Veterinary Technology: Rat Anatomy, Physiology, and Clinical Care

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the biology, anatomy, physiological parameters, handling, injection sites, and clinical care of pet and laboratory rats.

Rodentia

The mammalian order containing more than $2{,}000$ species across approximately $30$ different families, derived from a root meaning to gnaw.

Hypsodont

The condition of having continuously growing incisors that require enrichment or chew blocks to grind down and prevent overgrowth.

Rattus morbaceus

The scientific name cited for the common laboratory brown or Norway rat, which is diploid with $42$ chromosomes and capable of thriving in nearly all climates.

Rattus rattus

The black rat, house rat, or roof rat associated with the fourteenth-century Black Death transmitted via flea infestations.

Polyestrous

A reproductive pattern where a female rapidly returns to an estrous cycle of $4\text{ to }5\text{ days}$ shortly after giving birth to a litter.

Porphyria

A reddish secretion originating from the lacrimal gland near the medial canthus of the eye that can accumulate around the eyes and nose during stress or illness and is not blood.

Brown Fat

Specialized adipose tissue that assists with non-shivering heat production, though rodents still lose heat rapidly during anesthesia.

Limiting Ridge

An internal gastric anatomical barrier separating the glandular and non-glandular portions of the rat's stomach that renders the animal unable to vomit.

Cecum (Rat)

A well-developed digestive organ located on the right side of the rat's abdomen that displaces the right kidney cranial to the left kidney.

Coprophagia

The normal behavioral act of consuming one's own feces to recover vital nutrients.

Inbred Strains

Animal lineages produced through at least $20$ generations of closed brother-sister or parent-offspring matings without introducing outside genetics to maximize research consistency.

Outbred Strains

Animal lineages maintained by introducing outside genetic sources rather than using continuous closed generational breeding.

Pups

The term for baby rats, which are altricial and born hairless, blind, and deaf.

Gestation Period (Rat)

The pregnancy length in rats, lasting approximately $22\text{ days}$.

Vaginal Plug

A temporary waxy deposit remaining in the female rat's reproductive tract for $12\text{ to }24\text{ hours}$ after mating, used in research to confirm copulation.

Barbering

A behavioral issue in group-housed rodents characterized by the plucking or chewing of hair from cage mates or themselves.

Mischief

The specific term used to designate a group of rats.

Malocclusion

A dental misalignment preventing incisors from meeting properly, causing extreme tooth overgrowth and inability to chew.

Ringtail

A condition in rodents commonly associated with low environmental humidity levels.

Cedar Bedding

A type of cage bedding discouraged for rodents because its aromatic compounds alter liver enzymes and cause respiratory health problems.

Intraperitoneal (IP) Injection Site

The lower left quadrant of the abdomen, accessed while tilting the head downward to slide GI contents cranially and avoid puncturing the cecum.

Oral Gavage

A method of administering liquids directly into the stomach using a ball-tipped feeding needle guided along the side of the mouth to avoid entering the trachea.

Critical Anesthetic Respiratory Threshold

A respiratory rate dropping below $60\text{ breaths per minute}$ during anesthesia, which indicates dangerous central nervous system depression.

Circulating Blood Volume Collection Limit

The maximum volume of blood that can safely be removed from a small rodent, set at no more than $10\%$ of its circulating blood volume.

Cardiocentesis

An invasive and generally terminal blood sampling procedure in which blood is aspirated directly from the heart under general anesthesia.