Refinement Database

Database on Refinement of Housing, Husbandry, Care, and Use of Animals in Research

This database, created in 2000, is updated every four months with newly published scientific articles, books, and other publications related to improving or safeguarding the welfare of animals used in research.

Tips for using the database:

  • This landing page displays all of the publications in the database.
  • Use the drop-down menus to filter these publications by Animal Type, Setting, and/or Topic.
  • Clicking on a parent category (e.g., Rodent) will include publications relating to all the items in that category (e.g., Chinchilla, Gerbil, Guinea Pig, etc.).
  • You may also add a keyword to further narrow your search.
  • Please note that at this time, only publications dated 2010 or later (with some exceptions) can be filtered by Animal Type and Topic, and only publications dated 2020 or later (with some exceptions) can be filtered by Setting. Most publications older than 2010 can only be searched by keyword. 
Golledge, H., Richardson, C. (Eds.) 2024. The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory and Other Research Animals (9th ed.). Wiley-Blackwell. 1040 p.

The latest edition of the seminal reference on the care and management of laboratory and research animals. The newly revised ninth edition of The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory and Other...

Corsetti, S., Natoli, E., Palme, R. et al. 2023. Instraspecific interactions decrease stress affecting welfare in shelter dogs: A comparison of four different housing conditions. Animals 13(11), 1828.

Shelters are stressful environments for domestic dogs (Canis familiaris). Evaluating dogs’ welfare is crucial to improve their life condition and to promote a better management of shelters. We aimed at verifying which variables improved welfare...

Scatterty, K. R., Pitman, T., Eckersley, T. et al. 2023. Zebrafish aversion to infrasound in an open field test. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience 16, 1019368.

Aquatic species are capable of detecting infrasound (sub-20 Hz frequencies) which may be a source of anthropogenic pollution and have a detrimental impact on the environmental fitness of fish. Infrasound is generated by infrastructure, producing...

Williams, E., Hunton, V., Hosey, G. et al. 2023. The impact of visitors on non-primate species in zoos: A quantitative review. Animals 13(7), 1178.

Visitors are a prominent feature in the lives of zoo animals, and their presence can cause a range of impacts on zoo animals (typically classed as positive, negative or neutral impacts), commonly referred to as...

Silva, P. F., Garcia de Leaniz, C., Freire, F. A. M. et al. 2023. Different housing conditions for zebrafish: What are the effects? Behavioural Processes 209, 104886.

Zebrafish is a popular experimental model in several research areas but little is known about the effects of using different strains or housing conditions. Poor control of genetic background and housing conditions could affect experimental...

Brando, S., Norman, M. 2023. Handling and training of wild animals: Evidence and ethics-based approaches and best practices in the modern zoo. Animals 13(14), 2247.

There is an ethical responsibility to provide all animals living in human care with optimal and positive well-being. As animals living in zoos and aquariums frequently interact with their human caregivers as part of their...

Jahn, K., Ley, J., DePorter, T. et al. 2023. How well do dogs cope with air travel? An owner-reported survey study. Animals 13(19), 3093.

It is estimated that 2 million domestic animals travel on commercial flights every year in the US alone and that dogs make up 58% of pets travelling worldwide. There has been little research on the...

Parnes, S. C., Mallikarjun, A., Ramos, M. T. et al. 2023. A randomized cross-over study comparing cooling methods for exercise-induced hyperthermia in working dogs in training. Animals 13(23), 3673.

Working dogs are at a high risk of canine non-pyrogenic hyperthermia, a life-threatening condition that can occur due to physical exertion or environmental factors that inhibit dogs’ ability to cool themselves. Two frequently recommended cooling...

Smith, S. A. 2023. Fish welfare in public aquariums and zoological collections. Animals 13(16), 2548.

A wide variety of fish species have been displayed in public aquariums and zoological collections for over 150 years. Though the issue of pain perception in fish is still being debated, there is no disagreement...

Ramezani-Fard, E. 2023. Zebrafish nutrition: Everything known and to be known. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 11(1) (January/February), 30-32.

Despite the widespread use of zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a research animal in many studies including toxicologic and biomedical research, the nutritional requirements of this species have yet to be determined. Several aquafeed companies currently...

Molnar, D. L., Vernasco Price, E. J. 2023. Use of a toy soak to maximize staff efficiency in cage wash operations. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 11(2) (March/April), 40-41.

The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals emphasizes that the primary aim of environmental enrichment is to enhance animal well-being. At our facility, at the end of a two-week cycle in a...

Brereton, J. E., Brereton, S. 2023. The effect of basking light provision on sun beetle enclosure use. Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research 11(2), 283–288.

The effect of basking light provision on sun beetle enclosure use.

Camson, C. T., Palillo, J. A., Fehrenbach, L. A. et al. 2023. Evaluation of disinfection methods for artificial plants in zebrafish (Danio rerio) recirculating water systems. JAALAS 62(6), 512–517.

