Per Diem Animal Housing Rates

To recover a portion of the money spent on animal care, the BU Animal Science Center (ASC) charges per diem rates. Per diem rates are established by the University and published on an annual basis. Per diems will be charged for each day or fraction of a day that a cage or animal is within an ASC managed space. Per diems will not be pro-rated.

Depending upon a researcher’s affiliation and sources of funding, different per diem rates may apply.

Animal Rates

Boston University is committed to efficiently managing its animal care facilities and to reviewing costs annually to ensure that the re-charge rates for PIs are competitive. The University subsidizes the costs of animal housing and veterinary support as part of its investment in the research enterprise. However, as noted in the table below, subsidized rates are only applicable to research performed by BU investigators that is federally funded or supported by foundation/nonprofit grants that carry the full overhead rate (also known as the facilities and administrative (F&A) rate). Please note that BU’s F&A rate does not include the subsidized portion of the animal rate. This is a true cost to the University and is not reimbursed by any sponsor.

Lab animal per diem rates

The tables below reflect the costs for fiscal year 2025, beginning July 1, 2024, as well as proposed costs for the next four years. Please use these projected costs when preparing proposal budgets. Despite above average inflation rates, the BU Animal Science Center has worked diligently to build efficiency through staffing optimization and equipment upgrades. As a result, and as noted in the tables below, there will be no additional increases to the PI costs for FY25 beyond those projected in the previous year’s memo. Rather, the subsidized price for four of the species listed below have been reduced from what was shown in the previous year’s memo. The “Subsidized Rates” table below shows the University-subsidized cost charged to BU PIs for research funded by federal, foundation, or private grants that carry the full F&A rate as noted above.

The “Non-Subsidized” table reflects the full cost of the per diems for the individual species for unsubsidized research. The full direct cost rates must be used for all non-federal grants that do not carry the full BU negotiated F&A rate, per diem services provided under federal and other sponsored research from other non-profit institutions, and for all industry-sponsored agreements. Please note that all start-up accounts, or other non-sponsored funding sources, must pay the full, unsubsidized cost, so please plan accordingly when submitting proposals and funding requests.

Please note these rates are exclusive of research within the NEIDL.

Special services rates

*Minimum increment is 15 minutes.

What’s Included

Included in per diem costs

• Routine and standard husbandry (Including sterile mouse and rat caging)
• Routine cage changes (per ASC standard practices)
• Routine health care (Diagnostics & Treatment)
• Emergency Care-(Not caused by research protocols)
• Self Injury Care (Suturing, wound care)
• Daily Vet and Vet Tech Rounds
• Routine dental care
• Routine sentinel program (Testing/Bleeding)
• Occupational health monitor or exposures including animal bites and scratches
• Disease outbreak management (Manpower, PPE, diagnostics and lab tests, etc.)
• Euthanasia-related carcass or tissue disposal
• Diagnostic necropsies
• Environmental enrichment
• Colony health management (vendor quality and vendor approvals)
• Training & protocol development
• Animal procurement services
• Routine facility inspections, maintenance and repairs
• Routine billing

Not included in per diem costs, charged as special services

• Quarantine Assays
• Quarantine management from unapproved vendors
• Special husbandry requests inside or outside of ASCThe Animal Science Center manages and oversees animal-relate...
• Rederivation procedures
• Research Activities (Injections, Tissue samples, Anesthesia, Surgical Support Post-Op care, and breeding services)
• Special technical services including drugs, supplies or materials requested by PIs
• Special PPE request
• Unapproved transfers, imports/exports or shipping costs
• Emergency care or treatments caused by research activities
• Research related necropsies
• Shipping and crate fees
• Import & Export fees
• Extra cage changes beyond ASC standard practices due to research model or protocol requirements (i.e. PU/PD models or reduced bedding requests)
• Special equipment/room installation, storage, or removal costs
• Special housing or room segregation requests
• Dedicated housing or procedure room requests
• Special invoicing requests
• Transport between BU campuses

Guidelines for Housing Capacity

Find the maximum number of rats and mice that can be house in each cage in the Rodent Cage Capacity Policy.

Authorization for Animal Housing and Special Services Costs

BMC Investigators who do not have a BU I/O number must continue to use a paper authorization for housing and special services form. Please contact the ASC Financial Administrator at (617) 638-5280 for assistance.

When completing this form, please remember that the principal investigator (PI) and the protocol number MUST match.