Understanding Your Husbandry Charges

Husbandry charges are used to support the costs of maintaining research models within CMR vivaria and these charges are divided into 2 categories:

1. Per Diem - per diems are the per day charges used to support the costs of maintaining research models within CMR vivaria. This charge is assessed as a per day, per unit rate for each respective caging situation and species type.
2. Set-Up Charge - a one-time fee assessed to cover the initial set-up of the model and to cover the first/last day of use.

Per diems are the primary means for CMR to recover their expenses and are derived by utilizing routine cost analysis of the RUAC operation, as well as using peer institution rates. As of July 1, 2021, our per diem rates have been updated to reflect current costs of care, but PIs should budget a yearly 3% increase in their per diems to ensure adequate funding.

To provide a more transparent and easier to understand rate schedule, RUAC has separated the most commonly used models into tiers of service.  These tiers reflect the costs associated with the specific level of service provided and allow users to identify the most cost-effective way of undertaking their research activities.

Service Tiers

The following are the tier breakdowns, listed from lowest to highest cost:

Tier 1: IVC (Individually Ventilated Caging) and Non-Autoclaved Caging and Normal Health Status Models

Tier 2: Static Caging or Autoclaved Caging (IVC or Static) or Select Diabetic Models

Tier 3: BSL2 or Quarantine Health Status Models or Select Diabetic Models

The cost tier of your model is determined by the highest level of service provided - below are some examples of housing situations and their corresponding rate tier:

• IVC, Non-Autoclaved Caging, and Normal Health Status- Tier 1 pricing (all 3 categories fall within Tier 1)
• Static Caging, Non-Autoclaved Caging, and Normal Health Status- Tier 2 pricing (while Non-Autoclaved Caging and Normal Health Status fall in Tier 1, Static Caging is a Tier 2 item, and moves the cost to Tier 2)
• IVC, Autoclaved Caging and Normal Health Status- Tier 2 pricing (while IVC and Normal Health Status fall in Tier 1, Autoclaved Caging is a Tier 2 item, and moves the cost Tier 2)
• IVC, Autoclaved Caging and BLS2- Tier 3 pricing (IVC is Tier 1, Autoclaved Caging is Tier 2, but BSL2 is Tier 3, making this a Tier 3 rate)
• Static Caging, Autoclaved Caging and Quarantine- Tier 3 pricing (Static Caging and Autoclaved Caging are Tier 2, but Quarantine is Tier 3, making this a Tier 3 rate)

If there are any questions about what rate your model(s) would incur, please email our business office.