The use of artificial plants as environmental enrichment for zebrafish (Danio rerio) in biomedical research facilities has been shown to provide benefits in animal welfare and care. Despite the benefits of artificial plants to zebrafish...

Cuglovici, D. A. 2023. What can associations between emotional states and management-based measures teach us about shelter dogs’ welfare? Journal of Veterinary Behavior 69–70, 32–38.

It is crucial to understand the effect of living in a shelter on dog’s well-being. We hypothesized that mental states may indicate the presence of environmental stressors. The objective of this study was to determine...

Flewitt, A., Williams, L., Preziosi, R. et al. 2023. Tagging and location preferences to inform post-release monitoring of the Greater Bermuda land snail Poecilozonites bermudensis. Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research 11(3), 345–349.

The Greater Bermuda land snail Poecilozonites bermudensis was once thought to be extinct in the wild, however, recent captive population increases have allowed reintroductions to take place. Post-release monitoring of reintroduced individuals is a fundamental...

Maganhe, B. L., Andrade, L. S., Camilo, L. de O. et al. 2023. Food-related substrate preference in juveniles seastar Echinaster (Othilia) brasiliensis (Müller & Troschel,1842) in captivity. Zoo Biology 42(5), 675–682.

There are only a few studies that describe the larval development of Echinaster or aspects on culture systems for the genus. For starfishes, the choice of suitable substrates has received special attention since it could...

Martin, A. L., Walthers, C. M., Pattillo, M. J. et al. 2023. Impact of visual barrier removal on the behavior of shelter-housed dogs. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 26(4), 596–606.

With millions of dogs housed in shelters each year, it is important to consider how the shelter environment impacts welfare. Social isolation and a lack of control over the environment can negatively impact wellbeing. However...

Cargill, B. M., Benato, L., Rooney, N. J. 2022. A survey exploring the impact of housing and husbandry on pet snake welfare. Animal Welfare 31(2), 193-208.

Snake ownership is popular; however, housing and care may not always satisfy the animal's welfare needs. For example, snakes are often kept in environmental conditions that restrict their ability to stretch out fully or move...

Barki, A., Cnaani, A., Biran, J. 2022. How does temperature affect aggression during and after dominance hierarchy formation in Nile tilapia? Applied Animal Behaviour Science 247, 105563.

Social animals commonly establish dominance relationships by means of aggressive interaction, leading to hierarchical stability and priority of access to limited resources by high-ranked individuals. In poikilothermic animals, temperature is a major abiotic factor influencing...

Cobb, M. L., Carter, A., Lill, A. et al. 2022. Perceived importance of specific kennel management practices for the provision of canine welfare. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 249, 105591.

There is public interest for the welfare of dogs that spend at least part of their lives housed in kennel facilities, such as working, shelter and sporting dogs. The impacts of living in environments that...

Popper, A. N., Sisneros, J. A. 2022. The sound world of zebrafish: A critical review of hearing assessment. Zebrafish 19(2), 37-48.

Zebrafish, like all fish species, use sound to learn about their environment. Thus, human-generated (anthropogenic) sound added to the environment has the potential to disrupt the detection of biologically relevant sounds, alter behavior, impact fitness...

Mocho, J.-P., Collymore, C., Farmer, S. C. et al. 2022. FELASA-AALAS recommendations for monitoring and reporting of laboratory fish diseases and health status, with an emphasis on zebrafish (Danio rerio). Comparative Medicine 72(3), 127-148.

The exchange of fish for research may expose an aquatic laboratory to pathogen contamination as incoming fish can introduce bacteria, fungi, parasites, and viruses capable of affecting both experimental results and fish and personnel health...

Fehrenbach, L. A., Adekanye, A. A., Palillo, M. B. et al. 2022. Internal temperatures of packaging for overnight cross-country shipping of zebrafish (Danio rerio). Comparative Medicine 72(3), 195-203.

As the use of zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a research model continues to rise, so too will the shipping and sharing of zebrafish strains across collaborating institutions. If done incorrectly, shipping can result in significant...

Kleiber, A., Le-Calvez, J. M., Kerneis, T. et al. 2022. Positive effects of bubbles as a feeding predictor on behaviour of farmed rainbow trout. Scientific Reports 12(1), 11368.

Occupational enrichment emerges as a promising strategy for improving the welfare of farmed animals. This form of enrichment aims to stimulate cognitive abilities of animals by providing them with more opportunities to interact with and...

Goldsmith, R., Wilson, C. 2022. Does environmental colour matter to Zebrafish. Animal Technology and Welfare 21(3), 234–237.

The aim of this study was to determine if environmental colour affects the Zebrafrish (Danio rerio) performance metrics of survival, growth rates, fecundity, and fertility. This study created tanks of different colours (green, blue, and...