GEN3 for Mice & Rats

BioDAQ Food and Water intake monitoring systems measure the episodic ad-libitum feeding/drinking activity of singly housed mice or rats in their home cage.

Food/Liquid Choice

BioDAQ Food and Water intake monitoring system measures the episodic ad-libitum feeding/ drinking activity of singly housed mice or rats in their home cage.

Food Type

Pelleted lab animal diets- The BioDAQ hoppers will accommodate most pelleted lab animal diets. Research Diets standard size 1/2 in. pelleted purified diets and grain based products from other manufacturers are compatible. When working with crumbly or high fat diets the extended hopper is designed to capture excessive spillage.

Food Type

Water, sucrose solution, saline solution, alcohol. Liquid diet is not suggested for use in BioDAQ liquid bottles.

Automated Gates

Program access by time or amount consumed

An Automated Gate Controller allows the investigator to program the gate to open or close at a specified time, and/or when a specified amount of food or liquid is consumed.

The Automated Gate Controller is mounted to the sensor and interacts with the manual gate mechanism of the BioDAQ feeding or drinking module. Automated control limits the researchers’ need to visit the animal room, insuring accuracy, reducing stress, and increasing efficiency.

BioDAQ Unplugged

BioDAQ Unplugged cages consist of BioDAQ cages and hardware with an adapter instead of an electronic sensor. They are used for manual periodic intake measures, reducing spillage and researcher/animal interaction, limiting stress, improving manual measures, and saving time.

The BioDAQ Optogenetics Cage is the newest addition to the BioDAQ Mouse Food and Liquid Intake Monitoring System. The cage is designed to record the episodic intake of food and liquid, food choice, or liquid choice, in a freely roaming, tethered, or cranially implanted animal.

Hardware

Flexible Design

The same electronic components can be used for food or liquid monitoring, and for both rat and mouse hardware. Each species’ cage mount can be used for food or liquid hoppers, maximizing flexibility.

Reduce Spillage

BioDAQ food modules limit the amount of diet spillage. Spillage is captured on the integrated tray at the hopper base. We know that certain diets like those high in fat content crumble more than others. To address this issue the BioDAQ Extended Hopper captures 5x more than our original design. The BioDAQ liquid intake bottle is designed not to leak. The drinking bout data is the animal's fluid intake, not a combination of intake and dripping.

Racks

Low Vibration Rack

The BioDAQ electronics are sensitive to vibration and require a stable surface rack for optimal performance. The system has internal settings to compensate for a degree of instability, but in doing so reduce the resolution of the data output. We strongly recommend the use of the MetroMax solid shelf rack system to eliminate the variability from using an unknown rack source.

Saves Space

BioDAQ requires less space than other systems. Complete 16 cage systems fit on low vibration Metro racks measuring 24 in. x 48 in.. All racks are equipped with locking polymer wheels for easy transport.

Cart Washing

Manufacturers instructions: The cart wash chamber must be non-pressurized. Water temperatures in the range of 140°F to 180°F are allowed with an exposure period not to exceed 30 minutes.

Product Literature 

Speak with Our BioDAQ Team

Doug Compton

BioDAQ Director and Scientist