The University of Louisville (U of L) has commenced its fifth year of a ten-year campaign to become a premier, nationally recognized, metropolitan research university that, among other benchmarks, achieves Carnegie Research-Intensive status. Having already reached this goal, the University continues to build it research program by providing substantial resources to infrastructure and personnel. As an important indicator of research success, total federal awards have risen from $22.4M in 1994 to $30.0M in 2000. Since approximately 42% of extramural funding for research involves the use of laboratory animals, one notable consequence of this intensification is the extraordinary growth experienced in the mouse population. The average daily census of this species has expanded from 208 in 1995 to 5179 in 2000; more recent analysis show no abatement of this trend. Although institution and state-supported construction and renovation projects have provided space for these colonies, resources for caging equipment are sorely needed. Current cage inventory can scarcely sustain the current population, but cannot bear continued growth. Within recent months, considerable efforts in estimating unoccupied caging has been required, with some animal order requests delayed or denied because of a lack of available housing. Therefore, the U of L seeks matching funds to assist in increasing its mouse holding capacity in both barrier and conventional areas by 720 and 1764 cages, respectively. In meeting immediate and near-future animal needs, the University believes that granting this request represents a reliable investment in a program dedicated to both regional and national research agendas.
