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. 
Vitulli, V., Zanin, L., Trentini, R. et al. 2020. Anthrozoology in action: Performing cognitive training paths in a garden shelter to make dogs more suitable as pets. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 23(1), 29-40.

The overpopulation of shelters and the increase of homeless dogs have become serious problems in many countries. One contributor to the number of both sheltered and homeless dogs is the abandonment and relinquishment of pet...

Gades, N. M., Thompson, K. L., Mi, L. et al. 2020. Impact of euthanasia on compassion fatigue in personnel working in animal research. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(1) (January/February), 22-23.

We conducted a cross-sectional study to investigate the association between euthanasia and compassion fatigue among employees working in animal research at a large academic medical center. In summary, animal research workers who euthanize animals reported...

Andreasen, S. N., Sandøe, P., Waiblinger, S. et al. 2020. Negative attitudes of Danish dairy farmers to their livestock correlates negatively with animal welfare. Animal Welfare 29(1), 89-98.

Positive stockperson attitudes to his or her animals is associated with a positive behavioural response in the animals and in other indicators assumed to reflect a high level of welfare as well as increased productivity...

Majecka, K., Pąsiek, M., Pietraszewski, D. 2020. Behavioural outcomes of housing for domestic dog puppies (Canis lupus familiaris). Applied Animal Behaviour Science 222, 104899.

Domestic dogs experience a sensitive period for learning during early life and conditions during this time can have important consequences in the adult. We investigated the effects of kennel environment during early life, comparing the...

Wang, C., Chen, Y., Bi, Y. et al. 2020. Effects of long-term gentle handling on behavioral responses, production performance, and meat quality of pigs. Animals 10(2), 330.

In order to investigate the effect of gentle handling on the behavior, performance, and meat quality of pigs from weaning to slaughter, 144 6-week-old weaned hybrid Min piglets (a native breed) were selected and divided...

Chou, J.-Y., D’Eath, R. B., Sandercock, D. A. et al. 2020. Enrichment use in finishing pigs and its relationship with damaging behaviours: Comparing three wood species and a rubber floor toy. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 224, 104944.

Environmental enrichment in pig housing is a legal requirement under current EU legislation, but some recommended loose materials may cause obstructions in fully-slatted systems. Wood is an organic material that could be compatible with slatted...

Bensoussan, S., Tigeot, R., Meunier-Salaün, M.-C. et al. 2020. Broadcasting human voice to piglets (Sus scrofa domestica) modifies their behavioural reaction to human presence in the home pen and in arena tests. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 225, 104965.

The human-pig relationship develops through visual, tactile, olfactory, and auditory interactions. Our objective was to determine the effect of human voices on the development of the human-pig relationship. We hypothesised that human voice facilitates the...

de la Garza, F., Cannon, C. Z. 2020. Piggy see, piggy do: A swine training program enhances animal welfare and research. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(2) (March/April), 54-57.

Becton Dickinson (BD) Animal Research Program developed an extensive training and environmental enrichment program to acclimate newly arrived swine to daily husbandry routines. The program seeks to build trust between swine and animal care and...

Wendler, P., Ertl, N., Flügger, M. et al. 2020. Influencing factors on the foot health of captive Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in European zoos. Zoo Biology 39(2), 109-120.

Pathological lesions of feet occur frequently in captive elephant populations. To improve foot health, it is important to identify risk factors associated with such pathologies. Several previous studies have analyzed potentially influencing factors but were...

Acaralp-Rehnberg, L. K., Coleman, G. J., Magrath, M. J. L. et al. 2020. The effect of behind-the-scenes encounters and interactive presentations on the welfare of captive servals (Leptailurus serval). Animals 10(4), 743.

The serval (Leptailurus serval) is a small African felid that is well represented in zoos and often serves as an animal ambassador in encounter programs with zoo visitors. The impact on serval welfare in relation...

Larson, C. M., Wilcox, G. L., Fairbanks, C. A. 2019. Defining and managing pain in stroke and traumatic brain injury research. Comparative Medicine 69(6), 510–519.

