The Motley Crew

Even my own wife is calling me an animal killer. I think I am going to go find a nice quiet corner and cry.

First of all, I don't enjoy causing pain to any animal - even rats. Secondly, the rats were properly anesthetized with xylazine, ketamine (a.k.a. Special K), and an inhalent. They were feeling pretty good. All surgeries were performed in accordance with established protocols and with the oversight of the UI animal welfare committee. I am usually a little cautious speaking about the animal work we do because occasionally, PETA (a.k.a. People Eating Tasty Animals) comes to town and wants to poke around. A year and a half ago, the Animal Liberation Front came to town and caused a substantial amount of damage to one of the departments doing animal research. We are continually being reminded about security and are required to wear ID badges any time we are in the Animal Care Facilities.

There are very good reasons why we are doing this research. First, we learn more about the biochemical and morphological changes that occur with nerve damage. Eventually, our research, along with the research of numerous others will shed light on nerve growth and regeneration in general and deafness in particular. Once I actually get some data collected, I will post some of the micrographs so that you can see what we are doing. It really is quite interesting and the images are incredible.