Filters, particularly for marine systems, should
es in culture. Section C.2. Water Quality, discuss- be as large as necessary to maintain appropriate
es water quality and the parameters which are water quality, even up to the same volume as the
important to measure and control irrespective of holding tanks, depending on stocking density
the type of system. and species. Regular changing of charcoal filters
is required before saturation occurs to ensure
Systems pumped directly from the water source that toxicants are not released back into the
(e.g., ocean, lake or river), rather than from a water.
well, present additional challenges for ensuring
stable water quality. Depending on the season
and tidal cycles, there may be problems such as 4.3 Static systems
temperature fluctuations, organic/biotic content, Static systems are systems in which no new
corrosion/fouling of supply system, presence of water is continuously added from outside or
contaminants, salinity fluctuations, pathogens recirculation sources. For this reason, these sys-
and disease, toxins from algal blooms, etc. tems are sometimes called 'bath systems'. Static
systems are often challenging to maintain, have
Effluent from flow-through systems may require very low inherent biological carrying capacity
treatment before release to ensure that biological and are prone to water quality changes.

27
 To assure water quality is maintained in static concerning the use of fishes for research and test-
systems, the following measures should be taken: ing also apply to mesocosms.

• acceptable limits for water quality parameters

should be pre-defined; 5. Fish Housing
• water quality parameters and animal condi- 5.1 Fish well-being
tion must be frequently monitored;
Guideline 20:
• regular partial volume water changes should Aquatic environments should be designed to
ccac guidelines

be used to improve water quality, along with meet the established physical and behavioral
devices which create water movement such requirements of the fishes in terms of shelter,
as corner filters, undergravel filters, hang fil- social grouping, overhead cover and lighting.
ters and internal impeller or jet pumps;
Many fishes have requirements for environmen-
• establishment of beneficial bacterial commu- tal conditions that will provide optimal welfare,
nities should be encouraged by housing a and where feasible, these should be included in
small number of fish initially to mature the the design of aquatic environments for fishes.
water. These bacterial communities should be Social behavior and social influences on behavior
preserved where possible by rinsing filters in can be quite complex, and require investigators
seasoned water, rather than in chlorinated tap and animal care staff to have a good understand-
water which can kill the bacteria; ing of the species-specific requirements of the
animals. For example, many species of flatfish
• regular tank cleaning and vacuuming to and eel do best in long-term holding when pro-
decrease bioburden from food and faeces; and vided with burrow type environments. In
aggressive species, the provision of vertical bar-
• the use of low stocking densities of aquatic riers or shelters may eliminate or curb aggressive
organisms, as the nitrogen loading of static behavior.
systems is rapid and the denitrification poten-
tial is low. Where the environmental requirements of fish
are not well known, as far as possible the holding
4.4 Mesocosms conditions should be designed to approximate
the source environment. Long-term holding of
When dealing with large volumes of water (usu-
such species should be considered experimental
ally 50,000L and above) to recreate aquatic
ecosystems (mesocosms), it should be recog- rather than routine, and should be conducted
nized that they may not operate in the same way with increased oversight and monitoring of indi-
as smaller tanks usually found in aquatic facili- cators of well-being such as feed intake and
ties. In particular, special considerations are growth.
needed depending on the material the mesocosm
is made from (e.g., dug ponds and floating Consideration should also be given to popula-
marine bag systems have very different require- tion densities, water flow rates or other physical
ments): water turnover rates may not be calculat- features that may have an effect on social interac-
ed the same way as smaller holding tanks; spe- tions. However, adding complexity to the aquat-
cial requirements may be needed for cleaning ic environment should be balanced against
and removal of debris and for catching the fish; the need to maintain a high standard of water
and considerations need to be given to the quality.
impact of solar exposure (e.g., build up of algae).
It is therefore important that these systems be 5.2 Tank/enclosure design
operated by individuals with the relevant experi-
ence. As for any other aquatic facility, they Guideline 21:
should be operated in a manner that does not The shape, colour, depth and volume of tanks
negatively impact on the health and well-being should be appropriate for the species and life
of the animals. Therefore, the general guidelines stage being held.

28
Tank design should take into account species Guideline 22:
preferences. For some larger species, particularly Tanks should have smooth, inert, sealed inte-
bottom dwellers, the surface area of the tank is rior surfaces.
more important than the volume or depth of
water. However, fishes that occupy the entire The need for a smooth, inert, sealed surface to
water column depend more on the volume of facilitate tank cleaning should be balanced with
water in the tank. Fishes that maintain their posi- the preferences of the fish for a more complex
tion by orienting themselves to a directional cur- environment. For example, in some experiments,
rent or flow require oval or round tanks, while investigators may use gravel at the bottom of the

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
species that need considerable space for swim- tank to replicate the natural environment, and
ming, such as the common carp, prefer an oblong this can be removed to permit thorough cleaning
tank. The depth of the tank can also be important of the tank and substrate.
as some species will not feed in shallow tanks.
Smaller species, such as zebra fish are commonly Guideline 23:
housed in rectangular glass aquariums.
Tanks should be self-cleaning, or adequate
The natural habitat and behavior of the fishes means for the regular cleaning of tanks
should be considered in selecting the appropriate should be incorporated into the design.
colour of the tank. For example, fishes that are
adapted to camouflage with the bottom of the Good water conditions should be maintained, as
tank require tank colours within their natural retention of wastes in fish tanks promotes the
range of experience in the wild. proliferation of pathogenic bacteria, protozoa and
fungi, and leads to oxygen depletion. The accu-
Most species adapt well to fiberglass (FRP), plas- mulation of ammonia is a prime issue in deter-
tic, metal or concrete tanks or raceways, and mining the frequency of cleaning necessary, as
many species can be reared without difficulty in un-ionized ammonia is extremely toxic to fishes
cages or net-pens with mesh bottoms (Stickney, (See Timmons et al., 2001, particularly Chapter 5;
1994). Concrete is an excellent material for fish and Section D.3.1 Management of water quality).
tanks, but should have an appropriate lining
which protects the fish from leachants and pre- The turnover time of water in a holding tank is
vents water from penetrating the concrete. Wood important from the perspective of tank hygiene.
should not be used as a tank material in contact The recommended turnover time is a function of
with system water as it is a porous material that species, stocking density, social behavior, dis-
may contain toxic elements (in particular, pres- solved gas levels in influent water, the tank con-
sure treatment or glue in plywood), is subject to figuration and feeding frequency. Tank turnover
rot, and requires the use of sealants, which can be times should also consider rates of oxygen con-
toxic. Vinyl tanks are only suitable for temporary sumption and ammonia production. Sprague
holding, as the plasticizers can be toxic and vinyl (1969) provided a nomograph to estimate 90 to
often contains contaminants. Glass is also suit- 99% molecular replacement times based on flow
able for tanks, but as with other clear materials, rate and tank volume. Simple arithmetic division
particular consideration should be given to the of tank volume by water inflow rate does not
effect of external stimulation of the fishes. For yield replacement time; replacement time is con-
example, some fishes are stressed if placed in siderably longer (Sprague, 1969). Turnover times
glass tanks with no substrate on the bottom. should ensure that water quality is maintained.
Nonetheless, glass tanks are particularly useful Where increasing the water flow is not possible,
for studies where good visibility is essential (e.g., aeration of the water and regular cleaning of the
studies with a behavioral component or toxicolo- holding tank should be performed.
gy studies).
Guideline 24:
Newly manufactured tanks require a condition- Tanks should be equipped with a covering
ing/depuration period to flush out solvents that prevents fishes from jumping from the
(Schreck & Moyle, 1990). tank, e.g., tank nets or rigid coverings.

29
 Tank lids also serve as an important barrier partial removal of the lid. Lids may also be con-
against the introduction of any foreign objects, structed of materials such as plexiglass or clear
animals or chemicals. The height between the acrylic which permit visual observation and are
water surface and lid should be such that it min- suitable for contact with aquatic animals.
imizes the risk of damage to the fish if they jump.
Tank supports must be properly designed,
strong, sturdy and durable, given the consider-
The ability to visually assess all fishes in tanks able weight of water and the potential catastoph-
and incoming water flows to each tank is essen- ic effects of any collapse on staff, animals and the
tial. Where tanks are covered, visual access
ccac guidelines

building. Transfer of weight to the floor structure

should be easily attained through removal or should be taken into account.

30
 D. FACILITY MANAGEMENT, OPERATION
AND MAINTENANCE

Well managed aquatic facilities will have a regu- Inventories of necessary spare parts for all essen-
larly scheduled preventive maintenance pro- tial facility components should be maintained.
gram for all life support systems, as well as an
annual maintenance program for all other equip- Guideline 27:

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
ment and for surfaces. The day-to-day operation Aquatic facilities must have written mainte-
of the facility, such as scheduled sanitation meas- nance schedules developed specifically for
ures, feeding schedules, and environmental and the facility.
fish health checks, should be conducted in a stan-
dard fashion. The development of standard oper- A documented preventive maintenance program
ating procedures (SOPs) for management of is required for all life support systems.
facilities is strongly encouraged to ensure consis-
tency (CCAC, 2000b).
Both routine maintenance and equipment over-
haul and replacement should occur while the
1. Security and Access equipment is still operating normally. All electri-
cal equipment, life support equipment and air
Guideline 25: and filtration systems should be checked and
Access to fish facilities should be designed serviced at regular intervals. Checklists should
to minimize traffic through the area. Access be available to ensure the duties have been com-
should be restricted to those personnel pleted and that there is a record of all service
required for maintenance of the facility and (Shepherd & Bromage, 1988).
the care of the fishes, and those using the
facilities for experiments or teaching. Guideline 28:
Facilities should be kept in a clean and order-
A security system should be in place that is ly manner. Tanks should be disinfected before
appropriate for an aquatic system. Environments and after every experiment.
with high humidity and salt in the air can cause
problems for card access and keypad security Guideline 29:
systems. The staff responsible for operating an aquat-
ic facility should have the specialized knowl-
Personnel should access fish facilities only when edge, experience and training for proper func-
necessary. Movement through the facility should tion, operation and maintenance of the water
be from the cleanest areas to the dirtiest areas. system.
Facility-specific clothing and footwear should be
supplied in the entry area, and personnel should Guideline 30:
wash their hands as soon as they enter the facility.
Sufficient numbers of staff must be available
for animal care and facility management and
2. General Maintenance of maintenance 365 days a year for both routine
the Facility and emergency needs.

Guideline 26: The inherent nature of aquatic facilities requires

All architectural and engineering specifica- that there be constant maintenance, repair and
tions and drawings of the facility should be upgrading. Trained competent staff need to be on
available to those in charge of running the call and accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
facility, as should all operating manuals for In particular, facilities must have a method for
special equipment such as pumps, chillers assuring a rapid emergency response by staff
and computer control systems. outside of normal operating times.

31
 3. Environmental Monitoring critical that all malfunctions be immediately rec-
and Control ognized by staff, or that staff are alerted by auto-
mated systems, so that corrective action can be
Guideline 31: taken. Remote monitoring of water quality can
reduce the number of visits per day into holding
An environmental monitoring system is essen-
rooms, which is particularly relevant for quaran-
tial for aquatic facilities and should be designed
tine rooms and during physiologically-sensitive
to suit the water management system.
experiments.
Water management involves a great many
ccac guidelines

Guideline 33:
mechanical and electrical components, the mal-
function of which can quickly result in stressful Water quality parameters should be moni-
and possibly lethal consequences for fishes. tored at an appropriate frequency for the
facility, and should allow predictive manage-
Many facilities have simple systems where unex- ment of water quality, rather than only reac-
pected environmental changes are unlikely to tive management of crises in water quality.
occur. These facilities should not need to estab-
lish costly water monitoring systems for a rare Parameters that need to be measured and the fre-
event, and in these situations monitoring quency of measurement vary greatly, depending
through regular visits by custodial staff is usual- on whether the system is an open or a recircula-
ly sufficient. For small scale aquatic facilities, tion system, and whether it is a seawater or
routine monitoring may simply consist of daily freshwater system (Fisher, 2000; Huguenin &
visual system and animal checks, and limited Colt, 2002). At a minimum, environmental moni-
testing with hand-held equipment such as a ther- toring systems should provide information on
mometer, dissolved oxygen (DO) meter and a pH water flow or oxygen saturation and water tem-
meter. perature. Examples for frequency of testing are
listed in Appendix D; however, these are sug-
Large sophisticated systems, however, will
gested measurements only. For example, while
require extensive, generally computer-based,
there may be no need to measure nitrites/nitrate
monitor and control systems with redundant and
in a high volume flow-through system (depend-
fail-safe modes and automated emergency con-
tact systems. Remote monitoring of water quali- ing on the source of the water), such measure-
ty can reduce the number of visits per day into ments are critical with recirculation systems.
holding rooms, which is particularly relevant for Parameters measured should also be relevant to
quarantine rooms and during experiments. the health of the species housed in the system,
and taken at a frequency that allows adjustments
Guideline 32: to be made well in advance of catastrophic mor-
bidity and mortality (Wedemeyer, 1996a). In
Water quality monitoring systems should be
addition, the ability to conduct rapid tests is
able to detect and react to changes in water
important when a change in the water quality is
quality before they become life-threatening to
suspected.
animals housed in the system.

Early detection of physiologically significant In general, recirculation systems should be mon-

fluctuations in environmental conditions is itored for a larger number of parameters includ-
important through automated or repeated manu- ing, but not restricted to, dissolved oxygen, tem-
al testing. Environmental change is more likely perature, salinity (marine systems), pH, ammo-
to occur in the following circumstances: water nia, nitrite, nitrate and total dissolved solids
quality is known to fluctuate based on previous (Fisher, 2000).
testing; previous occurrences of compromised
fish in studies with similar holding conditions; or When water quality analysis is done, it should be
when large complex systems depend on many at a time reflecting greatest demand on the sys-
continual water quality adjustments (e.g., recir- tem (usually after feeding) to identify potential
culated systems for large numbers of fish). It is problems.

32
Guideline 34: mation may be necessary when transferring fish-
Good water quality measuring equipment es and this should be carried out over as long a
should be available, regularly calibrated and period as possible.
well maintained. Records of water quality
should be maintained and should be retriev- Preferences and tolerances for some species of
able for retrospective analysis in the event of fishes are known. For other species, preferences
problems. may be unknown, and may require pilot studies
to determine the appropriate conditions. These
pilot studies should be overseen by the veteri-
3.1 Management of water quality narian or experienced fish health expert and the

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
Guideline 35: ACC.
Water quality must be monitored and main-
tained within acceptable parameters for the 3.2 Temperature
species being held.
Guideline 36:
Water quality, in the context of fish holding sys- Fishes should not be subjected to rapid
tems, refers to all the factors—physical, chemical changes in temperature, particularly to rapid
and biological—that influence the well-being of increases in temperature.
the animals. The term "quality" implies that no
factor should exceed concentrations likely to be Fishes are ectothermic, meaning that their body
toxic in the context of the facility or study, or fail temperature is similar to that of their environ-
to remain within the species-specific range for ment. Therefore, water temperature is a very
life-sustaining factors (Ackefors et al., 1994). important water quality parameter and highly
species specific. All vital functions are influenced
In experiments, it is important that water quality by body temperature, and the rates of these func-
parameters remain relatively constant through- tions increase or decrease according to the sur-
out the initial holding period and the experimen- rounding water temperature. All species of fish-
tal period (except, of course, for the variables es have a specific temperature range in which
that are being manipulated experimentally). they function normally and maintain good
health. The temperature tolerance ranges of fish-
The most common water quality factors known es vary greatly, both among species and life his-
to affect fishes are temperature, dissolved oxy- tory stages, and fishes are often referred to as
gen, pH, suspended solids/sediment, carbon cold (0 to 10ºC), cool (10 to 20ºC) or warm (20 to
dioxide, nitrogen supersaturation, ammonia, 30ºC) water species, depending on the thermal
nitrite, nitrate (Wedemeyer, 1996a; Kreiberg, regime to which they are naturally adapted.
2000) and chlorine. These must be monitored on Most fish species can tolerate a range of temper-
a regular basis; close monitoring is particularly atures, although each fish species has its own
important in closed recirculation systems. Standard Environmental Temperature.

