THOMAS JEFFERSON UNIVERSITY
ANIMAL RESOURCES
STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES
Section
Page
Title:
Revision No: 2
AIMS Tattooing System
Date Issued: 7/22/2014
1 of 1
Purpose: This SOP describes the policy pertaining to the use of the AIMS tattooing
equipment.
AIMS Tattooing Equipment Service – Tattooing will be provided to investigators for a
fee by the veterinary laboratory animal research staff.
Equipment Use
1. Open tattooing kit and place the top tray containing the controllers securely on the
workbench.
2. Remove tattoo gun from the box and pull the two rubber bands up toward the top
of the unit. Place gun on rubberized holding rack.
3. Carefully open needle package from the bottom, leaving needle guard on.
4. Remove needle tube from the tattoo gun and gently slide needle (with guard still
attached) into the needle tube. With front of tattoo gun facing you, gently slide
needle tube (with needle) into tattoo gun and attach the round end of needle onto
the pink rubber grommet with the open end of the needle loop to your left (should
look like a question mark). Slide needle tube down until 1 mm of the needle is
protruding from the end. Hand tighten wing nut until snug.
5. Place the two rubber bands low around the needle and gun body. This helps hold
the needle in place. Use only the rubber bands provided with the kit. Set tattoo
gun onto holding rack.
6. Fill provided cups with tissue oil.
7. Agitate tattoo ink vial and fill ink cups. Do not pour contents back into stock vial
as this may result in contamination.
8. Place the pedal on the floor and insert the prongs into the gun body.
9. Priming the needle: with the gun off, immerse tube tip into the paper cup. Repeat
this three times.
10. Adjust Speeds: High – Rats and other larger/tough skinned animals; medium –
adult mice; low – young mice; very low – newborn mice. Speed is used to
penetrate skin. Tough skin needs to have increased speed to penetrate the skin.
11. Apply tissue oil to area prior to being tattooed.
12. When tattooing, dip needle after every letter/digit for rats and every two
letters/digits for mice and neonates. Hold tattoo gun perpendicular to area being
tattooed. Tail area being tattooed may need to be rolled during procedure to make
legible markings.
13. Make tattoo marking and blot with gauze. If tattoo requires touch up mark
unmarked areas next to current mark. Do not repeatedly go over areas already
tattooed.
Cleaning the Equipment
1. Use a gauze or paper towel to wipe away any debris from the needle. Wipe
needle tube to remove excess ink.
2. Kit comes with three bottles labeled one, two and three. #1 = machine cleaner; #2
= machine rinse; #3 = machine drying agent. Run these solutions through the
opening of the needle barrel in the 1- 3 order while the machine is running.
Apply #1 (machine cleanser) until the ink is no longer emerging from the tip.
With the power off, wipe the needle and needle tube with paper towel and gauge.
Needles may be sterilized by autoclaving.
3. Undo prongs from power control unit and periodically check needle tip with
lighted needle scanning scope.
4. Replace hooked or damaged needles.
5. Undo the wing nut and slide the needle tube over the needle. Place red cover over
the tip of the needle tube to protect the needle.
Tattooing of Rodents and other Animals
1. Tattooing and anesthesia used for tattooing must be described in investigator’s
animal use protocol before this service can be provided by the veterinary
laboratory animal research staff. This policy can be referenced to in the protocol
(i.e., ‘animals will be tattooed according to the AIMS Tattooing SOP’). A
complete description of the anesthesia will need to be provided.
2. Tattooing of adult rodents is performed on the tail. The needle penetrates the
epidermis and dermis of the tail resulting in a permanent tattoo. The needle
penetrates both layers of the skin but not the capillary bed. Proper placing of the
tattoo pigment causes no skin damage, no inflammation, and no bleeding. After
tattooing the animals exhibit normal behavior when placed back into their cage.
3. Tattooing can be performed on the anesthetized or awake rodent. Anesthesia may
be used for tattoo placement. If anesthesia is not used the AIMS tattooing system
provides an AIMS humane mouse cup restraint for mice and red tapered plastic
tubes with a hole in the end for breathing for rats. Other restraint devices such as
plastic cylindrical plastic restrainers for mice and rats may also be used.
Tattooing time per animal is less than 5 minutes.
4. Unanesthetized neonates are held in one hand and tattooed on the digits, paw,
shanks, or tails.
5. Lager animals such as guinea pigs, non-human primates, and rabbits will be
anesthetized for tattooing.
SUPPLIES:
Tattoo machine and tattoo machine
platform.
Controller provides power and speed
adjustment for tattoo machine.
Micro tattoo station equipped with LED light and 4X
magnification and skin prep cup holders.
Reference: AIMS website at www.animalid.com