Actual Lab rats

I started the course "Laboratory Animal Science" on Monday, and boy has it been a rollercoaster! We started off with a lot of lectures, about why we use lab animals, how we should use them, and of course the three Rs: Replace, Reduce and Refine. We also got two assignments, one about reviewing an article published in the 90ies (old school LD50 test are so cruel!) and one about writing a research proposal including animal models. But today came the real challenge: animal handling. Luckily, these animals were kept at the research facility for educational purposes alone, so they are used to humans, but we still had two biting incidents (not me!). The rat and hamster were pretty ok, they're big and got a lot of loose skin, so they are easy to grab. The guinea pigs just squealed a lot, the smart buggers learned most people put them down if they make a lot of noice. But the mice were a whole other story. Damn they're fast! It took my quite some time to get a good hold on them, so they wouldn't wiggle free. We also had very good supervision, so I can honestly say that no animals were harmed during this lesson (only humans!). But I am a bit nervous about the injections we have to practice next week... It’s one thing to pick the animal up, but I do feel a bit hesitant about sticking a needle in its belly. That’s one mental hurdle I hope I’ll be taking next week…