The definition of acceptable range is complicated The term "rapid changes" is very species specific.
by the fact that appropriate conditions are not Even within the same species it varies, as it is
well-defined for many species and the require- dependent on the temperature of the water in
ments of individual species may vary between relation to the thermal maximum for the fish.
different life stages (e.g., larvae, juveniles and This is different between summer and winter. In
adults) or according to physiological status peak summer temperatures, a change of 5ºC may
(e.g., spawning, feeding and previous history of be too much, whereas in the middle of winter
exposure). when the ambient temperature is low, adjust-
ment may be easier. As a general rule of thumb,
Water quality is the most important factor in temperature changes should not exceed more
maintaining the well-being of fishes and in than 2ºC per 24-hour period.
reducing stress and the risk of disease. Fishes
show varying degrees of flexibility to changing Changes in ambient temperature for fishes are
water quality conditions. Some degree of accli- much more significant to many vital functions

33
 than in the case of land animals. Susceptibility to required by a fish; for example, the age, health
diseases, parasites, and toxicants is greatly affect- and activity rate of the fish, as well as any han-
ed by temperature. The further the temperature dling procedures.
shifts in either direction from the optimal range,
the greater the potential for stress and disease. The congregation of fish at the tanks' water inlet
or gasping behavior at the surface is an indica-
The term "acclimation" is used widely to describe tion of insufficient oxygen.
any "adaptation" to changed circumstances.
However, it must be understood that true accli- In some instances, low O2 levels can be remedied
ccac guidelines

mation of fishes to a new temperature is a by aeration, reducing the stocking density and
process that involves production of new variants decreased feeding. Balancing these variables is
of many metabolic enzymes, changes in lipid essential to prevent low O2 levels. Airstones can
types and actual cellular restructuring. This be used to improve the aeration of the water;
process will generally have advanced substan- however, placement and type of stone should be
tively after 24 hours at the new temperature, but chosen so as not to disrupt the self-cleaning
may require as much as 6 to 8 weeks for comple- action of the tank. Better quality airstones pro-
tion. The duration of acclimation is a tempera- duce smaller bubbles with less agitation of the
ture-dependent process. At lower temperatures, water column and are superior in oxygen trans-
the actual change in physiological processes will fer. Where necessary, supplementary oxygena-
occur at a slower rate. One to two weeks acclima- tion of tank water should be provided.
tion may be fine for salmon at 10°C, but at 5°C
acclimation is likely to take longer. It will vary 3.4 Supersaturation
widely among species as to rate and scope; some
species simply lack the ability to acclimate to the Guideline 38:
new temperature. Hochachka & Somero (1971) Aquatic systems are susceptible to acute or
provide a comprehensive overview of this chronic supersaturation. Individuals respon-
process. sible for operating aquatic systems should
understand the causes of gas supersatura-
3.3 Oxygen tion and how to mitigate potential problems.
Guideline 37: Supersaturation of water is a possibility in any
Fishes should be kept in water with an ade- fish holding system; therefore, fish care staff
quate concentration of oxygen. should be aware of the acute signs of supersatu-
ration, both in the fish and within the facility.
In most species, water O2 saturation levels Supersaturation is a condition where the total
should be above 90%, although some species gas pressure in a body of water exceeds the baro-
thrive at lower O2 concentration. Some species metric pressure in the overlying atmosphere. It
(air-breathing fishes) have evolved methods of may arise due to an excess of any one or more
extracting oxygen from air, and a subset of these gases present in the water, and is best measured
fishes will drown if not allowed access to air, by devices which assess the sum of all partial gas
underlining the importance of understanding the pressure in water (e.g., saturometers). Supersatu-
specific requirements for the species of fish to be ration is discussed in detail by Colt (1984, 1986).
used. In general, cold water fishes have lower
tolerance for low oxygen levels than warm water Water can become supersaturated with dissolved
species of fish. gases under a variety of conditions, including
when water is heated in a closed vessel or expe-
Oxygen concentration will vary according to riences a pressure change, or when gas (includ-
temperature, atmospheric pressure and salinity. ing air) is compressed into water. Water may be
As the temperature increases, the water's capaci- supersaturated in a source location which can
ty to carry oxygen decreases; in addition, the further complicate the situation. Although oxy-
fishes' demand for oxygen increases due to an gen and carbon dioxide can become problematic
increase in metabolic rate. A variety of other when supersaturated, dissolved nitrogen is per-
factors can dictate the amount of oxygen haps the most dangerous. It is advisable that

34
total gas levels in fish holding tanks be moni- levels of water supplies. A number of factors can
tored on a regular basis. influence pH, including the addition of sulphur
dioxides and nitrogen oxides, sewage and agri-
Gas bubble disease can occur when fishes are cultural run off, compounds that are added or
exposed to supersaturated water; fishes absorb become introduced to the water, and CO2 from
the gas and it is then released from suspension in the atmosphere and from the respiration of the
body fluids, forming internal bubbles (Speare, fishes.
1998a). Sub-clinical supersaturation can be a
chronic stressor for fishes; therefore, using acute Most fishes can adapt to a wide range of pH, pro-
gas bubble disease as an endpoint for tolerable

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
vided that any pH change is gradual. The major-
levels is inadequate. The biological response to ity of freshwater species live in waters with pH
gas supersaturation varies with species, life stage,
values ranging from pH 6 to 8. Outside the range
water quality, and the animal's depth in the water
of pH 6 to 9, freshwater fishes become stressed,
column (Colt & Orwicz, 1991). Affected fishes
grow slowly and are prone to infectious diseases.
may show a variety of signs, including bubbles of
gas under the skin, between fin rays, in fin tips The range for saltwater fishes is narrower: pH 7.5
and in gill tissue. Gas bubble formation in capil- to 8.5. The optimal pH range for maintaining
lary beds causes ischaemia and tissue necrosis, freshwater fishes is between 6.5 and 7.5. The
and bubbles in the circulatory system, including optimal pH range for maintaining marine fishes
in the heart and brain, cause rapid death. in natural seawater is between 8.0 and 8.5. The
pH range for maintaining marine fishes in syn-
Supersaturation can be reduced in a number of thetic seawater is 7.5 to 8.5. Although seawater
ways. The preferred methods of addressing has a high buffering capacity, marine animals
supersaturation involve passing the water produce acidic waste, reducing the pH value of
through trickle columns packed with surface the water over time. The fall can be limited by
area rich media such as pea gravel or bio-rings, carrying out partial water changes (i.e. 10% over
vacuum degassing or O2 injection. Other meth- a two-week period). An alternate but less effec-
ods include vigorously breaking up the water to tive method is the addition of sodium bicarbon-
allow for the escape of excess gases into the ate to add carbonate buffering capacity. It is also
atmosphere or the use of spray bars. important to consider the optimal pH for growth
of bacteria within the biological filters in recircu-
Facilities should have the ability to rapidly check lation systems.
the dissolved gas saturation levels in the event of
acute morbidity/mortality incidents. It is critical The pH of the water has a considerable effect on
that staff understand the causes of supersatura- other important parameters of water quality.
tion and the means to mitigate the problem. Most importantly, water pH and ammonia levels
Several good references are available on the
are closely related, which is especially relevant in
topic, e.g., Colt & Orwicz (1991), Pennell &
recirculation systems. Ammonia is much less
McLean (1996) and Huguenin & Colt (2002).
toxic at lower pH levels. For this reason, it is
advisable to maintain the systems at the lowest
3.5 pH pH suitable for the species.
Guideline 39:
Water pH should be maintained at a stable 3.6 Nitrogen compounds
and optimal level as changes in pH may influ- Guideline 40:
ence other water quality parameters.
Free ammonia and nitrite are toxic to fishes
The pH of water will vary greatly according to and their accumulation must be avoided.
its source and composition. In addition to the
influence of naturally occurring minerals (e.g., Ammonia toxicity is extremely pH (H+) depend-
contact with silicates will lower the pH, whereas ent, and therefore, control of pH and feed man-
water flowing through carbonate rock will have agement are critical in minimizing ammonia
a higher pH), industrial pollution will alter pH accumulation.

35
 One of the main excretory products of fishes is water flow and surface area. However, small
ammonia which is discharged into the water particles such as sand can clog the system and
through the gills and urinary tract. Dissolved therefore sand-based filters are more difficult to
urea, as well as particulate wastes (feed and fae- maintain.
ces), are converted to inorganic compounds such
as ammonia and phosphate. Other sources of Nitrifying bacteria are sensitive to sudden pH
ammonia may be from contamination of water changes and do not generally grow well outside
by organic compounds such as antibiotics, paint the range of pH 7.2 to 8.5. Their growth can
fumes, fumes from ammonia-based cleaning also be affected by chemicals used for disease
ccac guidelines

compounds and insecticides.

treatment, as well as by sudden changes in
temperature.
In aqueous solution, ammonia is present in two
forms: ionized (NH4+), and un-ionized or "free"
Ammonia can be stripped from fresh water using
(NH3). The term ammonia refers to the sum of
the total concentration of the ammonium ion an ion exchange apparatus. This involves pass-
(NH4+) plus the concentration of free ammonia ing the water through a bed of zeolite crystals to
(NH3). NH3 and NH4+ are in constant equilibri- trap the ammonia which is subsequently
um. It is much more important to know the con- released as gas.
centration of un-ionized ammonia, as only the
un-ionized (non-ionized) form is toxic to fishes. 3.7 Carbon dioxide
For a review of allowable limits of ammonia for
fish, see US Environmental Protection Agency Carbon dioxide is produced by fishes during res-
(1999). piration and dissolves in water to form carbonic
acid, thus lowering the pH and increasing the
Avoiding ammonia accumulation, in particular potential for hypercapnea. Although high CO2
within recirculation systems, is very difficult. concentration can be fatal to fishes, in general
However, more important than the accumulation this is not likely to be a problem in aquatic facil-
of nitrogenous products (ammonia and nitrite) is ities, provided there is adequate ventilation.
the balance of these products in relation to the However, when recirculation technology is
pH of the water (Ip et al., 2001). The physiologi- applied to high density fish culture systems, CO2
cal effects of ammonia and nitrite toxicity have may become the major limiting factor.
been reviewed by Speare (1998b). Other meas-
ures of minimizing ammonia include increased
3.8 Salinity
flushing rate, biofiltration (i.e. filtering the water
through a matrix of nitrifying bacteria to convert Guideline 41:
ammonia to nitrite and then immediately to Salinity changes are inherently stressful
nitrate), fish density or temperature reductions, for fishes, and should be conducted slowly
or use of ammonia-absorbent compounds in and with attention to the physical status of
fresh water. the fishes.
Aside from control of pH and good feed manage-
Salinity requirements of fishes vary according to
ment practices, other measures are usually an
whether they are marine or freshwater in origin.
essential element of recirculation systems.
Some species are able to tolerate a wide range of
Biological filters provide the substrate necessary
for colonization by bacteria (for example salinity, others can tolerate only narrow ranges of
Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter) that oxidize ammo- salinity. In others, salinity tolerance may vary
nia. The substrate can be media such as zeolite, according to life stage (e.g., Atlantic salmon).
crushed oyster shell, sand, dolomite, pea gravel, Maintaining fishes at a suboptimal salinity can
or synthetic substances (e.g., styrofoam beads, result in osmoregulatory stress, impaired growth
plastic rings or fiber filters). In general, the larg- rates and reduced disease resistance. However, it
er the surface area to volume ratio of the filter, should be noted that rapid, dramatic, short-term
the better the filter, bearing in mind that an effec- salinity shifts are sometimes used as therapeutic
tive filter needs to optimize the balance between treatements.

36
3.9 Toxic agents ments to recognize when such problems exist, to
perform the analyses needed to verify and quan-
Guideline 42:
tify the problem, or to recommend or implement
When there is reason to believe hazardous solutions in a timely fashion. When a toxic agent
materials or infectious agents have acciden- is known to have entered the system, there are
tally entered the water system, that system rarely defined solutions, other than to "flush the
should be isolated and tested. system". The laboratory personnel are most like-
ly to be able to deduce what the problem is (e.g.,
A host of infectious and toxic agents exist that are copper from a new source of copper pipe); how-
potentially harmful to fishes. Susceptibility to ever, other experts should be consulted for

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
both chronic and acute toxicants vary with advice or help, including veterinarians, fish
species, life stage, acclimation conditions, and health experts, regulatory personnel or analytical
other environmental conditions (e.g., tempera- laboratory personnel.
ture, water hardness, etc.) (Barton, 1996).
Guideline 43:
Common problems encountered in water sys- Chemical products should be safely stored
tems include toxicity from chlorine and other away from the aquatic housing area and the
additives, copper from copper pipes, and gas water supply.
supersaturation. Systems that rely on ambient
fresh water or seawater may undergo seasonal As many paints, insecticides, cleaners, fixatives,
increases in bacterial burden and the presence of adhesives, caulking agents or solvents are toxic,
pathogenic bacteria often originating in sewage. great care should be taken in their use around
Other problems can result from the use of fly aquatic facilities.
sprays, paints, solvents, etc.
Occupational health and safety guidelines and
For most toxic agents, there is often no local other regulations (e.g., dangerous goods regula-
expertise in regulatory or university depart- tions) must be followed when storing chemicals.

37
 E. CAPTURE, ACQUISITION, TRANSPORTATION
AND QUARANTINE

Irrespective of the source of fish, investigators project. Local fisheries/conservation officers

should ensure that the relevant regulations for must also be notified.
capture and acquisition are followed (see Section
ccac guidelines

B.5. Government Regulations and Policies on the Guideline 45:

Use of Fish). Where exotic fishes are obtained from aquar-
ium suppliers or collection sources, local,
provincial/territorial and federal authorities
1. Capture of Wild Stock should be consulted to determine the risk of
Whether fishes are being collected for live study, escape, accidental introduction, exotic dis-
preserved for study in a museum, or being eases and other detrimental outcomes, and
processed to obtain data needed for fisheries how to minimize these risks.
management field studies, investigators should
observe and pass on to students and employees Investigators should be aware of the list of native
a strict ethic of habitat conservation and respect- species that are endangered, threatened or vul-
ful treatment of the animals. Research goals will nerable. Lists of protected fishes in Canada can be
generally dictate the appropriate sampling found at: www.speciesatrisk.gc.ca/default_e.cfm.
method; however, investigators should select the
method that has the least impact on the fishes
and on the local ecosystem. 2. Killed Specimens
The numbers of fishes collected should be the
Guideline 44:
minimum number required to accomplish the
Wild fishes should be captured, transported study, and each animal collected should serve as
and handled in a manner that ensures mini- many types of study as possible. The most
mal morbidity and mortality. humane euthanasia techniques should be used,
bearing in mind the health and safety of the per-
Investigators should be aware that the stress of sonnel (see Section I. Euthanasia). Fish should be
collecting, handling and transporting fishes euthanized prior to immersion in formalin or
from the wild can make them susceptible to dis- other preservatives.
ease. Modifications to capture techniques may
be required to improve survivability of the fish-
es. In particular, electrofishing is a stressful pro- 3. Piscicidal Compounds
cedure, leading to acute physiological distur-
bances, increased susceptibility to predation Guideline 46:
(Schreck et al., 1976) and significant effects on Alternatives to the use of piscicidal com-
other taxa in the vicinity (Bisson, 1976). Less pounds should be sought, such as anesthet-
stressful procedures should be used whenever ic agents with minimal environmental and
possible. non-target species impacts.

The largest number of fishes used in research are On rare occasions, it may be necessary to use pis-
obtained from private or government hatcheries, cicidal compounds in field situations to capture
but other genera of wild or exotic fishes may be dead specimens. If piscicidal compounds are to
required. Where fishes are to be taken from the be used, an impact analysis should be carried out
wild, all necessary collecting permits and author- prior to use to determine the potential local
izations must be obtained before starting the effects (e.g., by-catch).

38
4. Acquisition of Hatchery Fish ing on species, age and water temperature, to
ensure an empty gut and minimize nitroge-
Guideline 47: nous waste and water pollution, and to con-
Fishes should come from hatcheries with serve metabolic energy.
defined health status and preferably known
genetic history. Hatcheries should be encour- • It is common practice to cool the water tem-
aged to develop husbandry and management perature to reduce fish activity and metabo-
practices consistent with those used in the lism during transport.
production of other laboratory animals.

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
• Once loaded, and at regular intervals during
In the interests of obtaining high quality research transport, the behavior of the fishes, transport
animals, high quality fishes should be sourced tank temperature and oxygen levels should
from reputable fish suppliers. Where possible, be checked to ensure there are no problems.
site visits of the hatcheries should be carried out, On arrival, particular care should be taken to
in order to provide quality assurance of their check water temperature to ensure that fishes
processes and practices. Institutions are encour- are not exposed to temperature shock during
aged to develop a list of reputable fish suppliers. transfer.

5. Transportation • For transport of large fish shipments or where

more than minimal distances are being trav-
High survival rates should be obtained even eled, it is advisable to use fish transport vehi-
when fishes are transported long distances. cles that are constructed to supply high qual-
Success in transporting fishes requires prevent- ity oxygenated water and have on-board
ing the physiological problems which can be monitoring of life support systems.
caused when relatively large numbers of fishes
are held in relatively small volumes of water • Auxiliary aeration or oxygenation systems
(Wedemeyer, 1996a; Wedemeyer, 1996b). The should be installed to ensure oxygen satura-
major challenge in transporting fishes is the tion and serve as backup should a failure
maintenance of appropriate water quality. A life- occur with the water circulation system.
support system must be provided that will pre-
vent adverse water quality changes and meet the • Whenever possible, water testing instru-
physiological requirements of the fishes. ments, such as dissolved oxygen meters,
should be used throughout the transport.
Shepherd & Bromage (1988), FAWC (1996) and
Wedemeyer (1996a; 1996b) provide detailed
• For long hauls when fish densities are very
information on fish transportation.
high, it may be necessary to remove nitroge-
nous products using circulation and filtration.
Some of the critical elements required for fish
transportation are:
• Small quantities of fishes can be transported
• The transportation container should be well in plastic or polyethylene bags under an
insulated to minimize temperature changes atmosphere of pure oxygen. These bags
during transport; in some cases heat or refrig- should be transported in a cooler to maintain
eration may be required to ensure tempera- water temperature as close as possible to the
ture is maintained within the appropriate fishes' initial/starting temperature. Small
range for the species. bags of fishes are likely to heat up quickly,
and fishes could become thermally stressed.
• All containers should have opaque lids to
minimize slop and loss of fishes, and to • All tanks and pipes in the transportation sys-
reduce light levels within. tems should be disinfected between ship-
ments, followed by thorough soaking and
• Whenever possible before transport, fishes rinsing to remove all traces of potentially
should be fasted for 12 to 48 hours, depend- lethal disinfectants.

