Several service areas within the Animal Care & Use Program, including the Animal Care & Use Office (ACUO) and the Unit for Laboratory Animal Medicine (ULAM), will be closed or operating at limited capacity during the upcoming holiday season.
Below is a list of operating schedules and plans for areas that may have a direct impact on researchers.
To ensure that your research needs are met quickly and efficiently, please review and share these schedules with your team, plan ahead, and act early.
SERVICE AREA
HOLIDAY HOURS
Animal Care & Use Office
The Animal Care & Use Office (ACUO) will be open with remote services only on Tuesday, December 23 and Wednesday, December 24, 2025.
The office will close at 5:00 PM on Wednesday, December 24 for U-M holiday season days and will remain closed through Thursday, January 1, 2026.
Submissions to the IACUC will still be accepted through eRAM during this time period, but the ACUO will be unable to process them until the office re-opens on Friday, January 2, 2026.
Animal Ordering and Deliveries
Final animal deliveries will be received on Thursday, December 18, 2025. There will be no animal deliveries beginning Friday, December 19, 2025 – Friday, January 2, 2026.
You must order animals by Tuesday, December 9, 2025, to arrive the week of December 15, 2024.
You must order animals by Tuesday, December 16, 2025, for animals to arrive during the week of Monday January 5, 2026 – Friday, January 9, 2026.
Animal Surgery Operating Rooms (ASOR)
The Animal Surgery Operating Rooms (ASOR) will be closed Wednesday, December 25, 2025 – Sunday, January 4, 2026.
Questions about ASOR scheduling or services should be directed to [email protected] or (734) 764-0224.
ULAM Pathology Core
Both ULAM Pathology Core locations at NCRC and MSAB will be closed beginning at 12:00 PM (noon) on Wednesday, December 24, 2025 – Thursday, January 1, 2026.
Sample submission deadlines BEFORE the holidays are as follows:
- Friday, December 19 at 4:00 PM – Histology samples
- Monday, December 22 at 12:00 PM (noon) – Hematology/chemistry/send-out samples
- Monday, December 22 at 4:00 PM – Non-emergency ULAM clinical submissions (ULAM staff only)
These deadlines were chosen to allow Pathology Core staff sufficient time before the holiday break to process samples to a stable stage. CBCs must be completed within 24 hours of receipt, and paraffin histology samples are stable once they reach the embedding stage.
Samples that do not need processing prior to the holidays (frozen serum, glass slides, paraffin blocks) can be submitted by appointment up until 12:00 PM on Wednesday, December 24. No work will be done during the time period that the core is closed.
As a reminder, sample submission is by appointment only. Study teams are strongly encouraged to book their appointments early, particularly if they anticipate a large submission, in order to help Pathology Core staff plan their workflows accordingly.
Both ULAM Pathology Core locations will re-open on Friday, January 2, at 9:00 AM.
ULAM Technical Services
ULAM Technical Services are currently unavailable during weekends and holidays, and have limited availability from Monday, December 22, 2025 – Friday, January 2, 2026.
All requests for services/support during these dates should be submitted via the Technical Services Request Form no later than Monday, December 1, 2025. All requests for December services submitted after this will be considered on a case-by-case basis, depending on staff availability.
ULAM Business Office
The ULAM Business Office will be closed beginning at 2:00 PM on Wednesday, December 24, 2025 – Thursday, January 1, 2026.
The office will re-open at 8:00 AM on Friday, January 2, 2026.
ULAM Training Core
The ULAM Training Core will be closed Monday, December 22, 2025 – Friday, January 2, 2026, unless prior arrangements have been made with Kiirsa Pokryfke, Manager Training Core and Technical Services.
Questions?
- Please contact the Animal Care & Use Office at [email protected] or (734) 763-8028 if you have any questions or concerns.
- If you have questions about a particular ULAM service area not listed above, contact the ULAM Business Office at [email protected] or (734) 764-0277.