For my experiment, I'll have to use gavage cannula with mice. I need curved-stainless cannula, but I don't know where can I find it. Which manufacturer do you recommend?
We like the stainless steel gavage feeding needles from Jorgensen. Depending on the size of the mice you are using, ie 20 gram mice might take a 20 or 22 gauge needle. I get mine through MWI Veterinary Supply, your Clinical Vet may have an account.
I totally agree with Walter Mandeville,
contact the vets of your university: they will provide you all info on this kind of routine material. Do no hesitate to discuss with vets or suppliers about the animal age and the kind of food to choose the right cannula.
Also consider that vets should also help/teach you how to make this procedure. This manipulation can be performed really efficiently (concerning stress for the animal/user and time) if correctly approched.
Hi Christophe, I was very confused also about oral gavage, what I found in the internet was many companies with veterinary supplies, and it worked very nice with a straight canula and barrel tip. It is very important that you get familirized with mouse handling, I mean grab them firmly but kindly (this is the most important and sometimes easy part), next is to put the canula into their mouth which is not that easy to do it because the mouse will try to use his movements in case is not well grabbed.
Agreed. Practice is critical, as injuries to the esophagus can occur if not done correctly. It would be well worth your time to get a few freshly euthanized mice to practice on initially to get the appropriate feel and pressure. Also, open the ventral neck skin on one that has the cannula in place to see how thin the esophagus is and its orientation to the trachea. If the cannula goes down the trachea, this can obviously be a problem, so at first, you can palpate the throat to confirm the cannula is in the esophagus. If it is in the trachea, you cannot readily feel it with your fingers.
Thank you for all your answers, I had already done this in the past but can't remember which manufacturer I used during my PhD. With your helps I'll be able to do gavage again, thanks !
I usually order from Braun (UK) or FST (Germany)
http://www.finescience.de/menu_js.asp?clickkatalog=0002000000&clickebene=1&createtree=no&katalogname=Animal+Accessories