39
 Any stressful event, such as handling or trans- environmental and nutritional history, and
portation, causes a rapid increase in adrenaline. exposure to biogenic compounds. It is important
Adrenaline causes temporary changes in gill per- to document the strain used in each experiment
meability. In freshwater, this results in dilution of and to use the same strain throughout an experi-
blood by excessive entry of water, and vice-versa ment. For these reasons, investigators need
in seawater. Blood levels of important elec- to ensure that fishes to be used for experimental
trolytes are pushed out of the normal ranges for purposes are obtained from a reputable supplier
as much as 24 hours following a brief stress such with good health management, and that
as dip netting (Wedemeyer, 1972). For these rea- new arrivals are carefully screened and quaran-
ccac guidelines

sons, brackish water (i.e. water with an osmotic tined, and are healthy before entering the main
pressure similar to blood) has been recommend- population.
ed as an effective tool for the transport of a num-
ber of fish species (Kreiberg, 2000). 6.1 Quarantine
Sedation of fishes prior to and during transport Guideline 50:
may be useful in reducing sensory awareness, Quarantine areas should be subject to extra
and hence mitigating the stress of transport. The vigilance in monitoring fish and good record
level of sedation should be sufficiently light to keeping to detect and respond to any health
allow the fishes to maintain equilibrium, swim- problems in quarantined fish.
ming and breathing (Wedemeyer, 1996b). Studies
have shown that the initial crowding stage dur- The purpose of quarantine after receipt of ship-
ing capture and transportation is the most stress- ments of fish is to isolate those fish from the main
ful for fishes. Therefore, fishes should be sedated populations in the facility to permit observation
prior to transportation (Kreiberg, 1992). The and testing until such time as the newly arrived
choice of anaesthetic agent for sedation is impor- fish are determined to be healthy and free from
tant, as some anaesthetics which are effective in communicable disease. Thereafter, these fish can
the rapid induction of deep anaesthesia (e.g., be integrated into the populations of the facility.
TMS and 2-phenoxy ethanol) have an excitatory
effect during initial absorption, which defeats the Quarantine can also be used to isolate popula-
purpose of calming the fishes (Kreiberg, 2000). tions of fish that become sick some time after
Metomidate is the most appropriate choice for entry into the facility. Quarantine is primarily a
sedation during transport. measure to ensure that fish are isolated and san-
itary measures are put in place to ensure there is
no escape of viable pathogens or their hosts from
6. Quarantine and Acclimation the facility and into the surrounding waters, or
Guideline 48: transfer of pathogens to other animals in the
facility. Information specifically for containment
After transport and before use in experi- of marine and freshwater organisms used in dis-
ments, fishes should be acclimated to labora- ease studies or incidentally infected with trans-
tory conditions during a period of quarantine missible diseases is given in Appendix C.
and acclimation.
Ideally, quarantine should involve isolation of
A combined approach for acclimation and quar- fishes being studied or held for different purpos-
antine should be used as far as possible so es in separate areas. However, for facilities with
that both are accomplished simultaneously (see only one room, plastic sheeting may be used to
Section 6.1 Quarantine). wall off a quarantine tank to prevent splash or
aerosol transmission. The water supply should
Guideline 49: be separate so that water from quarantined tanks
As far as possible, fish from various sources is not circulated to other tanks, and effluent
should not be mixed. should also be separate when there is a need to
treat the water, prior to recirculation or release.
Some of the factors that influence the responses In addition, rigorous SOPs for disinfection
of fishes are genetic differences, age, growth rate, should be in place.

40
Guideline 51: sulted for advice on appropriate prophylactic
The duration of quarantine should be appro- disinfection procedures to be used, in order to
priate to assure the health of the fishes. determine appropriate treatments.

In instances in which the fish are received from a 6.2 Acclimation

health certified source (such as a salmonid hatch-
On arrival in a facility, new fishes should be han-
ery that is in compliance with DFO’s Fish Health
dled as little as possible, and care should be
Protection Regulations), the duration of the quar-
taken to prevent thermal shock (Wedemeyer,
antine period may be decreased depending on 1996a). For practical purposes, thermal shock

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
the health status, but quarantine is highly advis- may be defined as an abrupt change in tempera-
able for any fish introduction regardless of the ture of more than 2 or 3°C. If fishes have been
source. In other instances, such as receipt of wild transported in plastic bags, the bags should be
fishes captured in the field, a longer duration of floated in the receiving tank until the tempera-
quarantine is more appropriate. This is especial- ture has equilibrated. Ideally, fishes transported
ly important if the newly acquired fishes will be in tanks should be adapted to their new environ-
added to healthy existing populations (DeTolla et ment by slowly transferring water from the new
al., 1995). Minimum quarantine time should be system into the transport tank. When fishes
established based on the holding temperature, arrive in poor quality water, where the stress of
source of fishes, and the anticipated timeframe staying in the poor water exceeds the physiolog-
for expression of the pathogens of concern. New ic impact of the transition to good quality water,
stock should undergo routine health screening, the fishes must be removed immediately. See
including necropsy examination, if they are to be Section D.3.2 Temperature, for notes about
mixed with existing stocks. changing the water temperature.
Guideline 52:
Acclimation involves ensuring a gradual adjust-
Quarantine areas should be managed ac- ment of the living conditions for the fishes. In
cording to rigorous infectious agent control general, fishes brought into a facility should be
practices. allowed to adjust to their new environment
(including water quality, temperature, illumina-
Particular vigilance should be paid to practices tion and diet). This period should also ensure
such as effluent disinfection, footbaths, hand that any problems related to the stress of trans-
washing stations, dedicated accessories (such as port (e.g., anorexia, unanticipated morbidity and
nets) and hand implements, and clean to dirty mortality) have been resolved.
traffic flow in the quarantine area, in order to
avoid the potential transfer of pathogens to the Fishes should be gradually reintroduced to feed-
main areas of the facility. ing during acclimation. It is common for newly
transported fishes to refuse to feed, particularly
Newly arrived fishes may bring pathogenic when a new feed is introduced. Where possible,
organisms with them, either in an active or carri- samples of the feed previously used by the orig-
er state, to which the resident populations have inal supplier should be obtained to permit tran-
not been exposed. As a result of the stress of han- sition to the new feed source by blending. Return
dling and crowding in tanks, the fishes' immune to feeding is a good indication that the fish are
system may be depressed and a disease outbreak acclimating successfully.
may occur. The danger of introduction of new
pathogens is especially relevant if fishes from As a last resort, larger fishes such as recently
wild populations with unknown disease histo- acquired wild-captured fishes can be sedated
ries are used. Prior to bringing wild fishes into and force fed to initiate digestive processes and
the lab, fish health professionals should be con- encourage return to feeding.

41
 F. HUSBANDRY

Good fish husbandry requires attention to detail • transfer history of fish (i.e. where they have
and the rigorous and consistent performance of been housed within the facility);
routine chores. The importance of a high stan- • number of fish in tank;
dard of husbandry cannot be over emphasized
• daily records of husbandry (including feed-
ccac guidelines

and should be regularly reinforced.

ing schedule), maintenance, experimental
procedures and water quality parameters as
1. Record-keeping and required (see Appendix D); and
Documentation • morbidity/mortality.

1.1 Standard Operating Procedures 2. Readily accessible in the facility records:

Guideline 53 • history of the fish, including disease and
Detailed Standard Operating Procedures ongoing health status;
should be developed for the maintenance and • documentation of regulatory compliance; and
care of all fishes and for sanitation of tanks, • copy of animal-use protocol.
rooms and equipment.
1.3 Assessment of fish well-being
Each facility should prepare a facility Standard
Operating Procedures (SOPs) manual for accept- Guideline 55:
able fish husbandry practices and standards. The Basic physical and behavioral parameters
manual should be reviewed and updated regu- indicative of well-being in fishes should be
larly, and the ACC and facility management monitored daily and written records should
should ensure that users follow the SOPs. In par- be maintained. Any perturbation of these
ticular, SOPs should be developed to ensure that parameters should be investigated and the
tanks are properly disinfected and kept clean causes identified and corrected.
between experiments.
It is important to be aware of an animal's state of
1.2 General checklists well-being, both before and during the conduct
of any studies. The objective evaluation of key
Guideline 54:
behavioral and physical variables should help in
Checklists should be used for each group the detection of abnormalities, whether related to
of fish so that records are maintained of environmental/husbandry factors or to the
all cleaning, maintenance and experimental effects of experimental procedures themselves.
procedures. The assessment of well-being in fishes is chal-
lenging because their responses to adverse con-
As a minimum, the following records should be ditions are not always displayed, as occurs in
maintained on all captive fishes. mammals, and because significant observational
restrictions are imposed by the rearing environ-
1. On the tank or holding area: ment itself.
• source of fish and date of arrival;
• species and sex (if identifiable); 2. Density and Carrying Capacity
• estimated age and weight; Guideline 56:
• name of principal investigator and list of Each species should be housed at a density
emergency contacts; that ensures the well-being of the fish while
• animal-use protocol number, including expi- meeting experimental parameters. However,
ration date; in some cases, the ideal environment for

42
maintaining a given species will have to be als. Deficiency of these nutrients can reduce
developed using performance-based criteria growth rate and feed consumption, and lead to
such as growth rate. Established maximum diseases (NRC, 1993; Conklin, 2000). As fishes
densities should not be exceeded. are ectothermic, their metabolic rate is deter-
mined by the water temperature. Therefore,
The number of fish that can be carried in a given feeding rates and quantities need to take temper-
water supply is extremely variable and depends ature into consideration (Alanärä et al., 2001;
on the species, water temperature, pathogen Kestemont & Baras, 2001).
load, dissolved oxygen level, metabolic rate of
the fish, feeding rate, and how fast the water is

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
3.2 Food and feeding
being exchanged.
Guideline 57:
It is important to recognize that there are pro- Fish feed should be purchased from sources
found effects of both maximal and minimal den- that manufacture feed according to standards
sities; below certain densities territorial behavior employed in the feed industry for fish and
may increase (for example, in salmonids housed other domestic animals, and according to
below minimal densities, feeding is diminished). published nutrient requirements for the
Wedemeyer (1996a) has reviewed the physiolog- species, if available.
ical responses of fish to crowding.
If fish are to be introduced into the food or feed
To prevent problems in feeding due to territorial- chain (see Section J. Disposition of Fish After
ity and aggression when dissimilar sized fish are Study), the fish feed must be in compliance with
housed together, the fish should be graded peri- the Feeds Act and Regulations (laws.justice.gc.
odically to ensure similar sizes within groups. ca/en/F-9).

Guideline 58:
3. Food, Feeding and Nutrition Feed bags should be labeled with date of
Most species display daily and seasonal feeding manufacture and guaranteed analysis infor-
rhythms, and may be specialized to feed on spe- mation. Small aliquots of feed should be
cific types of food (Groot, 1996; Madrid et al., retained for independent testing when large
2001). Although fishes brought in from the wild feed lots are received.
generally prefer live feed to formulated feed,
most learn to feed effectively on pellets and show 3.3 Feed quality and storage
remarkable flexibility in their ability to ingest Guideline 59:
and digest formulated feeds. The acceptance of
feed depends upon chemical, nutritional and Feed should be stored in dedicated areas that
physical characteristics of ingredients selected are dark, temperature and humidity con-
for feed formulation as well as feed processing. trolled, and pest-free to ensure its nutritional
The structure and function of their digestive sys- quality. Feed for immediate use and feed in
tems influences the patterns of food intake and feeders should be similarly protected. Feed
digestive efficiency; meal sizes and feeding fre- used for daily feeding should be kept in
quencies should be set accordingly (Goddard, sealed-top containers to protect it from
1996; Alanärä et al., 2001). humidity and light, and frequently replaced
with feed from storage.
3.1 Nutrition All feeds, whether moist, semi-moist or dry, are
Nutritionally balanced diets and appropriate susceptible to degradation with time. Moist
feeding regimes are critical in ensuring that fish- feeds containing minced raw fish or ensilaged
es remain healthy. Commercially manufactured fish should be fed within a few hours or frozen
fish feeds contain nutrients and energy sources (Goddard, 1996). Dry feeds should be stored at
essential for growth, reproduction and health. temperatures < 20°C and humidity < 75%. High
Essential nutrients include protein and amino humidity increases susceptibility to mould, and
acids, lipid and fatty acids, vitamins and miner- high temperatures destroy certain vitamins and

43
 enhance the degradation of lipids. Vitamins in When new feed is introduced, it should be mixed
feeds can also be destroyed by oxygen, ultravio- with the accepted feed until the transition is
let light and lipid peroxidation. made between the two feeds.

Feed can be frozen to extend its shelf life. This is Feeding techniques for captive fishes have the
an option when relatively low amounts of feed general aim of encouraging rapid consumption,
are required for a specific research project. thus increasing feed ingestion, preventing leach-
However, certain micronutrients such as B com- ing of water-soluble nutrients, and reducing
plex vitamins are degraded by freezing and wastage. Not only is a suitable diet important to
ccac guidelines

thawing, and therefore supplements may be obtain a good feeding response, but the culture
required. environment also influences the feeding
response. For example, temperatures at the low
Oxidative rancidity is one of the most serious and high end of the tolerance range inhibit feed-
changes than can occur in stored feed ing, as do stressful conditions such as low oxy-
(Wedemeyer, 1996a; O'Keefe, 2000). In the gen levels and the development of social hierar-
absence of antioxidant protection, lipids rich in chies within the population (Kestemont & Baras,
polyunsaturated fatty acids, including the essen-
2001).
tial fatty acids, are highly susceptible to auto-
oxidation, which produces harmful breakdown
Feed or feces retention in the environment is a
products that include free radicals (Hardy &
particular concern in situations of overfeeding,
Roley, 2000). The pathological effects of feeding
oxidized oils are summarized by Tacon (1992). and especially in recirculation systems. The
influence of feed quality and quantity on water
Under no circumstances should mouldy feed be quality should be addressed in the study design.
used, as it is highly toxic (Wedemeyer, 1996a).
Fish must not be overfed, except in experiments
Guideline 60: where fish are fed ad libitum. When fish are fed ad
libitum, however, they should be monitored and
Fishes must be fed at appropriate intervals
excess feed should be removed soon after the
and with a nutritionally adequate, properly
sized feed. Optimal feeding techniques are feeding period. Most fish can survive for long
essential for good health and well-being, and periods without feed and, in most instances, lack
to prevent the fouling of water with uneaten of food for a few days will not be overly distress-
feed. ful (De Silva & Anderson, 1995; Carter et al.,
2001). Overfeeding, on the other hand, causes
Guideline 61: serious problems because of its effects on water
quality and the stimulation of potentially harm-
Whether fishes are fed manually or automati-
ful bacterial and fungal growth (see Section 3.4
cally, they should be observed regularly to
determine whether they are responding as Larval weaning, for the exception to this rule).
expected, and whether the ration is sufficient
or overfeeding is occurring. Feeding and fish size-sorting practices should be
optimized to ensure all fish have the opportuni-
When automated feeders are used, the equip- ty to feed. In the event of prolonged feed refusal,
ment should be regularly serviced and the rate alternative plans should be in place, including
of intake of the fish checked as frequently as consultation with a feed manufacturer, a fish
possible. nutritionist or a veterinarian. The primary modes
of feed detection by fish are through olfaction
The practice of feeding involves determining the and sight, but the taste and texture of the feed is
proper size and appropriate properties of the the key factor that determines whether the feed
food for the species (e.g., bottom feeders are fed will be swallowed or rejected. When changing
more easily with sinking pellets). The ration size feed sizes, a mixture should be fed for a week to
needs to be determined, as well as the feeding allow fish to make the adjustment. Certain feed-
frequency, the preferred time for feeding, and the ing stimulants added to fish feeds enhance
most efficient means of distributing the feed. palatability and feed acceptability.

44
In some cases, for instance where wild fish have ducing small eggs, for example cod, haddock
been brought into captivity, pelleted rations may and flounder, are small at hatching, the yolk sac
not be recognised as food. In addition, many stage is shorter, and they are more difficult to
small aquarium species, as well as the larval rear on artificial diets (Watanabe & Kiron, 1994).
stage of many larger marine fish species, are For all fish species, the change from endogenous
either unable or reluctant to feed on prepared feeding to exogenous feeding, and again when
feeds. It may also be necessary to feed live prey weaning from a live diet, are critical periods
for studies on fish foraging, and for short-term where large numbers of fish may die. In general,
holding of fish from the wild. While live feeds this is not a welfare concern, but individuals
(principally rotifer and brine shrimp) can give judged unlikely to thrive should be euthanized.

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
excellent results, in most cases, provision of live
foods requires culture of the prey item in addi-
The timing of first feeding and availability of
tion to the fish. The ethical cost of feeding live
suitable prey is critical. Altricial young, which
feed (in particular live fish) to fish must be con-
are not highly developed prior to first feeding,
sidered, in addition to other potential disadvan-
tages, such as the possibility of variable nutri- require a higher concentration of food to com-
tional planes or the potential for introduction of pensate for their underdeveloped gut and rapid
disease. Additional information, including a gen- gut transit time. Precocial young, which are more
eral overview of nutrient requirements can be developed at the first feeding stage, are able to
found in other publications (e.g., NRC, 1993; feed more efficiently on scattered individual
Conklin, 2000; Halver & Hardy, 2001). prey items (Noakes & Godin, 1988).

Studies involving food restriction should under- The most crucial factor in the weaning process is
go careful consideration. The CCAC policy state- the provision of live invertebrates, such as
ment on: ethics of animal investigation (CCAC, 1989) rotifers and Artemia of the preferred size.
states that for "experiments requiring withhold- Generally these food organisms are enriched
ing of food and water for periods incompatible with limiting nutrients (e.g., essential fatty acids
with the species-specific physiological needs, and amino acids) to provide larval growth and
such experiments should have no detrimental survival. Young fish, if deprived of exogenous
effect on the health of the animal". In general, fish food, will reach a point of no return when the
should not be permitted to lose more than 15% of effects of food deprivation become manifest as
body weight during periods of food restriction irreversible starvation.
(Home Office, 2003). As with any other studies,
the ACC is responsible for approving the end-
point of the proposed study, in consultation with
3.5 Use of medicated feeds
the investigator and veterinarian or fish health Guideline 62:
specialist. It should be noted that for fish that Medicated feeds must only be used under
have naturally ceased to feed (e.g., spawning veterinary prescription and supervision.
salmon), it is not necessary to attempt to feed.
Medicated feeds may be used to treat clinical
3.4 Larval weaning conditions, such as bacterial infections, or to
It is recognized that early life stages of many investigate models of disease control. Medicated
species have high natural mortality (see Section feeds must only be used under veterinary pre-
B. Introduction). Failure to begin feeding or to scription with accompanying caution for with-
acquire sufficient food has often been suggested drawal times, particularly in the case of antibi-
as a major cause of early mortality (Robin & otics. The use of medicated feeds for therapeutic
Gatesoupe, 1999). reasons should be conducted under veterinary
supervision and with due care to the develop-
The switch to an exogenous feed supply is a cru- ment of antibiotic resistant bacteria. Rational
cial stage for fish, particularly for marine fish. antibiotic selection should be the result of clinical
This transition is the major feature used to define judgement and the use of antimicrobial sensitiv-
the end of the embryonic period (Noakes & ity testing. As far as possible, only agents
Godin, 1988). In general, highly fecund fish pro- approved for use in fishes should be used.

