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The pre-, peri-, and postoperative care of animal surgical models used for testing tissue engineering/regenerative medicine product candidates includes the thoughtful consideration of several important factors. It must ensure the health and comfort of the animals and the success and reproducibility of the model. In order to reduce the number of animals needed in creating the model and to reduce costs, a preliminary evaluation of surgical procedures and instruments should be performed on cadavers. Once a minimal level of proficiency has been acquired, non-survival surgeries should be executed successfully before attempting survival surgeries. Planning ahead is crucial and will involve all aspects of the animal's care such as allowing the animal to become accustomed to soft foods (as in the case of gastrointestinal surgeries), planning appropriate pain management, and the use of positive reinforcement. We present specific examples of pre-, peri- and post-operative care of rodents using our experiences in developing tissue engineering products for kidney, esophagus, small intestine and lung.

This chapter provides a general overview of anesthesia and analgesia of animals for acute neurologic surgical models. Injectable and inhalant anesthetic agents are discussed, as well as analgesia to control post-operative pain. The impact of anesthetic and analgesic agents on three common acute neurologic surgical models is reviewed. Common agents and doses listed by species are provided.

Mouse models that mimic human diseases are important tools for investigating underlying mechanisms in many disease states. Although the demand for these models is high, there are few schools or courses available for surgeons to obtain the necessary skills. Researchers are usually exposed to brief descriptions of the procedures in scientific journals, which they then attempt to reproduce by trial and error. This often leads to a number of mistakes and unnecessary loss of animals. This chapter provides comprehensive details of three major surgical procedures currently employed in cardiovascular research: aortic constriction (of both ascending and transverse portions), pulmonary artery banding, and myocardial infarction (including ischemia-reperfusion). It guides the reader through the entire procedure, from the preparation of the animal for surgery until its full recovery, and includes a list of all necessary tools and devices. Due consideration has been given to the pitfalls and possible complications in the course of surgery. Adhering to our recommendations should improve reproducibility of the models and bring the number of the animal subjects to the minimum.