SHELTERED ANIMAL HOUSING FOR REGIONAL PRIMATE CENTER

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The proposed construction provides new innovative sheltered housing for non-human primates (NHPs) and will replace the 30 year old outdoor open corrals that presently house our primate production colony. There are a number of reasons that have led us to construct alternative housing to replace the open corrals. First, programmatic growth necessitates the expansion of the production colony. The research program at the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center (ORPRC) has nearly doubled (in terms of research dollars and number of NHPs assigned to research projects) since 1994. This rate of growth is expected to continue for several reasons. 1) Special funding to enhance the program to produce clonally- derived NHPs, 2) The expansion in infectious disease research, and 3) The relocation of the R.S. Dow Neurological Sciences Institute to the ORPRC campus. By converting the open free ranging corrals into 20 shelter housing units (each holding from 25-30 NPHs), the number of production animals can be increased from 100-150 to 500-600 in the same amount of space. Second, USDA regulations and standards discourage raising animals in an open outdoor corral setting. The sheltered facilities will assure that animals are housed and bred in an environment that meets high animal care standards. The enclosed sheltered housing units will: 1) permit efficient and thoroughly daily sanitation of the animals' environment, 20 allow safe access to the animals, 3) permit options of social interactions, and 4) will comply with all NIH guidelines, AAALAC recommendations, and other applicable federal and local regulations. Third, the City of Hillsboro's (the local government in which ORPRC resides) MasterPlan mandates that existing corrals be decommissioned and no additional "open" animal housing be developed. Our five year plan coverts one of our 2-acre corrals into the area that contains the 20 sheltered housing facilities. The proposal requests funds to begin the first phase of construction; funds are requested to construct 8 sheltered housing units that will hold 25-30 NHPs each.