45
 Medicated feed may be less palatable and the tion, holding density and species mix, are critical
fish may refuse to eat it. It is important when to reproductive success.
starting medicated feeds to monitor the feeding
behaviour of the fish and to be prepared to use Guideline 64:
adjunct measures, such as gradual mixing with Where possible, rational genetic manage-
non-medicated feed, to encourage consumption. ment of broodstock should be used. For
Use of diet palatability agents for medicated broodstock, a strict disease and health con-
feeds (e.g., coating the diets with krill or marine trol program should be implemented with vet-
fish hydrolysate) may be considered to induce erinary advice to ensure the production of
ccac guidelines

feeding. Records should be maintained of the healthy progeny and prevention of disease
duration of the treatment and its effects. transfer through water sources, fish or eggs.

In recirculation systems, the use of chemothera- 4.1 Induction of spawning

peutic agents should be carefully considered due
to the possible detrimental effects of these com- The induction of spawning through administra-
pounds on nitrifying biofiltration flora. tion of injectable hormones is a common practice
in broodstock management. The literature
should be consulted to ensure doses and regimes
4. Broodstock and Breeding are consistent with established standard meth-
ods. Treated broodstock fish should be retained
Guideline 63: for the necessary withdrawal times if they are to
Holding systems and environmental condi- be killed for food.
tions for broodstock should be appropriate
for the species. Particular attention should be Induction of spawning may result in morbidity
paid to the importance of environmental cues and mortality due to retention of ova and other
for the maintenance (or manipulation) of unforeseen effects.
endogenous reproductive rhythms.
Personnel working with chemically induced
Environmental factors, such as temperature, spawning fish should be aware of the complica-
photic environment, habitat/tank design, nutri- tions associated with hormone treatment.

46
 G. HEALTH AND DISEASE CONTROL

Under conditions of confinement in an artificial ity; 2) a program for the detection and man-
environment, fish are sensitive to variations in agement of disease conditions and water
water quality, nutrition, presence of patho- quality problems related to physiological
gen(s) and management practices of the facility. stress; 3) strategic application of disease
The expression of disease, whether infectious control measures, such as quarantine, immu-

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
or non-infectious, cannot be considered in isola- nization, and prophylactic treatments; and 4)
tion from any of these factors. Microorganisms a system of regular monitoring and reporting
are distributed throughout any aquatic envi- for health assessment purposes.
ronment; however, their presence may only
be obvious under sub-optimal environmental Stress, nutritional problems, water quality prob-
conditions. lems, disease outbreaks from infectious causes,
cannibalism and predation can all cause major
problems in captive fishes (Wedemeyer, 1996a).
1. Fish Health Program Methods for early detection of emerging health
Healthy fish are pre-requisites for reliable data problems should be implemented to facilitate
(Jenkins, 2000). Fish used for research should be mitigation and restoration of a level of health
free of any notable disease agents that could lead compatible with the study objectives. Good
to a diseased condition (unless it is part of the health management is required in studies using
experimental protocol). live fish because study results can be adversely
affected or compromised by suboptimal health
If a disease condition is part of the experimental or disease events.
design, the potential effects of the pathogen or
parasite on the research results should be pre- Many diseases in fish holding systems can be
dictable, or constitute a variable that is being prevented through good husbandry, starting
tested through the research protocol. with stock that have been pre-screened for infec-
tious disease agents, subjecting incoming ani-
Guideline 65: mals to a period of isolation, and low level han-
dling to minimize stress. This may also involve
All facilities must have a fish health monitor-
quarantine where aquatic animals "down-
ing program.
stream" of the holding facility are considered to
be susceptible to any escaped pathogens.
Institutions housing fish for research, teaching
Appropriate holding conditions should also be
and testing should have access to expertise in
maintained as outlined elsewhere in these
fish health, and preferably to a veterinarian with
guidelines.
aquatic medicine experience and training. This
individual can assist in the development of SOPs
to limit the introduction of disease into the facil- 1.2 Disease diagnosis and
ity, and should be available for consultation on identification of pathogens
matters relating to the health of the fish (see
Guideline 67:
Section B.4.3 Role of the veterinarian).
A health management program should focus
on early diagnosis and identification of
1.1 Disease prevention
the causal agents, stressors and mechanisms
Guideline 66: so that correct control measures can be
Strategic measures for disease prevention initiated.
should include: 1) a formal written agreement
with a fish health professional (usually a vet- Disease management protocols should include a
erinarian) responsible for the management of reliable system for the detection and reporting of
morbidity and mortality problems at the facil- clinical signs, and criteria to distinguish between

47
 acceptable and unusual levels of mortality. Physical damage is one type of stress, but more
Isolation and rapid removal of dead fish will common stressors are new introductions, crowd-
help reduce the spread of disease. ing, handling, transportation, and degradation of
water quality (such as sublethal changes in tem-
If unexpected losses of fish occur, staff should perature, reduced dissolved oxygen, and
immediately take water, food and fish samples increased ammonia) (Wedemeyer, 1996a; Reddy
for later analysis should they be required. & Leatherland, 1998; Speare, 1998b). Such stress
Samples of affected fish should be retained for can suppress the immune response, allowing dis-
diagnostic purposes. It is advisable to develop an ease organisms to proliferate. However, stress
ccac guidelines

SOP with the assistance of an experienced fish

can also lead to mortality in the absence of infec-
health or veterinary clinician to standardize sam-
tious disease agents.
ple collection methods.

With active clinical problems, consultation with a 1.3 Injuries and other disorders
clinical veterinarian is preferred. Where possible,
live untreated fish with and without symptoms 1.3.1 Handling injuries
should be provided to diagnostic laboratories as
Guideline 70:
this is far more valuable than the provision of
dead specimens. Handling procedures should be carried out
only by competent individuals using tech-
Guideline 68: niques that minimize the potential for injury.
Fish health management programs should Efforts should be made to minimize morbidi-
strive to identify both clinical and subclinical/ ty and mortality caused by osmoregulatory
adventitious pathogens which may occur as a compromise, systemic acidosis, and oppor-
result of experimental stressors. tunistic infections of damaged skin that can
result from handling and traumatic injuries.
The presence of infectious diseases in an exper-
imental population, even one not showing clin- Traumatic injuries can result from handling pro-
ical disease, may lead to results that are diffi- cedures or abrasions from contact with tanks and
cult to interpret due to the potential confound- equipment, other fish or predators (Speare,
ing variables caused by sub-clinical disease. 1998b). Malfunctioning equipment or inexperi-
The scientific validity and reproducibility of enced fish handlers can turn routine procedures
experiments made in a morbid or sub-clinically into events that cause disease outbreaks. Some
affected population is questionable. The appli- factors that can increase the risks to fishes during
cation of treatments may also be an experimen- handling include:
tal variable.
• malfunctioning or improper equipment;
Guideline 69:
Particular attention should be paid to moni- • inexperienced fish handlers;
toring fishes following any potentially stress-
ful event. • dry or abrasive surfaces which fish will con-
tact during handling, such as measuring
All fishes in the facility should be monitored on boards, balances, etc.;
a daily basis. However, fishes undergoing
stressful procedures have an increased risk of • warmer water temperatures;
developing opportunistic infections, therefore
additional care should be taken in observing the • prolonged handling times; and
fishes for one to five days following a potential-
ly stressful event. Reluctance to eat, unusual • repetition of procedures on the same individual.
behavior, discoloration of the integument and
lesions are signs of possible developing health Information on handling and restraint is given in
problems. Section H.1. Handling and Restraint.

48
1.3.2 Behavioral interactions 1.3.4 Toxicities resulting from use of
causing injury chemotherapeutants and
environmental toxins
Guideline 71:
Health management measures should be Guideline 72:
used to ensure that behavioral interactions A Standard Operating Procedure should be
with negative consequences such as aggres- established for any standard treatments, and
sion are avoided. include the definition of endpoints should
fish be adversely affected.
Various steps, such as size-sorting fish, adjust-

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
ing density or providing visual sight barriers, Treatment of fish should be carried out in
can be employed to minimize aggressive consultation with a veterinarian. SOPs for stan-
encounters. dard treatments should also be developed in
consultation with the veterinarian or fish health
professional.
Some fish exhibit territorial behavior, which can
lead to wounds (Speare, 1998b). Social interac-
Medications are usually delivered to groups of
tions and density have an effect on behavioural
fish rather than to individual sick fish, which
interactions (Speare, 1998b) and can lead to com-
puts more animals at risk of unexpected effects
promised behaviors, for instance the suppression
of the treatment. As far as possible, fish that need
of feeding.
to be treated should be isolated until the treat-
ment is completed. When bath treatments are
1.3.3 Feed-related disorders administered, there should be close observation
and maintenance of water quality, as this is a
Nutrition can also influence the health of fish by major source of problems. In cases where the
causing nutrient deficiencies, imbalances or toxi- anticipated effects are unknown, a small number
coses, or by introducing infective agents (see of fish should be tested before application to the
Section F.3. Food, Feeding and Nutrition). group as a whole.

49
 H. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES

1. Handling and Restraint free-nets) and sanitizable tables, should be used

to minimize damage to fishes during handling.
Guideline 73: Measurements of body condition, such as weight
Fishes should be fasted prior to handling. and length, which involve hands-on manipula-
ccac guidelines

tion should be conducted quickly and in a man-

Defecation and vomiting are responses made by ner that is minimally stressful. Procedures that
fishes in the interest of conserving metabolic involve more than momentary restraint or
energy stores when exposed to acute stress. require that large numbers of fish be handled
Digestion requires body energy; when there is should be conducted under sedation, unless the
immediate danger, animals get rid of undigested fish have been conditioned to the handling. In
food so as to maximize the energy available to the long term, the effects of stress can include
flee, fight or recover from injuries. Fasting fishes loss of appetite, inhibition of growth, impaired
ensures that digestion does not consume energy reproductive success and impaired immune
during handling, and that the fishes are left with response (Reddy & Leatherland, 1998). Depend-
energy stores to assist in recovery. Additionally, ing on the species and the frequency and intensi-
fasting somewhat reduces ammonia output from ty of the stressor involved in handling, it may
the fishes and lessens the risk of bath contamina- take from a few hours to several days to resume
tion from gut contents. Gut emptying times are normal feeding.
longer for larger fishes and colder temperatures.
High quality water for procedures and recovery Where fish are to be handled repeatedly, a suit-
should be provided so that any gut emptying able period of recovery should be permitted
that does occur does not cause welfare problems between handling procedures. Recovery from
for the fishes; in particular, this strategy should stress can be prolonged. Repeated handling may
be used so that any diagnostic or therapeutic require an increased level of monitoring, and the
intervention is not delayed. stress may be alleviated by the use of previously
proven sedation (see Kreiberg, 2000).
Guideline 74:
Personnel involved in handling fishes should Guideline 76:
undergo training in methods to ensure their Fishes should be handled in a fashion that
expertise and to minimize injury and morbid- minimizes damage to their mucus-skin barrier.
ity to fishes in their care.
Prolonged physical restraint of unsedated fishes
Guideline 75: should be avoided as damage to skin and
Fishes should be handled only when neces- mucous membranes may result, as well as
sary, and the number of handling episodes myopathy. This is particularly true for salmonid
should be minimized. species; more sedentary fishes appear to be less
stressed by physical restraint.
Even routine handling procedures may cause
morbidity and mortality, if carried out by person- Fishes are highly reliant on the integrity of their
nel who have not been adequately trained (see mucus and epidermal body covering as a barrier
Section G.1.3.1 Handling injuries). to osmotic stress and infectious agents. As the
skin is relatively delicate in many species, anes-
Nearly all fishes held in the laboratory have to be thetics and sedatives are frequently used to pre-
physically handled. Handling and disturbance vent external damage during procedures which
appear to be stressful events for fishes, although would not require anesthesia in other species.
they can be conditioned to the handling Polymeric water additives such as poly-vinyl-
(Kreiberg, 2000). Appropriate handling equip- pyrrolidone (PVP) have been found useful in
ment, preferably a bucket (or alternatively knot- transport and handling of fish (Carmichael &

50
Tomasso, 1988; Wedemeyer, 1996b). In general, In general, dangerous species will be encoun-
such compounds are considered to bond tem- tered only under field conditions; however, the
porarily to exposed tissue, serving as a short- recommendations are equally applicable to the
term replacement for shed mucus and restoring laboratory situation. Dangerous species should
the protection that mucus provides. be handled in a manner that is safe both for the
investigator and for the animal being handled.
Guideline 77:
Procedures should minimize the amount of han-
Restraint and handling of fishes should be dling time required and reduce or eliminate con-
carried out in a manner to minimize visual tact between the handler and animal.

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
stimulation. Where feasible, fishes should be
protected from direct light and rapid changes
Investigators should never work alone when
in lighting while being restrained.
handling dangerous species. A second person,
Exclusion of light, wholly or in part, has been knowledgeable in the capture and handling tech-
recommended as a practice to reduce stress in niques and emergency measures, should be pres-
fish undergoing handling (Wedemeyer, 1985; ent at all times.
Hubbs et al., 1988)
Prior consultation with colleagues experienced
Manual restraint may be a practical means of in working with the species and review of any
performing rapid, minimally stressful proce- relevant literature is important (CCAC, 2003a;
dures, but requires skilled and careful handlers. Nickum et al., 2004).
Many fishes are sensitive to visual stimuli, espe-
cially light, so handling in a dimly lit area may
help lessen handling stress. 2. Restricted Environments
Guideline 78: Guideline 80:
In general, fishes should not be kept in air Every effort should be made to provide fishes
continuously for more than 30 seconds. held in restricted environments with as non-
stressful an environment as possible, within
In general, the length of time fishes are held out the constraints of the experimental design.
of water should be minimized, and should not
exceed 30 seconds (Ferguson & Tufts, 1992); Fish are frequently kept in physically restricted
however, some species such as eels and catfish environments, such as metabolic chambers,
can tolerate longer periods out of water. The swim tunnels and calorimeters, for long periods.
damaging effects of even brief periods out of These fish should be accustomed to the restricted
water on gill epithelial tissue in some fish species
environment before the study, and should be
has been described; therefore, when out of water
kept in such environments for the shortest dura-
the gill lamellae should be kept moist.
tion possible. Fish that fail to thrive in these envi-
Large fishes such as broodstock are less respon- ronments should be removed.
sive out of water if their head is covered with a
damp cloth or foam rubber, which also preserves
moisture in the gill region.
3. Surgery
For a thorough review of fish surgical tech-
1.1 Restraint of dangerous species niques, see Johnson (2000). CCAC Guide to the
Guideline 79: Care and Use of Experimental Animals, vol. 1,
Those who work with dangerous species Chapter IX Standards for Experimental Animal
must be trained and competent to do so. Surgery (CCAC, 1993b) should also be consulted
Appropriate emergency items (e.g., antiven- for general guidance, bearing in mind the differ-
om, an appropriate first aid kit, etc.) must be ence in environmental conditions necessary for
on hand. the successful conduct of surgery on fishes.

51
 3.1 Surgical preparation and erated by many species and can be irrigated over
skin disinfection an area before draping and incision. Quaternary
ammonium compounds and alcohol may be irri-
Guideline 81: tating and toxic when applied to the skin in some
Surgery should be performed by individuals species, and should be avoided.
with appropriate training.
Although creating surgically clean skin (defined
Surgery in fish can be complex and intricate. in mammals as having fewer than 10,000 bacteria
Anyone attempting any invasive surgery should per gram tissue) is problematic in fish, the provi-
ccac guidelines

be properly trained in surgical aseptic technique, sion of sterile occlusive drapes will help to main-
or should obtain the services of a veterinary sur- tain a sterile to surgically clean operating field.
geon. Fish surgery should normally be covered Sterile plastic food wrap (saran wrap) is prefer-
under the institutional veterinary care program. able to fabric drapes, as the latter is prone to
absorption of water and introduction of bacteria
Guideline 82: in the water. Surgical incisions can be made in
Before surgery is attempted on living animals sterile fashion by cutting directly through the
that are expected to recover, suture and sur- drape into underlying tissue.
gical techniques should be practiced on inan-
Guideline 84:
imate materials or dead specimens until com-
petency is attained. Attention should be paid to the use of asep-
sis, disinfection and the use of sterile instru-
Practice using cadavers and non-survival trials ments to minimize wound contamination and
can be useful in training investigators. Appropri- maximize the healing response.
ate training and practice will help to minimize
anesthetic and surgical time, and contribute to a Instruments should be cleaned and sterilized
faster recovery of the animal. between surgical procedures and if inadvertent-
ly contaminated.
Guideline 83:
Surgical sites should be prepared in a fash- There is a lack of published information on the
ion that minimizes tissue damage and con- effect of adventitious bacteria on the healing of
tamination of wound areas. surgical wounds in fish; however, it is reasonable
to take precautions to minimize bacterial con-
The removal of mucus and disruption of scales tamination and colonisation of wounds and
that occurs during surgical preparation is gener- body cavities by using sterile techniques where
ally thought to devitalize tissue and render the feasible.
area more subject to attack by saprophytic
agents, particularly fungal and bacterial inva- Instruments may be gas sterilised or autoclaved,
sion. A variety of molecules with antibacterial or where this is not possible, cold sterilisation for
properties are found in the mucus and outer epi- 10 minutes using benzalkonium chloride or relat-
dermal layers of fish, as are phagocytic and ed cold sterilants could be used, although this
mononuclear cells. Beyond the gentle removal of technique is unlikely to be sporicidal. These lat-
grossly visible dirt and debris, preparation ter agents are tissue toxic and the instruments
should be limited in scope (Wagner et al., 1999). should be rinsed thoroughly in sterile water
before being used on tissue. In multiple surger-
The type of aggressive surgical scrub procedure ies, two sets of instruments should be rotated
used in mammalian surgery to render a site "sur- through a cold sterilizing solution. A hot bead
gically clean" is not generally used in fish sur- sterilizer may also be used and is the most prac-
gery. There are also species differences, with tical method for many lab situations. Many sur-
species such as sharks having tough resistant gical disinfectants, such as alcohol and glu-
skin, while others such as catfish have delicate, taraldehyde, cause devitalisation or excessive
relatively unscaled skin. Dilute aqueous-based mucus production when applied to fish skin and
povidone-iodine solutions appear to be well tol- should be avoided.

