Best practices for blood collection and anaesthesia in mice: Selection, application and reporting

Abstract

Blood collection in mice is a common procedure in biomedical research. The choice of blood collection method and the need for analgesia and/or anaesthesia depend on multiple factors, including the experimental setup, animal welfare considerations and the intended downstream analyses. This minireview describes key non-surgical and surgical blood collection techniques, the appropriate use of analgesia and anaesthesia, and the best practice for documentation and adherence to reporting standards in animal studies. We here provide a table summarising collection procedures; a table listing animal welfare guidelines from multiple countries; a table describing the most common analgesics and anaesthetics, with doses and route of administration; and a table outlining key points for reporting blood collection, anaesthesia and analgesia protocols. A decision chart is also included to assist in selecting the most suitable method. Ultimately, with this minireview, we aim to promote standardised practices, improve data reproducibility, and support ethical animal research.

Keywords: 3R principles; anaesthetic protocols for mice; animal experiment ethics; animal experiment reporting; animal research regulations; animal welfare guidelines; bleeding methods comparison; blood collection site in mice; mice anaesthesia and analgesia; mice blood collection; microsampling; mouse blood collection and welfare; refinement of blood sampling in mice; reporting standards for mouse blood collection; retro‐orbital blood collection.