Bio-test cage and support therefor

An animal confining and housing device, comprising:

• carriage means having a first set of a plurality of vertically spaced and parallel guide members;
• a plurality of animal confining cages movably mounted on said set of parallel guide members, said plurality of cages each having first water supply means fixedly mounted thereon for supplying water to the interior of said cages, at least one of said cages having a plurality of compartments therein, each separate from the other, said plurality of compartments being located in a pair of parallel rows and has a food trough positioned between said rows and secured to said compartments, means defining a passage between said food trough and each of said compartments to facilitate the removal of food from said food trough by said animal in said compartment;
• continuously pressurized second water supply means mounted on said carriage means for continuously supplying water to said animal confining cages;
• flexible hose means extending between said first and second water supply means for facilitating (1) a relative movement between said cages and said carriages means and (2) a supply of water from said second water supply means to said first water supply means, said flexible hose means including a separate flexible conduit connected between said first water supply means on each of said plurality of cages and said second water supply means, said first water supply means including valve means in at least one of said compartments operable by an animal present in said one compartment to release water for consumption by the animal;
• and
• releasable coupling means for permitting a disconnection between said flexible hose means and one of said first and second water supply means, a disconnection of said releasable coupling means facilitating a removal of said cages from said carriage means for transport to a location remote from said carriage means, said releasable coupling means including a quick disconnect coupling located between said flexible conduit on each of said plurality of cages and said second water supply means, said quick disconnect coupling including shut off valve means to prevent the leakage of water from said first and second water supply means when a disconnection at said quick disconnect coupling occurs so that the water supply to the remaining cages remains uninterrupted during the time that the first water supply means on one or more cages are disconnected from said second water supply means.