Radio or Audiovisual Use in Animal Rooms

Policy

Unanesthetized, non-aquatic animals should not be exposed to radios, or other sound making devices, unless their use is justified in an Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) protocol or as part of an environmental enrichment program. Specifically, the environmental enrichment program for dogs, pigs, rabbits, ferrets, sheep, and non-human primates (NHP) include the use of music in their housing rooms. Televisions may be used in NHP housing rooms. The level of music or television will be kept below 80dB and staff will be trained that the volume should be set such that people can easily conduct a conversation in the room.

Aquatic animal species such as fish and certain totally aquatic amphibian species (Xenopus sp. and Ambystoma sp.), cannot hear the sound produced by traditional sound producing devices, like radios at 85db, in their aquatic environment. Therefore, the use of sound producing devices is allowed in aquatic animal housing areas provided that reasonable precautions are made to prevent the danger associated with exposure of water to radios plugged into electrical outlets (i.e., use of GFI outlets or placing the radio in an area that minimizes direct water exposure). When at all possible, the use of individual listening devices is recommended. ​