52
3.2 Water quality during surgery manipulation of animals during procedures such
as transport, grading or vaccination. Although
Guideline 85:
the use of anesthetics is primarily for holding
During prolonged surgery, water quality fishes immobile while being handled, it is also
should be maintained at a high level, with used to lower the level of stress associated with
minimal bacterial and organic burden. Water such procedures and may alleviate pain (Iwama
for anesthesia should be from the same et al., 1988; Davis, 1992; Iwama, 1992). Anesthetic
source as the tank water to minimize shock overdoses are also used routinely as an effective
caused by differences in temperature, pH, and humane means of euthanizing fishes.
electrolytes, etc.

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
Information on the characteristics of the major
Water used to irrigate fish gills during prolonged anesthetics used on fishes, essential parameters
anesthetic procedures should be circulated and for their application, including optimum and
treated to maintain proper anesthetic levels, oxy- lethal doses, as well as induction and recovery
gen, temperature, pH and salinity, and to remove times is provided by Iwama et al. in Anesthetics,
particulates. As water temperature can be affect- a supplement to these guidelines available on
ed by room air temperature and use of surgical the CCAC website (www.ccac.ca/en/CCAC_
lights, it should be carefully monitored and Programs/Guidelines_Policies/GDLINES/
controlled. Water quality can also be affected by Guidelis.htm). Possible physiological effects and
the production of mucus, urine or feces during cautionary notes are also given. Additional infor-
surgery, and should be changed or renewed mation is available in Iwama & Ackerman (1994).
accordingly.
Guideline 87:
In some instances, the addition of conditioning Anesthetics should be chosen on the basis of
solutions to the water may be justified, particu- their documented ability to provide pre-
larly for the replacement of electrolytes follow- dictable results, including immobilization,
ing trauma or stress. Proprietary mixtures con- analgesia and rapid induction and recovery,
taining electrolytes, artificial film materials while allowing for a wide margin of safety for
based on polyvinylpyrrolidine and oxidative the animals and the operators.
scavenger molecules are used to lessen stress and
morbidity following surgery; however, their effi- The investigator should ensure that the anesthet-
cacy has not been scientifically proven. ic selected has no toxic side-effects for the fish or
the handler, is biodegradable and can be cleared
3.3 Anesthesia from the fish, and has no persisting physiologi-
cal, immunological or behavioural effects.
Guideline 86: Investigators should also be aware that currently
Anesthetics should be used in experiments only TMS (MS-222) and metomidate are regis-
where there is expected to be noxious stimuli, tered for veterinary use with fish in Canada.
and in experiments entailing extensive han- Investigators are individually responsible for the
dling or manipulation with a reasonable use of anesthetic agents not approved for veteri-
expectation of trauma and physiological nary use in Canada.
insult to the fish.
Where anesthetics are to be used in the field, the
Anesthesia is generally defined as a state caused CCAC guidelines on: the care and use of wildlife
by an applied external agent, resulting in depres- should be consulted for advice, in particular for
sion of the nervous system, leading to loss of sen- recommendations concerning drug residues
sation and motor function. (CCAC, 2003a).

The use of anesthetics facilitates work with fish- Where anaesthesia will be of longer duration, a
es and is required for invasive studies such as recirculation technique which ensures continu-
surgical preparations for physiological studies, ous delivery of oxygenated water and anesthetic
where the fish must be held immobile for extend- to the gills should be employed (Iwama &
ed periods of time. Sedation is also used for the Ishimatsu, 1994).

53
 Guideline 88: blood vessels and do not invade tissues such as
Regardless of the application, anesthetics muscle, but the incision is likely to come in con-
should be tested on a small sample of fish, as tact with the substrate in the tank, which may
the effect of an anesthetic can vary with local cause damage to the incision site. Lateral
water conditions, as well as the species, life approaches avoid this problem, but invade mus-
stage, and size of the fish. cle and may result in accidental puncture of
underlying organs.
The reaction of any fish being considered for sur-
gery to the proposed anesthetic should be well Hemorrhage encountered during surgery must
ccac guidelines

understood. Trials with healthy fish are recom- be controlled by direct pressure using swabs, by
mended to ensure proper dosage and to accu- ligation or by cautery. Gel foam can also be used.
rately calculate the time to reach the necessary Cauterization should be used sparingly and with
anesthetic plane (Johnson, 2000). care as it devitalizes tissue and predisposes it to
wound infection and breakdown.
Guideline 89:
Personnel working with anesthetic agents in 3.6 Suture materials and techniques
fish must be adequately trained and protect- Guideline 91:
ed with personal protective equipment.
In general, strong, inert, non-hygroscopic
Many of the anesthetics in use have the potential monofilament suture material and atraumatic
to cause harm to humans if they are misused. needles should be used for closure of inci-
sions in fish skin.

3.4 Surgical equipment The skin of most teleost fishes consists of epider-
An overview of the equipment used in fish sur- mis with scales, dermis and hypodermis; all lay-
gery is provided by Brattelid & Smith (2000) and ers are closely associated with one another and
Johnson (2000). with underlying muscle, peritoneum and other
layers. Single interrupted sutures to appose all
layers are sufficient as epithelial cells migrate
3.5 Incisions
rapidly to cover an incision, protecting the fish
Guideline 90: from the effects of the aquatic environment.
Any incisions should avoid the lateral line Closure of individual layers is recommended
and should follow the longitudinal axis of the only for very large fish.
fish.
Internal layers and organs can be closed using
Some fish scales may need to be removed follow- synthetic absorbable materials. Layers such as
ing the skin preparation. Scales should be skin, that will be exposed to water and bacteria,
removed individually by pulling in a posterior should be closed with non-wicking, inert suture
direction to minimize damage. Only the scales materials, such as monofilament nylon (non-
necessary to create the incision should be absorbable) or polydioxanone (absorbable).
removed as the scales provide protection and sta-
bility to the wound area. The epidermis and peri- Cyanoacrylate surgical adhesives may have
toneum layers are easily torn, but the overall skin application in certain types of surgery on aquat-
is tough due to a layer of dense collagen in most ic species; however, these materials have three
species. Practice is necessary to obtain the opti- major disadvantages in that they only bond dry
mal scalpel pressure to achieve a clean incision tissues, lack good holding strength in maintain-
and hence achieve rapid healing (Johnson, 2000). ing wounds closed in wet environments, and
tend to promote inflammatory responses at the
Abdominal incisions may be made on the ventral site to which they are applied (Harvey-Clark,
midline or lateral to this region. Midline inci- 2002).
sions have been shown to minimize behavioral
changes in trout (Wagner & Stevens, 2000). Summerfelt & Smith (1990) provide instruc-
Ventral midline approaches may intrude on tions on suture technique. Suture patterns that

54
give good tissue apposition and maximum 3.8 Postoperative care
safety, such as simple interrupted and horizon-
tal mattress, are recommended. These tech- Little is known about the effect of analgesic
drugs on fishes. However, investigators are
niques have been further examined by Wagner
encouraged to use post-operative analgesia
et al. (2000).
where appropriate as suitable analgesic agents
become available. Fishes do appear to produce
3.7 Pathophysiology of surgery and opioid substances in response to pain and fear,
wound healing in fishes similar to higher animals, i.e. Substance P,
In general, fish skin heals faster than mammalian enkephalins and ß-endorphins (Vecino et al.,

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
1992; Rodriguezmoldes et al., 1993; Zaccone et al.,
skin; however, fibrous proliferation can be slow
1994; Balm & Pottinger, 1995), and the response
and varies with temperature. The speed with
of goldfish to analgesia has been shown to be
which the fibrous proliferation closes the internal
similar to that of a rat (Jansen & Green, 1970).
wound and provides sufficient strength to
The response of carp (Cyprinus carpio) to electric
replace the sutures is temperature dependent,
shock, to the presence of alarm substance chemi-
and should be considered when selecting appro-
cals in water, and to hook and line fishing indi-
priate suture material. cates that reactions to repeated shocks is graded,
non-reflexive, and similar to that in mammals
The basic physiology and histological response (Verheijen & Buwalda, 1988).
to surgical wound healing of fishes has been
characterised (Wagner et al., 1999). Factors that Guideline 92:
affect wound healing include:
In laboratory or applicable field situations,
fish must receive careful attention and moni-
• water quality (hardness, levels of salt and
toring following surgery.
other osmotically active compounds, and
water temperature), which regulates immune
Although recovering fish may appear to be nor-
response and tissue metabolism rate;
mal, there may be prolonged metabolic effects
following the stress of anaesthesia and surgery.
• presence of tank mates, cannibalism of surgi- In situations where monitoring is not possible,
cal wound area by conspecifics, and exclusion pilot scale evaluations of procedures should be
of animals with postoperative morbidity dur- considered. Where possible, fish should be
ing competition associated with feeding; allowed to recover from anesthesia until able to
resume normal behavior. As anesthesia itself
• nutritional plane before surgery, good nitro- causes prolonged stress, careful procedures for
gen balance, anorexia after surgery (stress recovery are vital, for example, a quiet, well
response), and speed of return to normal aerated, possibly darkened tank will facilitate
feeding and other behaviours; recovery.

• hormonal status, especially smoltification in Fish require extra attention in the postoperative
salmonids; recovery period. A number of common complica-
tions may occur, including wound dehiscence
• changes in electrolyte balance due to open and infection, osmotic imbalances related to sur-
wounds and passive loss of water (marine gical incisions, and anorexia. Transient postsur-
fish) and of electrolytes (freshwater fish) to gical shock is a common problem in fish and
the surrounding water; includes problems with oxygen debt, catabolic
processes, fluid and electrolyte loss, and hor-
• integrity of mucus layers and biofilms on fish; monal imbalance. It is important to keep recov-
and ery water clean.

• presence/absence of opportunistic bacterial Guideline 93:

and fungal pathogens in water during and Fish should be held in a manner that reduces
after surgery. or eliminates intraspecific interactions in

55
 tanks, and meets appropriate living condi- observe subjects, good quality uncontaminated
tions for the species. water (with removal of excreted anesthetic),
avoidance of environmental stimulation, consis-
The return of the fish to the pre-surgery tank, tent temperature, and decreased exposure to
including the presence of tank mates, has to be other compromised fish which may be a source
considered. The benefits of companion fish of infectious disease agents.
(social interaction, schooling fish and feeding
activity stimulation) have to be weighed against
the disadvantages (predation, competition for 4. Administration of Compounds
and Devices by Various Routes
ccac guidelines

feed and biting of sutures).

Well oxygenated water, low lighting, shelter Morton et al. (2001) should be consulted for guid-
areas for recovering fish, and the use of water ance on best practices for the administration of
conditioning agents to improve the buffering substances. Although principally focussed on
ability of the water and to supply lost electrolytes mammals, there are recommendations for fishes
may help speed recovery. and a useful checklist to consult when planning
procedures. As with any procedure, administra-
Guideline 94: tion of compounds should be carried out by com-
petent individuals under expert supervision,
The costs and benefits of the use of prophy-
preferably a veterinarian.
lactic antibiotics post surgery should be
carefully considered.
4.1 Branchial diffusion ("inhalation")
The indiscriminate use of antibiotics is not rec- The most prevalent route of exposure of fish for
ommended because of the possibility of encour- chemical agents is via the gills. Fish gills have a
aging resistant strains of bacteria. In particular, large surface area due to a series of lamellae pro-
antibiotics should not be administered to fishes truding from the surface. The epithelium of the
in the wild following tagging or other minor sur- lamellae is extremely thin and designed to facili-
gical procedures. tate the diffusion of respiratory gases. In addi-
tion to gas transfer, fish gills also permit uptake
Where surgical conditions cannot be made asep- of other molecules. Diffusion or uptake efficien-
tic, the early administration of broad-spectrum cy of chemicals by the gills depends primarily on
antibiotics of low toxicity to fish, chosen based their hydrophobicity and molecular size (Black,
on knowledge of opportunistic flora in the spe- 2000a).
cific aquatic environment and on culture and
sensitivity results in infected animals, may be
appropriate (see CVMA, 2000).
4.2 Oral
Guideline 96:
A review of antibiotic properties and doses in If a treatment compound is to be adminis-
fishes can be found in Stoskopf (1993). However, tered orally, the volume dose rate should not
a veterinarian should be consulted to determine exceed 1% body weight (1 mL/100 g).
the appropriate treatment.
Fishes may be force-fed liquids and semi-solid
Guideline 95: solutions using flexible rubber tubing and a
Social factors, such as size differences, abili- syringe. Force-feeding is useful for the delivery
ty to feed or exclude other fish from feed, and of stable isotope-labelled compounds and other
agonistic behavior, should be considered in test substances. In some species, light anaesthe-
experimental design and when maintaining sia is necessary to prevent struggling and vomit-
social groups of recovering fish. ing. In others, such as some sharks, brief restraint
and the use of a rigid speculum permits safe pas-
Recovery tanks should be designed to promote sage of the tube.
smooth recovery with reduced risk of long-term
effects from anesthesia. Considerations for suit- Regurgitation may occur in some species after
able recovery tanks include opportunity to force-feeding. Fish should be carefully observed,

56
particularly following resuscitation, to ensure 4.4 Implants, windows
that the administered agent is retained. and bioreactors
However, many fish have a J- or U-shaped stom-
Guideline 98:
ach or pyloric flexure that prevents the intro-
duced substance from being regurgitated, Implanted materials should be biocompatible
providing the tube is inserted into the stomach and aseptic, and should be implanted using
past this flexure. In general, no more than 1% sterile techniques.
body weight should be administered orally in
a single dose, although many species have high- Bioabsorbable pellet implants of bioactive com-
ly distensible stomachs and can tolerate larger pounds in absorbable and nonabsorbable matrix

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
percentages. vehicles are available from commercial sources
or can be custom fabricated. These can be surgi-
Electronic transmitters may be inserted via the cally implanted in the peritoneal cavity or
oral route into the stomach using a hollow plas- implanted with a trocar introducer into muscle
tic tube with a central blunt trocar to push the masses. Osmotic minipumps can be implanted in
transmitter into the stomach. a similar fashion as can transmitters and teleme-
try units. Windows to visualize visceral changes,
such as splenic size change during blood loss,
4.3 Injection have been successfully used (Yamamoto et al.,
Guideline 97: 1985).
Care should be taken during injection to
introduce the needle in spaces between the 5. Tagging and Marking
scales. Intramuscular injections may be made
into the large dorsal epaxial and abdominal Tagging and marking techniques are used in
muscles, taking care to avoid the lateral line both field and laboratory studies. For field stud-
and ventral blood vessels. Intraperitoneal (IP) ies, general principles are outlined in the CCAC
injections should avoid penetrating abdomi- guidelines on: the care and use of wildlife (CCAC,
nal viscera as substances that cause inflam- 2003a). As well, Concerted Action for Tagging of
mation may lead to adhesion formation. Fishes (www.hafro.is/catag/) provides detailed
information on current best practices for tagging
The most useful routes for injection in fish are and telemetry in field research.
intravascular, intraperitoneal and intramuscular.
Details of injection techniques, suggested needle When choosing a marking method, primary con-
sizes, and injection volumes are available, e.g., sideration should be given to methodologies that
Summerfelt & Smith (1990), Stoskopf (1993) and are not invasive, do not require recapture for
Black (2000b). identification, and will remain visible for the
duration of the study. Where possible, investiga-
Chemicals to be injected should be dissolved tors are encouraged to use natural features as
directly in sterile physiological saline. However, marks, rather than removing or damaging tis-
hydrophobic chemicals should be dissolved in sues or attaching auxiliary markers.
very small quantities of co-solvent (e.g., ethanol,
methanol, or dimethyl sulfoxide [DMSO]) prior Guideline 99:
to dilution in saline. For chemicals that are not Investigators must aim to minimize any
soluble or stable at neutral pH, the pH of the adverse effects of marking and tagging pro-
injection solution may be adjusted with an acid cedures on the behaviour, physiology or sur-
or base (Perry & Reid, 1994). vival of individual study animals. Where such
effects are unknown, a pilot study should be
Final injection volumes should be as small as implemented.
possible to minimize physiological disturbances
to the fish. In addition, control fish (vehicle The following criteria should be applied as far as
and/or sham injected) should be part of the possible:
experimental protocol to correct for any effects of
the injection procedure or the vehicle. • marking should be quick and easy to apply;

57
 • marking code (numbers or colors) should be 5.2 Tagging
readily distinguishable;
The methodology for tagging fish has been well
• markings should persist on animals until all described (Neilsen, 1992). Tagging operations
research objectives are fulfilled; may involve stress and injury, both from han-
dling the fish and the wound caused by applica-
• animals should experience no long-term tion of the tag. Therefore, the effects of the mark-
adverse effects on health, behaviour, longevi- ing on fish behavior and health should be consid-
ty or social life; ered (DeTolla et al., 1995). Where these are
ccac guidelines

unknown, a pilot study should be run, using a

• accurate records of the marking procedure few fish in the laboratory. The size, shape and
should be kept; placement of tags should allow normal behav-
iour, and should not cause entanglement in
• marking of animals in the wild must comply aquatic cover. Brightly colored tags may compro-
with federal, provincial/territorial and other mise an animal's camouflage or possibly act as a
agency regulations; and predator attractant in the wild. If fish are
released, they must be in good health, able to
function in the environment, and be released
• marking must allow for seasonal changes and
only within their native range of distribution
growth of juvenile animals.
(DeTolla et al., 1995).
In choosing an acceptable marking technique,
the investigator should consider the nature and 5.2.1 Genetic markers
duration of restraint, the amount of tissue to be
The current use of genetic technology in the
removed or damaged, the potential for pain
identification of fish stocks entails the removal of
and/or distress, and the risk of infection. When
blood or tissue for identification.
invasive procedures of more than short duration
are proposed, or when species that are prone to
damaging themselves during handling are con- 5.2.2 Internal tags and marks
cerned, anesthesia or sedation should be used.
Information concerning the use of implanted
wire tags, passive integrated transponder (PIT)
Fish biologists use a variety of internal and exter-
tags, otolith marks and natural parasites to iden-
nal tags, ranging from fin clips to subcutaneous
tify fish is reviewed by Parker et al. (1990).
and abdominal transponders. No single tag or
Morton et al. (2003) and the CCAC guidelines on:
marking approach is suitable for all fishes or
the care and use of wildlife (CCAC, 2003a) provide
applications. Marks can range in longevity from
general principles to be considered in the
days to decades. Some tags cause virtually no
implantation of telemetry devices. In particular
adverse reaction, such as visual implant tags,
the effect of the weight, shape and size of the
while others cause considerable cutaneous dam-
device on the physiology and behaviour of the
age (Johnson, 2000).
fish must be considered.

