SOW_Veterinary_Diagnostic_Services_NBFFCC.pdf

140FS226Q0158 Veterinary Diagnostic Services Page 1 of 2 National Black-Footed Ferret Conservation Center

1. General Summary:

The National Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center (the Center) in Carr, Colorado houses approximately 66% of the world’s ex-situ population of endangered black-footed ferrets (Mustela nigripes). The Center’s mission is to maintain a viable assurance population of black-footed ferrets in managed care and to produce healthy kits to support reintroduction efforts to the wild. Black-footed ferrets are reintroduced to select sites in several states each year in an effort to meet recovery goals. The Center houses at least 170-185 breeding ferrets year-round. This number doubles during summer and fall of each year as hundreds of kits are born and more are transferred to the Center from five zoo breeding facilities for veterinary processing and behavioral preconditioning.

The Center needs a local veterinary diagnostic laboratory to use for testing samples of sick or dead ferrets to look for causes of illness. Same day testing is extremely important to the ability to care for these animals as it may reveal the cause of an unknown illness in time for effective treatment or help uncover the cause of death of an animal, stop spread of disease, and lead to prevention of that issue in the future. High quality tests for a broad range of medical issues is vital for the health and safety of the breeding population of black-footed ferrets.

2. Objectives

The diagnostic lab will provide services including but not limited to: histology and histopathology of biopsies and necropsied animals, bacteriology, clinical pathology, virology, molecular diagnostics, and parasitology. The services must allow same day submission and rapid testing and therefore need to be within a reasonable distance from The Center for employees to drop off samples. The services will be charged as needed per service in accordance with the facility’s pricing.

3. Scope of Work:

• Provide same day sample submission and rapid testing for tissue, secretions, feces, necropsies, and any other situational testing needs.

• Perform all appropriate diagnostics in a prompt, safe, and effective manner

• Communicate results promptly with veterinary staff

• Perform the following diagnostic tests:

o Necropsies with board-certified wildlife pathologist o Histopathology with board-certified wildlife pathology o Cytology o Yersinia pestis (plague) PCR o Francisella tularensis PCR o Aerobic culture o Anaerobic culture o Antibiotic susceptibility o Cytology o Diarrhea panel o Fecal flotation

140FS226Q0158 Veterinary Diagnostic Services Page 2 of 2 National Black-Footed Ferret Conservation Center o Fecal screen o Cryptosporidium PCR o Giardia PCR o Cryptosporidium/Giardia IFA o Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin o Clostridial fecal culture o C. perfringens genotyping PCR o Other bacteriology/virology/parasitology/pathology/chemistry/other diagnostic testing as needed

4. Pricing Instructions to Offerors

• Offerors shall provide a complete price schedule for all diagnostic services required under this BPA. At a minimum, the price schedule shall include unit pricing for each test or service listed in the Statement of Work, including but not limited to necropsies, histopathology, cytology, PCR assays, culture services, fecal analyses, and all other diagnostic procedures identified in Section 3 of the SOW.

• Offerors shall also identify all additional fees applicable to the performance of these services, including sample accessioning fees, expedited or same-day processing surcharges, courier or transportation fees, necropsy disposal fees, weekend/after-hours fees, and any other predictable service charges.

• Offerors may additionally submit optional bundled pricing, diagnostic panels, case-based pricing, or retainer structures if such options provide cost efficiencies to the Government.

• Offerors shall clearly identify any conditions for price adjustments during the period of performance, to include escalation caps, published fee schedules, or market-based adjustment mechanisms.

• All prices shall be expressed in U.S. dollars and shall remain firm for the period stated in the offer unless otherwise specified in the vendor’s escalation policy.