Minibox: Custom solo or semi-group housing chambers for long term housing of rats with miniscopes

Abstract

In this detailed procedure, we include open-source methodologies using ‘solidworks’ designs for creating solo or semi-group housing units for rats wearing miniscopes for long periods of time. Builds are optimized to preserve rat health and prevent hardware destruction. We include all prices and suggestions for purchasing strategies to reduce overall build-costs. • Chambers are optimized for long-term housing to protect rats wearing delicate headstages (e.g., miniscopes). • Designed to be low-cost, efficient supplement to operant chambers and provides numerous benefits to long-term miniscope imaging. The housing chambers can be augmented by installing cameras, commutators, or different types of floor grids depending on experimental conditions. • The chambers can also be secured to one another to create “rat-duplexes”, allowing experimenters to control the degree of social isolation.

Keywords

• Minibox –Solo and Semi-Group Housing Chamber