5.1 Tissue marking

Guideline 100: 6. Collection of Body Fluids
Marking techniques which cause significant A review by Black (2000b) provides details of
tissue injury, such as branding, tattooing or techniques used to collect blood, urine, feces, and
clipping important fins, should only be used if sperm from fish. In general when blood is col-
evidence is provided to an animal care com- lected, sample size is recommended to be up to
mittee indicating that alternative methods 1ml/kg body weight, although fish can sustain
cannot achieve the desired result. higher percentages of blood volume removal.
The fish must be permitted to recover their
Any marking should be evaluated for its poten- haematocrit level prior to subsequent blood col-
tial effects on health and behavior. lection. Hematocrit recovery times are tempera-

58
ture dependent and highly variable between series of peer-reviewed Biological Test Methods
species. (for acute lethal, and sublethal tests) covering
fish, plants, bacteria, and invertebrates, devel-
Guideline 101: oped under the guidance of the Inter
Sedation or anesthesia should be used to Governmental Environmental Toxicology Group
restrain fish for collection or cannulation pur- (IGETG). These published methods, found at
poses. It is important to realize that both www.etc-cte.ec.gc.ca/organization/spd_e.html,
restraint and anesthesia may alter physiolog- describe the care, disease prevention and use of
ical parameters such as serum glucose and fish in testing in detail. Several provinces have
similar fish testing requirements for industrial

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
various hormone levels.
wastewater discharges, and these specify the use
Blood collection should only be undertaken by of the Environment Canada Biological Test
trained personnel using sterile equipment. Blood Methods for this testing.
may be collected by a number of routes including
the ventral tail vessels and dorsal aorta, and by For protocols involving infectious disease agents,
cardiac puncture. tumorigenic or mutagenic agents, or toxic and
noxious compounds, it is of particular impor-
tance that protocols should include the use of the
Longer term cannulation for repeated samples in
earliest endpoints that meet the scientific goals of
conscious fish can be achieved in many teleosts
the study; see CCAC guidelines on: choosing an
larger than 150 grams by cannulating the dorsal
appropriate endpoint in experiments using animals
aorta (Schreck & Moyle, 1990; Black, 2000b).
for research, teaching and testing (CCAC, 1998).
The use of indwelling catheters for urine collec-
tion in teleosts has been described by Schreck & 8. Endpoints and Criteria for
Moyle (1990) and Black (2000b). Early Euthanasia

7. Use of Infectious Disease 8.1 Recognition of "pain", "distress"

Agents, Tumorigenic or and "stress"
Mutagenic Agents, and Toxic Guideline 102:
and Noxious Compounds Investigators should eliminate, mitigate or
minimize potential pain and distress when-
As noted in Section B.5. Government Regulations ever feasible and consistent with good scien-
and Policies on the Use of Fish, regulations and tific practice.
guidelines are issued under Section 36 (5) of
the Fisheries Act of Canada. The regulations for Fishes have the potential to experience pain, and
the pulp and paper industry, and for the metal manipulations that provoke stress or avoid-
mining industry, specify monthly acute lethality ance/escape behavior may be causes of distress.
testing with rainbow trout on all effluent Fishes respond to noxious stimuli with altered
streams, and the frequency of these tests. These behavioral, physiological and hormonal parame-
regulations also specify Environmental Effects ters. In general, the greater the intensity of stim-
Monitoring programs which require twice yearly uli, the greater the deviation from normal. In
sublethal toxicity tests with fish, invertebrates addition, the pattern of response to nociception
and plants. Guidelines for the petroleum refining generally corresponds to the pattern seen in
industry and potato processing industry also more highly evolved vertebrates (Sneddon et al.,
specify similar acute lethality tests with rainbow 2003). Nonetheless, the recognition and evalua-
trout. Environment Canada conducts its own tion of pain and/or distress in fishes is not easy.
audit testing for these regulations and guide- Many fish species are prey animals and are
lines. For the Fisheries Act and all the regulations genetically predisposed not to exhibit signs of
(Pulp and Paper, Metal Mining, Potato Process- injury or pain.
ing, etc.) see laws.justice.gc.ca/en/F-14/index.
html. Environment Canada's Method Develop- Although fishes lack some of the structures asso-
ment & Applications Section has published a ciated with pain perception in mammals (e.g.,

59
 well-developed cortex and neospinothalamic cluding who to contact) and instructions about
tract), there exists evidence that fishes respond in additional procedures to be taken if a fish is
a similar manner to noxious stimuli, learn to euthanized.
avoid "unpleasant" experiences and respond
with an amelioration of pain response after treat- Guideline 104:
ment with morphine (Jansen & Green, 1970). When conducting research with defined, early
Fishes also react to aversive stimuli with a full
pre-lethal endpoints, a list of parameters
scale of endocrine and metabolic responses.
should be established to permit an objective
Changes in corticosteroid and catecholamine lev-
assessment of health status.
ccac guidelines

els, as well as increases in plasma glucose and

lactic acid as demonstrated in some fish species,
are generally recognized to be indicators of acute Establishing a checklist or scoring sheet may
stress. involve a literature review and compilation of
documented clinical signs. In some cases, it may
be necessary to carry out a pilot study in order to
8.2 Choosing an obtain accurate information on clinical signs. It is
appropriate endpoint the responsibility of the investigator, working
with the ACC and veterinarian, to decide when a
Guideline 103:
clinical sign is a reliable predictor of an event
A defined endpoint should be established for (e.g., death) and what margin of error is accept-
studies which involve potential pain and/or able. This is generally undertaken in consultation
distress to the animal. A pilot study should be with the veterinarian before approval for the
used to identify clinical signs to be used as endpoint to be used as part of the protocol
the endpoint and to establish appropriate review process. Often it will be necessary to use
monitoring of the animals.
a combination of clinical signs to make decisions
to terminate an experiment or euthanize an
Whenever live animals are used for research, experimental animal.
teaching and testing, investigators have an ethi-
cal obligation to minimize any pain or distress Recognizing the great physiological and behav-
experienced. The importance of identifying the ioral diversity in fishes, the following parameters
scientific objectives for a study, and ensuring that are given as suggestions for evaluation of clinical
these reflect a clear understanding of the mecha-
signs for fishes involved in research or testing.
nisms being studied and the consequences to the
Other useful references include Goede & Barton
animals used, is underlined in the CCAC guide-
(1990).
lines on: choosing an appropriate endpoint in experi-
ments using animals for research, teaching and test-
ing (CCAC, 1998). If the morbidity and clinical signs are known,
then the parameters at which point an interven-
tion (likely euthanasia) becomes essential can be
Selection of appropriate endpoints that meet the
defined; for instance, anorexia of "x" days dura-
scientific goals but minimize the adverse effects
tion alone or in combination with certain other
for the animals, requires the ability to identify
clinical signs (e.g., more than 10 parasites per fish
signs of "pain" and/or "distress" for fishes. As
discussed earlier, this can be a challenge in many in a parasite infection study) or a certain number
fish species. One way to address this challenge is of days post-infection (e.g., parasite load number
to draw up a checklist of anticipated and poten- times number of days infected).
tial clinical signs. Each study may require its own
checklist, depending on the protocol. Both 'pop- The CCAC guidelines on: choosing an appropriate
ulation' clinical signs (such as feed intake) and endpoint in experiments using animals for research,
'individual' clinical signs (such as skin lesions) teaching and testing (CCAC, 1998) includes a use-
should be present on the check list. Information ful discussion on clinical signs to establish pre-
accompanying the checklist should include lethal endpoints for toxicology studies, clinical
instructions concerning what actions should be observations specific to fishes, and suggestions
taken when abnormalities are observed (in- for quantifying pain and distress in finfish.

60
Table 1: Evaluation of Clinical Signs for Fishes Involved in Research
or Testing
Physical Appearance normal/abnormal
eye condition
fin and skin condition (Turnball et al., 1998)
mucus production

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
colour change (usually a darkening associated with disease or bilateral blindness)
Measurable Clinical Signs feed consumption
respiratory rate

posture in water column, i.e. the individual's position in the water (upright,
upside down, tilted, etc.)
Unprovoked Behavior position in the water column (e.g., crowding near the inlet or outlet pipe,
shoaling, etc.)

social interactions
• direct attack, domination of choice tank locations, schooling
• social isolation, i.e. fish either socially isolated or choosing to isolate them-
selves from the group
• not responsive to external stimulation

hyperactivity/hypoactivity (Juell, 1995; Holm et al., 1998)

• movement (abnormal movements such as flashing or scraping the body)
(Furevik et al., 1993)
• unexpected jumping or escape behavior
Provoked Behavior feeding activity

threat response
avoidance reaction to mechanical prod
avoidance reaction to light beam

Guideline 105: Regulatory agencies should be contacted during

In any study where there is expected morbid- the development of the study protocol to agree
ity and mortality, the criteria for early on endpoint parameters. In general where
euthanasia should be clearly defined. lethal endpoints are required, studies should
make provision for the humane killing of ani-
The use of fish in toxicological research and mals expected to die before the next scheduled
toxicity testing is well established. Lethal end- observation.
point tests may be required by regulatory agen-
cies, for example in the assay of environmental
toxicant mixtures and in fish vaccine efficacy Fishes should not be held indefinitely in a facili-
tests. Such tests have the potential to cause pain ty without a protocol describing their future use,
and/or distress in fishes; therefore where feasi- as well as endpoints for aging fish and fish in
ble, the development of pre-lethal endpoints in poor condition (see Section J. Disposition of Fish
such tests is encouraged. After Study).

61
 9. Monitoring Recovery of fishes after exercise to exhaustion may
entail special holding and handling arrangements,
Guideline 106: such as segregation from normal conspecifics and
Depending on the study and the time of mor- provision of low current environments.
bidity, monitoring should be done at least
daily. Frequency of monitoring should allow
for the timely removal of fish before severe
12. Environmental Extremes
morbidity occurs. Frequency of monitoring Guideline 109:
should be increased where mortality is expect-
ccac guidelines

Studies involving the exposure of fishes to

ed to be high. environmental extremes should select the
earliest endpoint possible.
If the timeframe for morbidity is unknown, a
pilot study should be conducted under veteri- In some instances, fish may be subjected to
nary and ACC oversight to determine the most extreme heat or cold in their holding environ-
critical period for observation of the fish during ment as part of an experimental design. This type
the study. of study would be regarded as highly invasive in
most vertebrate species.
10. Negative Reinforcement When proposing studies involving exposure to
Modalities extreme environments, the definition of end-
points becomes very important and should be
Guideline 107:
carefully defined to reduce: 1) the use of animals
Pilot studies and literature searches should in future studies; and 2) distress for fish involved
be used to establish the least invasive in ongoing studies.
method of obtaining a consistent response
when using negative reinforcement modali- If behavioral endpoints are proposed, it is im-
ties in fishes. portant that the behavior be observed and
recorded in a repeatable fashion using rigorous
Certain studies may entail the application of nox- methodology.
ious substances, alarm substance addition to
tank water, or the application of electrical shock Animals undergoing environmental extremes
to induce swimming or fear/avoidance respons- are likely to experience a range of after-effects,
es in fishes. The guiding principle of ethical including immunological and physiological
research in this instance is to avoid excessive or changes, which may preclude their use as normal
unavoidable stress where possible, and to use animal models in subsequent studies.
procedures that minimize distress. For instance,
when designing an experiment, a preference test
with an avoidable negative stimulus should be 13. Genetically Modified Fish
substituted for an unavoidable negative rein- The local ACC should ensure that investigators
forcement schedule. have complied with applicable regulatory
requirements before approval of a protocol
involving an aquatic organism that is an animate
11. Exercise to Exhaustion product of biotechnology (e.g., genetically modi-
fied fish). Like many other countries, the federal
Guideline 108:
government of Canada has developed regula-
Studies involving the forced swimming of fish- tions, policies and guidelines applicable to
es to the point of exhaustion, often in con- research involving animate products of biotech-
junction with negative reinforcement, should nology in order that the potential for adverse
be conducted with strict adherence to guiding effects on the environment and human health
principles of minimization of distress of ani- may be assessed. Schedule XIX of the New
mals. Fishes used in exercise to exhaustion Substances Notification Regulations (NSNR)
studies should be monitored continuously. under the Canadian Environmental Protection

62
Act, 1999, specifies the information that must be Guideline 110:
provided 120 days in advance of the import or Genetically modified fishes may have chan-
manufacture of an aquatic organism that is an ges in physiology and anatomy as the result
animate product of biotechnology. These regula- of their genetic alteration, and should be
tory requirements apply to research and devel- closely monitored.
opment organisms unless specified containment
criteria are met (i.e. no release into the environ- A review of transgenic techniques is provided in
ment of the organism, genetic material of the Chen et al. (1996), Jowett (1999), Linney et al.
organism or material from the organism (1999), Fan & Collodi (2002), Lu et al. (2002),

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
involved in toxicity). Organisms determined to Maclean et al. (2002), and Rocha et al. (2004). In
have, or suspected of having, potential adverse addition, the CCAC guidelines on: transgenic ani-
effects on the environment or human health may mals (CCAC, 1997b), and future revisions, should
be consulted.
be controlled as necessary, including by prohibit-
ing or imposing conditions on their import or
GM fish may have different metabolic and envi-
manufacture.
ronmental requirements compared to non-GM
fish. The normative tables generated for non-
Investigators involved in importation, creation
transgenic fish cannot be automatically applied
or use of aquatic organisms with novel traits to transgenic fish (Stevens et al., 1998).
should contact the biotechnology office of DFO
for more information on the NSNR require- Guideline 111:
ments. The New Substances Notification Branch
Genetically modified fishes must not be per-
of Environment Canada can provide more infor- mitted to enter the food or feed chain unless
mation on the NSNR requirements related to they have undergone a thorough safety
other aquatic new substances (telephone: 1-800- assessment and have received authorization
567-1999 [toll-free in Canada] or 819-953-7156 for sale, manufacture and/or import as a food
[outside Canada]; facsimile: 819-953-7155; email or feed by Health Canada and the Canadian
[email protected]). Food Inspection Agency.

63
 I. EUTHANASIA

Guideline 112: cal destruction of brain tissue by pithing or

Where feasible, the euthanasia of fishes crushing the brain.
should consist of a two-step process, with
initial anesthesia to the point of loss of equi- Use of hypothermia (including putting fish on
ccac guidelines

librium, followed by a physical or chemical ice) before euthanasia should be avoided.

method to cause brain death. Because many species of fishes continue to have
brain activity in the face of advanced cerebral
Physical techniques such as percussive stunning and systemic hypoxia, physical euthanasia tech-
and gill-cut methods, commonly used in com- niques such as decapitation alone should be
mercial aquaculture, should be used secondary avoided (Flight & Verheijen, 1993). It is therefore
to anesthesia; the exception being when animals desirable to physically destroy, freeze, or pith the
are in extreme distress and the time taken in brain in fishes that have been euthanised using a
preparation of anesthesia would result in pro- primary physical technique such as blow to the
longed distress. head.

