Novel device for quantitatively collecting small volumes of urine from laboratory rats

A reusable urinary collection device suitable for quantitative collection of uncontaminated urinary samples from rats without using a metabolism cage has been designed. The device can be attached to the pelvic skin within 5 min with minimum handling and discomfort to the unanesthetized rat using an adhesive. The suitability of this device was investigated by collecting and analyzing urine over a 48-h period following the intraperitoneal injection of [14C]inulin. A two-way crossover study was done with samples from one of the two experiments being collected while the animal was housed in a commercially available metabolism cage equipped to separate urine and feces. The percent of the dose excreted, food and water consumption, and the urinary output were not statistically different for rats housed in the metabolism cages or with the collection device attached. Histopathological examination of the rats revealed no pathology after a 24-h period except minor skin inflammation which occurred both in controls and animals to which the device was attached. These studies demonstrate the comparability of the new urine collection device to a commercially available metabolism cage in the quantitative collection of small (0-7 mL) urine samples with less contamination of the samples from the environment.