Use of lethal levels of central nervous system

The American Veterinary Medical Association
depressants, such as buffered TMS, are the pre-
(AVMA), in their recommendations on methods
ferred method of euthanasia. Alternatively, a
stunning blow to the head performed by an of euthanasia for lower vertebrates such as rep-
experienced person is also acceptable if followed tiles, no longer support the use of hypothermia/
by pithing or cervical dislocation. Use of carbon freezing as a technique because of concerns
dioxide is not an acceptable method of euthana- about the induction of pain during ice crystal for-
sia, nor is suffocation by draining the tank or mation (AVMA, 2001).
removing the fish from water.
Exsanguination under anesthesia is also an
Kreiberg (2000) provides discussion on accept- acceptable method of euthanasia.
able methods of euthanasia in fishes. The onus
remains on the fish handler to be well informed
about the pharmacology and physiological Various forms of electrocution have been used
impacts of a proposed method of euthanasia. commercially, including prolonged exposure to
Robb & Kestin (2002) and Lines et al. (2003) pro- AC and DC voltage; however, these methods
vide further information on humane methods of may be associated with spinal fractures and mus-
euthanasia for fishes. cle damage.

Guideline 113: When large numbers of fish need to be eutha-

If a physical technique of euthanasia is used nized, the use of immersion anesthetic at lethal
when killing fishes, it should entail the physi- dose in the holding tank is acceptable.

64
 J. DISPOSITION OF FISH AFTER STUDY

1. Consumption of Fish knowledge and ability to provide adequate care.

No GM fish may be removed from research facil-
Guideline 114: ities to private premises.
Fishes destined for food and subjected to
If fishes are to be released to the care of an indi-

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
sedation or anesthesia should be held for the
vidual as companion animals, the institution
designated withdrawal time before being
should develop an appropriate policy describing
killed.
the conditions that need to be fulfilled before
their release.
In studies involving aquaculture fish species, it
may be acceptable to release such fishes for
human food, providing the fishes have not been 4. Transfer of Fish
treated with any unlicensed compounds and the Between Facilities
advice of a veterinarian has been sought.
Guideline 116:
Fishes should undergo health assessment
2. Release of Fish to Wild before being transported between facilities.
Guideline 115: Appropriate regulatory approval and permits
must be in place before any transfer.
In general, research fishes that have been
kept in captive environments must not be The transfer of unhealthy fishes between facili-
released into the wild. Release into the wild is ties should be avoided, other than when request-
only permissible under appropriate licence ed by a veterinarian for the purposes of clinical
under the Fisheries (General) Regulations or investigation and diagnosis.
similar provincial/territorial regulations.

5. Disposal of Dead Fish

3. Fish as Pets
Fish must be disposed of according to accept-
Some institutions release healthy research fishes able federal, provincial/territorial and munici-
(not GM fishes) that are commonly accepted pet pal regulations for the disposal of biological
or companion species to individuals with the materials.

65
 K. REFERENCES

Ackefors H., Huner J.V. & Konikoff M. (1994) Black M.C. (2000b) Collection of body fluids. In:
Introduction to the General Principles of The Laboratory Fish. (ed. G.K. Ostrander), pp. 513-
Aquaculture. 166pp. Binghamton NY: Food 528. San Diego CA: Academic Press.
Products Press.
ccac guidelines

Braithwaite V.A. & Huntingford F.A. (2004) Fish

Alanärä A., Kadri S. & Paspatis M. (2001) and welfare: do fish have the capacity for pain per-
Feeding management. In: Food Intake. (eds. D. ception and suffering? Animal Welfare 13:S87-S92.
Houlihan, T. Boujard & M. Joblings), pp. 332-353.
Oxford UK: Blackwell Science. Brattelid T. & Smith A.J. (2000) Guidelines for
reporting the results of experiments on fish.
American Veterinary Medical Association Laboratory Animals 34(2):131-135.
(AVMA) (2001) 2000 Report of the AVMA Panel
on Euthanasia. Journal of the American Veterinary Canadian Association for Laboratory Animal
Medical Association 218(5):669-696. Available at Medicine/ L'association canadienne de la
www.avma.org/resource/euthanasia.pdf médecine des animaux de laboratoire (CALAM/
ACMAL) (2004) Standards of Veterinary Care.
Balls M., Goldberg A.M., Fentem J.H., Broadhead Electronic document, www.ccac.ca/Documents/
C.L., Burch R.L., Festing M.F.W., Frazier J.M., StandardsVetCare%5B1%5D.pdf
Hendriksen C.F.M., Jennings M., van der Kamp
Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC) (1984)
M.D.O., Morton D.B., Rowan A.N., Russell C.,
Guide to the Care and Use of Experimental Animals,
Russell W.M.S., Spielmann H., Stephens M.L.,
vol. 2. 208pp. Ottawa ON: CCAC. Available at
Stokes W.S., Straughan D.W., Yager J.D., Zurlo J.
w w w. c c a c . c a / e n / C C A C _ P r o g r a m s /
& van Zutphen B.F.M. (1995) The Three Rs: The
Guidelines_Policies/GDLINES/Guidelis.htm
Way Forward. Alternatives to Laboratory Animals
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Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC)
(1989) CCAC policy statement on: ethics of animal
Balm P.H. & Pottinger T.G. (1995) Corticotrope
investigation. Ottawa ON: CCAC. Available at
and melanotrope POMC-derived peptides in www.ccac.ca/en/CCAC_Programs/Guidelines_
relation to interrenal function during stress in Policies/POLICIES/policy.htm
rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). General and
Comparative Endocrinology 98(3):279-288. Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC)
(1993a) Guide to the Care and Use of Experimental
Barton B.A. (1996) General biology of salmonids. Animals, vol. 1, 2nd ed. 212pp. Ottawa ON: CCAC.
In: Principles of Salmonid Culture, vol. 29. (eds. Available at www.ccac.ca/en/CCAC_Programs/
W. Pennell & B.A. Barton), pp. 29-95. Amsterdam: Guidelines_Policies/GDLINES/Guidelis.htm
Elsevier.
Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC)
Bisson P.S. (1976) Increased invertebrate drift in (1993b) Standards for experimental surgery. In:
an experimental stream caused by electrofishing. Guide to the Care and Use of Experimental Animals,
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 L. GLOSSARY

Acclimation — a persisting physiological, bio- Fish — one or more individuals of one species
chemical or morphological change within an
individual animal during its life as a result of a Fishes — individuals of more than one species
prolonged exposure to an environmental condi-
tion such as a high or low temperature; general- Fomites — non-living objects that can carry dis-

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
ly, the changes are reversible ease organisms (e.g., feeders, mops, etc.)

Adaptation — the observation that the physiolo- Hygroscopic — readily absorbs water
gy, biochemistry and morphology of any animal
is usually very well matched to the environment Hypothermia — lower than normal body
that the animal lives in; these features have been temperature
shaped through evolution by natural selection
over many generations, and involve irreversible Integument — the natural outer covering of an
changes in the genetic material animal; the skin

Analgesia — decrease in response to noxious Lamellae — area of the gills where the exchange
stimuli of gases and waste products occurs
Anesthesia — a state caused by an external Morbidity — visible manifestation of a diseased
agent, resulting in depression of the nervous state
system, leading to loss of sensation and motor
function
Mortality — loss of life; death
Asepsis — absence of living germs, free from
Myopathy — muscle damage resulting from
septic and poisonous putrefactive products
anaerobic muscle function; predisposition may
be due to improper capture procedures
Atraumatic needle — a needle with a suture per-
manently attached
Noxious stimuli — those stimuli that are damag-
Distress — a state of excessive stress in which ing or potentially damaging to normal tissue
the animal is unable to make the necessary adap-
tations to stressor(s) Pain (in fish) — fish pain is a response to a nox-
ious stimulus that results in a change in behaviour
Ecosystem — a complex of the plant and animal or physiology and the same noxious stimulus
communities within an area, along with the non- would be painful to humans (a working definition)
living components of the environment and the
interactions among these Progeny — offspring

Ectothermic — an animal that assumes the tem- Protocol — a written description of a study or
perature of its surroundings activity that includes details of the goals, the use
of animals, the procedures that are to be followed
Euthanasia — literally, a good death; rapid loss and the personnel involved; the purpose of the
of consciousness and death, with no pain or dis- protocol is to ensure the quality and integrity of
tress accompanying the procedure the study or activity

Exsanguination — a procedure causing exten- Quarantine — the segregation or isolation of

sive loss of blood due to internal or external animals from all others to prevent the spread of
hemorrhage disease

73
 Regurgitation — passive return of food or fluid Telemetry — the use of devices to transmit infor-
to the mouth from the stomach mation to a distant station where it is recorded;
commonly used in field studies to monitor ani-
Salmonidae — the family of fishes that includes mals in order to answer questions about their
physiology, behavior, habitat use, survival and
salmon (Oncorhynchus spp. and Salmo salar), trout
movements
(Salvelinus spp., Salmo spp.) and char (Salvelinus
alpinus); whitefish (Coregonus spp., Prosopium spp.,
Stenodus leucichthys); and grayling (Thymallus Welfare — a term used to describe the quality of
life that an animal is experiencing
ccac guidelines

arcticus). Also used informally as the name of the

subfamily which includes salmon, trout and char
Well-being — a state or condition of physical
and psychological harmony between the organ-
SOP — Standard Operating Procedure; written
ism and its surroundings. Good health and man-
documents specifying procedures for routine ifestation of normal behavioral repertoire are the
activities that must be followed to ensure the most commonly used indicators of an animal's
quality and integrity of the study well-being

Standard Environmental Temperature — the Withdrawal time — the length of time between
temperature for optimum growth of a species of when an animal is given a drug and the pre-
fish scribed time period for clearance of residues of
that product
Supersaturation — a condition where the total
gas pressure in a body of water exceeds the baro- Zoonotic — relating to the transmission of a dis-
metric pressure in the overlying atmosphere ease from a non-human species to humans

74
 M. ABBREVIATIONS

ACC — Animal Care Committee GFI — Ground fault interrupter

CAEAL — Canadian Association for HVAC — Heat, ventilation and air

Environmental Analytical conditioning
Laboratories

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
ICES — International Council for the
CALAM — Canadian Association of
Laboratory Animal Medicine Exploration of the Seas

CCFAM — Canadian Council for Fisheries IV — Intravenous

and Aquaculture Ministries
IP — Intraperitoneal
CFIA — Canadian Food Inspection
Agency NAC — North American Commission
CITES — Convention on International
NAFTA — North American Free Trade
Trade in Endangered Species of
Wild Fauna and Flora Agreement

COSEWIC — Committee on the Status of NASCO — North Atlantic Salmon

Endangered Wildlife in Canada Conservation Organization

CSA — Canadian Standards OECD — Organization for Economic

Association Cooperation and Development

CSZ — Canadian Society of Zoologists

OIE — Office International des
Epizooties
CWS — Canadian Wildlife Service

DFO — Fisheries and Oceans Canada SOPs — Standard Operating Procedures

FAWC — Farm Animal Welfare Council SPS — Sanitary/Phytosanitary

FHPR — Fish Health Protection TMS — Tricaine methane sulphonate

Regulations
WAPPRIITA — Wild Animal and Plant
FRP — Fiberglass reinforced plastic
Protection Regulations of
FTA — Free Trade Agreement International and
Interprovincial Trade Act
GATT — General Agreement on Tariffs
and Trade WTO — World Trade Organization

75
 APPENDIX A
RELEVANT GUIDELINES AND ORGANIZATIONS

American Fisheries Society (AFS) Convention on International Trade in

www.fisheries.org Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
(CITES)
ccac guidelines

American Society of Ichthyologists and www.cites.org

Herpetologists (ASIH)
www.asih.org Environment Canada (EC) (and Intergovern-
mental Environmental Toxicology Group)
AquaNet www.aquanet.ca www.ec.gc.ca

Canadian Aquaculture Institute, PEI European Convention for the Protection of

www.upei.ca/~cai/ Vertebrate Animals Used for Experimental
and Other Scientific Purposes (ETS 123) -
Canadian Association of Aquaculture Appendix A: Guidelines for accomodation and care of
Veterinarians animals — Species-specific provisions for fish
www.coe.int/T/E/Legal_affairs/Legal_co-
Canadian Association for Environmental operation/Biological_safety%2C_use_of_animals/
Analytical Laboratories (CAEAL) Laboratory_animals/A_texts_docs.asp#TopOfPage
www.caeal.ca
Farm Animal Welfare Council (FAWC)
Canadian Council for Fisheries and www.fawc.org.uk
Aquaculture Ministries (CCFAM)
www.aquaculture.ca/English/CAIA_CCFAM.html Fish Health Protection Regulations (FHPR)
laws.justice.gc.ca/en/F-14/C.R.C.-c.812
Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA)
www.inspection.gc.ca Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO)
www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Committee on the Status of Endangered
Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) Fisheries Society of the British Isles (FSBI)
www.cosewic.gc.ca www.le.ac.uk/biology/fsbi

Canadian Society of Zoologists (CSZ) Health Canada (HC)

www.csz-scz.ca/jpellerin/csz/ www.hc-sc.gc.ca

Canadian Veterinary Medical Association Office International des Epizooties (OIE)

(CVMA) canadianveterinarians.net www.oie.int

76
 APPENDIX B
ZOONOTIC DISEASE – TRANSMISSION OF FISH
DISEASES TO MAN

Zoonoses, also called zoonotic diseases, are ani- against some of these gram negative organisms
mal diseases that may be transmitted to humans. (Fryer & Bartholomew, 1996).

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
Piscine zoonotic diseases have been extensively
reviewed elsewhere (Nemetz & Shotts, 1993) and Pathogenic gram positive bacterial infection in
will only be briefly summarized here. In general, fishes is less common. Gram positive bacteria
transmission of fishborn zoonoses is relatively that can cause zoonoses include Streptococcus
rare, and the vast majority of these organisms spp., Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, Mycobacterium
produce self-limited bouts of gastroenteritis, spp., Clostridium spp., and Staphylococcus spp.
usually secondary to consumption of under- Several cases of cellulitis caused by accidental
cooked fishes, or localized wound infections, inoculation with Streptococcus iniae, a fish
usually due to contamination of cuts or abrasions pathogen associated with menigoencephalitis in
while handling either live fishes or fish tissues. tilapia, have been reported in patients in Canada
However, a few of the more virulent organisms that had injured their hands while handling
have the ability to produce systemic infections in tilapia (Weinstein et al., 1997). Erysipelothrix and
humans and, in very rare instances, death Mycobacterium also usually cause a localized skin
(Nemetz & Shotts, 1993). Although zoonotic dis- infection but, under some circumstances, can
eases are rare in healthy individuals, the risk is cause a disseminated infection (i.e. septicemia).
markedly increased in people with depressed In contrast, skin contact with Clostridium and
immunity (e.g., patients with AIDS, organ trans-
Staphylococcus does not usually cause an infec-
plant recipients receiving immunosuppressive
tion in humans, but rather produce disease when
drugs).
contaminated fishes containing their bacterial
toxins are consumed.
Diseases of fishes can be induced by a variety of
bacteria, rickettsiae, roundworms (nematodes),
A number of viruses and fungi have been identi-
cestodes (tapeworms), flukes (trematodes), pro-
fied in fishes (Fryer & Bartholomew, 1996).
tozoa, viruses, and fungi (Nemetz & Shotts, 1993;
Fryer & Bartholomew, 1996). The type of infesta- However, no documented case of human infec-
tion is dependent upon a myriad of factors, tion by either fish viruses or fish fungi have been
including the species, the supplier, the geograph- reported (Nemetz & Shotts, 1993). Although a
ic origin, and the diet of the fish; other important number of fish parasites including both worms
issues are water quality and salinity. and protozoa can infect humans, such infections
are almost invariably due to consumption of
The majority of important zoonotic pathogens of undercooked fish and are exceedingly rare in
fishes are gram negative bacteria. In North North America (Nemetz & Shotts, 1993).
America, members of the genus Vibrio are proba-
bly the most important bacterial pathogens of Finally, some marine organisms produce toxins
marine and estuarine fishes (some species also that can cause illness and death in humans.
infect freshwater fishes); members of Vibrio Ciguatera and scombroid are examples of food
species (spp.) are also important potential sources poisonings that can result from eating carnivo-
of zoonotic disease. Other gram negative bacteria rous tropical marine fishes. Ciguatoxin is
causing fishborn zoonoses include Plesiomonas believed to be produced by a marine dinoflagel-
shigelloides, Aeromonas spp., Escherichia coli, late that adheres to reef plants and then is con-
Salmonella spp., Klebsiella spp., Edwardsiella spp., sumed by herbivorous fishes; these fishes are
Yersinia ruckeri, and Leptospira icterohaemorrhagica subsequently consumed by carnivorous fishes,
(Nemetz & Shotts, 1993). Efficacious fish vac- thus concentrating the ciguatoxin in their tissues.
cines are currently available to protect fishes Patients with ciguatera poisoning usually dis-

77
 play gastrointestinal and neurological symp- should be considered. At the present time, dis-
toms. The mechanism of scombroid toxicity is ease agents recognized as a hazard in other xeno-
unclear, but is associated with human consump- transplantation models, such as mammalian
tion of marine fishes from the family endogenous retroviruses, are not a recognized
Scombroidae (e.g., tuna, bonito, mackerel, skip- threat from fish tissues; however, the knowledge
jack, etc.). Scombroid often produces allergic of this area is in its infancy.
symptoms in patients (Nemetz & Shotts, 1993).
References:
Although all of these fishborn zoonoses are rare,
ccac guidelines

prompt and accurate diagnosis expedites appro- Fryer J.L. & Bartholomew J.L. (1996) Established
priate treatment. Because they are so rare, most and emerging infectious diseases of fish. ASM
physicians, even those specializing in the treat- News 62: 592-594.
ment of infectious diseases, have little or no
experience diagnosing them. Thus, it is impor- Nemetz T.G. & Shotts E.B. Jr. (1993) Zoonotic
tant for people working with fishes to also be diseases. In: Fish Medicine (ed. M.K. Stoskopf),
aware of the existence of fishborn zoonoses and, pp. 214-220. New York NY: WB Saunders.
if being evaluated by a physician, to mention that
they have occupational exposure to fishes. With Weinstein M.R., Litt M., Kertesz D.A., Wyper P.,
the advent of the use of fishes as a source of Rose D., Coulter M., McGeer A., Facklam R.,
implantable biomaterials, in xenotransplanta- Ostach C., Willey B.M., Borczyk A., & Low D.E.
tion, or as bioreactors for large scale production (1997) Invasive infections due to a fish pathogen,
of human proteins, the possibility of emerging Streptococcus iniae. New England Journal of
xenozoonoses transmitted from these sources Medicine 337: 589-594.

78
 APPENDIX C
GUIDELINES FOR CONTAINMENT FACILITIES
(FOR PATHOGEN STUDIES)

Although there are currently no national stan- There are some prescriptive standards provided
dards developed and approved by federal agen- in the Fish Health Protection Regulations: Manual of

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
cies that are specific for aquatic biocontainment Compliance (Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 1984)
systems, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency concerning importation and movement of
(CFIA) and Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) salmonid fish, their eggs and tissues.
are working on developing guidelines that cover
both veterinary biologics and aquatic animal Principles of containment described within this
live-holding, in view of meeting several objec- Appendix also extend to research involving GM
tives, including genetically modified (GM) fish. DFO is the Canadian lead agency develop-
organisms and fish with novel traits concerns,
ing requirements and containment standards for
and introductions and transfers concerns (e.g.,
live-holding of aquatic organisms with novel
escapee impacts from ecological, spawning and
traits (e.g., GM fish). DFO's biotechnology office
trophic competition). The standards will bring
is the point of contact for any containment ques-
much needed transparency, clarity, consistency
and objectivity for both the handlers of aquatic tions related to aquatic organisms with novel
animals and their pathogens for experimental or traits, and DFO's Aquaculture Management
commercial development purposes, and the Directorate for containment questions related to
inspectors. For aquatic animal pathogen labora- live aquatic animal transfers.
tories conducting in vitro work, such as diag-
nostic laboratories, all physical containment
and operational practices for the appropriate 1. Aquatic Biocontainment
containment level must be followed as per the Laboratory Physical Plant
existing Containment Standards for Veterinary
Facilities (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, The categorization of aquatic pathogens to
1996). These Standards can be accessed at: Animal Biosafety Levels I to IV (established for
w w w. i n s p e c t i o n . g c . c a / e n g l i s h / s c i / l a b / terrestrial systems) is problematic. Most agents
convet/convete.shtml. This Appendix is there- are currently considered as Biosafety Level I or
fore intended to provide additional guidance to II (See Laboratory Biosafety Guidelines [Health
investigators and Animal Care Committees Canada, 2004] at www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/ols-bsl/
(ACCs) working with aquatic animals and/or lbg-ldmbl/). The criteria used to assess the level
their pathogens until federal agency guidelines of risk are subjective, e.g., the lack of viral enve-
are developed. The approach taken in these lope in the case of some viral pathogens.
CCAC guidelines reflects current best practices.
Facilities engaged in studies requiring biocon-
In aquatic systems, surface contamination, con-
tainment are subject to inspection by provincial
and federal authorities. CFIA's Biohazard Contain- tamination of fomites such as nets and tanks,
ment and Safety division (www.inspection.gc.ca/ and aerosol-born transmission are all possible
english/sci/bio/bioe.shtml) is the point of con- sources of accidental transfer of aquatic
tact for any queries or construction plans regard- pathogens. Biocontainment in aquatic systems
ing laboratories conducting in vitro work and for relies to a large extent on common sense
any containment questions related to in vitro use hygiene measures such as fomite control and
of imported veterinary biologics. DFO's Aquatic disinfection, use of tank-specific hardware,
Animal Health Office is the point of contact for external clothing dedicated to biocontainment
any containment questions related to live aquat- facilities, hand washing and the use of disinfec-
ic animal transfers or in vivo infection trials. tant footbaths.

79
 Guideline A: rigorous decontamination procedures, and there-
Facilities conducting research, teaching or fore should be tested to ensure that they can
testing on fish using aquatic animal patho- withstand stronger or more repetitious chemical
gens must do so with the knowledge and per- treatments.
mission of local DFO, CFIA and appropriate
provincial/territorial authorities. Guideline D:
Containment rooms should be ventilated to
Guideline B: permit drying conditions and even mixing of
Facilities used for aquatic animal pathogen air, but prevent aerosol-born pathogens from
ccac guidelines

research must be properly contained and escaping via air movement or condensation
physically separate from other holding rooms on surfaces or clothing.
and facility functions, such as the holding
and rearing of production fish or holding of Temperatures should ensure that wall, floor and
broodstock fish. Effluent must be rendered ceiling surfaces dry rapidly, as most aquatic
noninfectious before being returned to the pathogens survive longer in a wet environment.
environment. The use of tank covers ensures that humidity lev-
els are maintained at a reasonable level within
The location and physical attributes of a contain- the room and also reduce the risk of splash trans-
ment facility must prevent accidental release fer of pathogens between tanks or onto the floor.
during flooding, storms or other natural disas-
ters. In order to ensure adequate containment, Guideline E:
facilities should be built on dry land and sited All pathogen control processes must have
above historic flood levels. If these conditions fail-safe backup.
cannot be met, then projects should be small
enough to permit all animals to be moved safely In the event of a failure in any automated efflu-
to an alternate site, or destroyed, within a realis- ent disinfection system, there should be ade-
tic time-frame permitted by natural disaster quate containment to prevent untreated water
warnings. Containment facilities are particularly from leaving the facility, as well as an emergency
sensitive to entry of predators and pests, and the alert to ensure that the responsible authorities
design of the entire facility must address this respond as quickly as possible to rectify the situ-
risk. In particular, drain systems, portals for per- ation. Automated systems should be pro-
sonnel and equipment access, and heating, venti- grammed to measure residual disinfectant con-
lation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems are centrations and ensure these fall within pre-set
vulnerable. parameters for pathogen inactivation. These
parameters should be tested prior to bringing in
Consideration must be given to maintenance and high risk research animals and/or their
other required access to mechanical and accesso- pathogens, by bacteriological or virological tests
ry systems. Where possible, these systems of 'spiked' effluent. All effluent from contain-
should be accessible without entry to the con- ment systems should be routed through hard
tainment area from outside of the facility. plumbing to effluent treatment tanks which
ensure adequate contact time for decontamina-
Guideline C: tion of effluent. In the event of a system failure,
Materials and surfaces used for facility con- inflow systems should be engineered to shut off,
struction should be durable, nonporous and preventing overflow of the system.
easily sanitized using surface cleaning and
potent surface disinfectants that have proven Any release of effluent to the environment must
efficacy. Wood, porous materials and meet local regulations, and ensure that viable
unsealed concrete should not be used for pathogens are not released. In general, this will
biocontainment facilities. require local municipal sewage authority
approval and/or an environmental impact
Materials and surfaces used in any fish facility assessment if the effluent is to be released to the
should be easily sanitized. However, in contain- local waterways. Disinfected products, whether
ment facilities, surfaces may be subjected to more solid or liquid, should be neutralized prior to

80
release from the containment facility because trol culture following studies. Fail-safe plumbing
they can be toxic to fishes and other aquatic systems should be used that prevent tanks from
resources. self-draining in the event of loss of water supply.

1.1 Facility entrance Guideline J:

Guideline F: Rooms should be engineered so that in the
event of catastrophic failure, such as tank
Facilities should have secured entry systems, leakage, all untreated effluent is prevented
be clearly signed and have means of logging
from escape.
who enters and at what time.

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
Floor drains should be routed to a holding reser-
Traffic within the facility should be minimized,
voir that can process all water held within the
with entry permitted on an ‘as needed’ basis
only. The entry should be locked and accessible facility.
solely to authorized personnel. There should be a
Guideline K:
clothing transfer area immediately adjacent to
the entry area where outside clothing can be Room surfaces should be smooth, impervi-
exchanged or covered by containment facility- ous and able to be disinfected readily.
specific outerwear (coveralls, footwear and
gloves). Floor surfaces should be smooth, sealed and
nonporous, and corners should be coved. Walls
Guideline G: and bare fixtures should be disinfectable, as must
Foot baths and hand wash stations should be all materials used for handling or likely to come
available at the entry and exit points of the in contact with the experimental animals.
containment facility.
Guideline L:
Personnel must use footbaths and hand wash Electrical fixtures should be ground fault
stations each time they enter or exit the contain- interrupted, gasketed, sanitizable and provid-
ment facility. ed with emergency back-up power.

1.2 Rooms Wall switches should be sealed and waterproof

Guideline H: to allow disinfection. Ceiling lamp fixtures
should be gasketed, waterproof and sanitizable.
Individual rooms should have door and wall Ceilings should be smooth, impervious and san-
seals.
itizable. Electrical outlets should, ideally, be posi-
tioned well above floor level, and above water
Individual rooms should have raised dams
supply lines.
across the doors and floors, with waterproof
seals running along the walls to a depth suffi-
Guideline M:
cient to hold all water within the containment
room should it leak or spill from the holding Exposed piping should be secured to wall and
tanks or water supply reservoirs. floor surfaces with smooth sanitizable brack-
ets, and should be accessible for cleaning.
Guideline I:
Room surfaces, piping, tanks and water Piping should have access points for cleaning.
transfer systems in rooms should be Valves should be accessible from within and out-
designed for complete access and steriliza- side individual rooms to regulate flows in the
tion between studies, and must be designed event of emergencies. Where walls are penetrat-
to prevent back flow from animal holding ed for pipe runs, they should be caulked or
tanks and effluent handling systems. securely sealed and gasketed to prevent harbour-
ing pathogens. Any drain holes that go direct to
All pipes should be hard-plumbed with remov- municipal drainage (not recommended) should
able access points for cleaning and quality con- be protected with sealed standing pipes to pre-

81
 vent untreated effluent escape. Methods to ed alarms to pagers or another means of immedi-
reduce condensation should be employed. ately contacting emergency personnel should be
in place. Recirculation systems in aquatic biocon-
Guideline N: tainment laboratories represent a special chal-
Equipment for cleaning and sanitation, dry- lenge because of the potential to contain and har-
moist feed storage bins and equipment used bour pathogens, particularly in concentration
in the room (such as nets) should be room- components of the system such as biofilters. Such
specific. systems should be designed with the capacity to
isolate, remove and disinfect all system compo-
ccac guidelines

Nets and other equipment should be tank-specif- nents including tanks, pipes, biofilters and other
ic, in order to minimize transfer of pathogens ancillary equipment without disrupting animals
between tanks. There should be immersion disin- in the system.
fection buckets for the regular sanitation of
room-specific equipment. The regular changing Guideline Q:
of disinfection solutions used in such rooms Spill kits to contain and disinfect spills of
should be scheduled by an SOP, and the efficacy pathogen-contaminated water should be in
of such methods should be assessed with a regu- place in all rooms and areas where spills
lar validation procedure. Appropriate concentra- are a possibility. Designation and training of
tion and type of disinfectant to achieve 100% kill personnel in the use of spill-kits must be
of pathogens in the environment should be used. maintained.

1.3 Water flow and tanks When a spill occurs, it should be physically con-
tained using absorbent material, and the infec-
Guideline O: tious agent destroyed using an effective disinfec-
All tanks must be enclosed with tightly fitting, tant for a recognized contact period; after which,
removable covers to prevent water, aquatic the spill can be cleaned up.
animal or pathogen escape.
1.4 Facility wear
Tank lid perforations for airstones, standpipes,
etc. should be gasketed. Tank stands should be Guideline R:
constructed of rigid, smooth, impervious materi- Facility-specific clothing and footwear worn
al such as aluminum, stainless steel or fiberglass. in the containment area must be kept in the
For saltwater systems, the tanks and tank stands area.
should be salt water corrosion proof. The use of
porous or organic materials, such as concrete is Street clothing should be kept outside the facility
inadvisable. Any porous materials, such as air- in separate locker areas away from the contain-
stones, should be disposed of and replaced by ment area. Facility-specific footwear should be
new airstones between experiments, or should donned to enter the outer areas of containment
be disinfected between use. facilities such as hallways. At the room level, a
complete outerwear change with footwear
Guideline P: change is needed. Within individual rooms, per-
All effluent water must be collected and held sonnel should wash their hands before leaving
in treatment tanks for a recommended disin- the room and when leaving the outer area of the
fectant contact time, and the effluent from containment facility.
these tanks must be regularly monitored for
effective level of disinfection. Facility clothing, tools, etc. should be regularly
disinfected.
The disinfection tank should undergo regular
testing for integrity, as should the disinfectant 1.5 Disposal of materials
injection system. The tank should have an auto-
mated disinfectant system which is monitored by Guideline S:
an alarm system in case of failure. In the event of Any contaminated material, including cloth-
any failure in the containment system, automat- ing, fomites and carcasses, should be secure-

82
ly bagged and autoclaved or incinerated areas, such as entry and exit procedures, traf-
before cleaning or disposal. fic flow from clean to dirty, disinfection and
garment change on entry and exit;
Clothing which requires cleaning should be dis-
infected prior to removal from the facility for • staff must understand the physical structure,
cleaning, unless laundering facilities are avail- plumbing and air handling systems in the
able within the containment zone and are proven facility and how these work, and adhere to
effective against the pathogens.
strict containment protocols (i.e. not wedge
doors open, etc.);
Alternative means of sterile disposal of carcasses

the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005
and other contaminated biological wastes includes
incineration or autoclaving and rendering. • emergency procedures and equipment to deal
with loss of containment, fire, etc. must be in
place, posted and understood by all workers;
2. Operation of an Aquatic and
Biocontainment Facility
• all spills, loss of containment and accidents
The following aspects must be followed in order must be reported and investigated.
to ensure the proper functioning of a biocontain-
ment facility:
References:
• only authorized personnel should be permit-
ted entry; Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC)
(1996) Containment Standards for Veterinary
• there must be entrance procedures for main- Facilities. 71pp. Ottawa ON: Agriculture and
tenance staff; Agri-Food Canada. Available at www.inspection.
gc.ca/english/sci/lab/convet/convete.shtml
• if aquatic zoonotic agents are in use (e.g.,
Streptococcus iniae or Mycobacterium marinum), Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) (1984)
a health and medical surveillance program (revised 2004) Fish Health Protection Regulations:
must be in place to protect personnel from
Manual of Compliance. Publication 31 (Revised)
infection;
50pp. Ottawa ON: DFO. Available at www.dfo-
• personnel must be trained in all infectious, mpo.gc.ca/science/aquaculture/aah/manual_
chemical and physical hazards likely to be of_compliance_e. htm
encountered, and must demonstrate compe-
tence; such training must be documented; Health Canada (2004) Laboratory Biosafety
Guidelines, 3rd ed. 113pp. Ottawa ON: Health
• facility-specific SOPs must be developed and Canada. Available at www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/ols-
followed to ensure consistent practices in all bsl/lbg-ldmbl/

83
84
APPENDIX D
WATER QUALITY CRITERIA FOR OPTIMUM FISH HEALTH –
FOR COLDWATER, WARMWATER AND MARINE SPECIES OF FISH

(mg/L except for pH, temperature and salinity)

Characteristics Coldwater Warmwater Marine Monitoring frequency Comments

Recirculation Open Flow
Through
Temperature 9 to 15°C 20 to 32°C Species-specific, daily daily
range too broad to
state definitively

Oxygen 7 to 5 to 5.5 to at least daily daily Oxygen may need to be checked

saturation saturation saturation more frequently if other values
change or if fish are in high den-
sity situations (above 15 kg/m³)

pH 6.5 to 8 7.5 to 9 7.5 to 8.5 daily weekly pH may need to be checked

more frequently if other values
change or if fish are in high den-
sity situations (above 15 kg/m³)

Ammonia 0 to 0.0125 0 to 0.02 0 to 0.0125 twice a week monthly If system has a biofilter should
(un-ionized) (unless high be checked daily during start-up
density)

Nitrate 0 to 3.0 0 to 3.0 species-specific twice a week monthly If system has a biofilter should
(unless high be checked daily during start-up
density)
 Characteristics Coldwater Warmwater Marine Monitoring frequency Comments
Recirculation Open Flow
Through
Nitrite 0 to 0.2 0 to 0.1 0 to 0.2 twice a week monthly If system has a biofilter should
(unless high be checked daily during start-up
density)
Chlorine 0 to 0.01 0 to 0.01 not applicable annually daily (if using Chlorine should be checked
municipal daily if taken from municipal
water) water sources which use chlorine
as a disinfectant
Total hardness 20 to 450 50 to 450 >125 mg/L twice a week twice a week Total hardness is a measure of
(CaCO3) calcium and magnesium but may
contain other hardness produc-
ing minerals; changes in total
hardness can relate to changes in
total alkalinity and pH
Total alkalinity 10 to 450 50 to 450 >150 mg/L twice a week twice a week Alkalinity should be monitored
(CaCO3) as the processes of recirculation
cause a reduction in alkalinity
and may reduce pH

Nitrogen (gas <100% <100% <100% weekly weekly Values are for adult fish and
saturation) may be less in early life stages;
should also be checked during
any suspected fish health
problems
Salinity 0.1 to 3.0g/L 0.1 to 3.0g/L 28 to 35ppt weekly weekly

Adapted from Plumb (1999) and Fisher (2000)

References:
Fisher J.P. (2000) Facilities and husbandry (large fish models). In: The Laboratory Fish. (ed. G.K. Ostrander), pp. 13-39. San Diego CA: Academic Press.
Plumb J.A. (1999) Principles of health maintenance. In: Health Maintenance and Principal Microbial Diseases of Cultured Fishes. pp. 1-23. Ames:
Iowa State University.

85
 ccac guidelines

86
the care and use of fish in research, teaching and testing, 2005

87