Neurologic conditions such as stroke and traumatic brain injury are challenging conditions to study in humans. Animal models are necessary to uncover disease processes and develop novel therapies. When attempting to model these or other...

Hagemeister, K., Ernst, L., Kadaba Srinivasan, P. et al. 2020. Severity assessment in pigs after partial liver resection: Evaluation of a score sheet. Laboratory Animals 54(3), 251–260.

Severity assessment in biomedical research is required by the European authorities. Therefore, a variety of score sheets are available. The first score sheets were designed and introduced by Morton and Griffith (M&G) in 1985, to...

Skidmore, T., Roe, E. 2020. A semi-structured questionnaire survey of laboratory animal rehoming practice across 41 UK animal research facilities. PLOS ONE 15(6): e0234922.

If a laboratory animal survives an experiment without lasting compromised welfare, its future must be negotiated. Rehoming may be a consideration. This paper reports on research findings that provide an indication of the uptake of...

Turcsán, B., Tátrai, K., Petró, E. et al. 2020. Comparison of behavior and genetic structure in populations of family and kenneled beagles. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 7, 183.

In dogs, the social and spatial restriction associated with living in a kennel environment could lead to chronic stress and the development of abnormal behaviors (“kennel-dog syndrome”). However, little is known about how kenneled dogs...

Parois, S. P., Duttlinger, A. W., Richert, B. T. et al. 2020. Effects of three distinct 2-week long diet strategies after transport on weaned pigs' short and long-term welfare markers, behaviors, and microbiota. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 7, 140.

Alternative feed supplements have shown promising effects in terms of performance, but their effects on welfare have had little evaluation. In the present study, we aimed at evaluating the effect of diet supplementation on welfare...

Reinhardt, V. (ed.) 2020. It’s Okay to Cry - Discussions by the Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum [LAREF], Volume V. Animal Welfare Institute, Washington, DC.

This is the 5th volume of selected discussions that took place on the electronic Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum between February 2016 and December 2019. The forum was created in October 2002; it allows...

Rydén, A., Manell, E., Biglarnia, A. et al. 2020. Nursing and training of pigs used in renal transplantation studies. Laboratory Animals 54(5), 469-478.

The pig is commonly used in renal transplantation studies since the porcine kidney resembles the human kidney. To meet the requirements of intense caretaking and examination without stress, a 2-week socialisation and training programme was...

Acharya, R., Rault, J.-L. 2020. Risk factors for feather-damaging behavior in companion parrots: A social media study. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 40, 43-49.

Studies on the etiology of behavioral problems often involve interference in the animal's routine or reliance on owners' self-reports like surveys. Gathering data from videos posted on social media, a technique coined ‘video mining’, offers...

Griffin, K. E., John, E., Pike, T. et al. 2020. Can this dog be rehomed to you? A qualitative analysis and assessment of the scientific quality of the potential adopter screening policies and procedures of rehoming organisations. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 7, 1121.

Unwanted dogs are an international problem, and rehoming organisations are tasked with finding many of them appropriate homes. Whilst the processes involved in assessing dogs' suitability for rehoming have received considerable academic attention, the policies...

Kobek-Kjeldager, C., Moustsen, V. A., Theil, P. K. et al. 2020. Effect of litter size, milk replacer and housing on behaviour and welfare related to sibling competition in litters from hyper-prolific sows. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 230, 105032.

Litter sizes where piglets are supernumerary to teats leads to the practice of fostering to nurse sows or to artificial rearing systems, which is associated with compromised welfare. An alternative strategy is to leave the...

Pérez Fraga, P., Gerencsér, L., Andics, A. 2020. Human proximity seeking in family pigs and dogs. Scientific Reports 10(1), 20883.

Family dogs (Canis familiaris) seek human contact from an early age, can discriminate and prefer their caregivers over other humans. To investigate if being kept as a family animal is sufficient to induce similar early...

Hennessy, M. B., Willen, R. M., Schiml, P. A. 2020. Psychological stress, its reduction, and long-term consequences: What studies with laboratory animals might teach us about life in the dog shelter. Animals 10(11), 2061.

There is a long history of laboratory studies of the physiological and behavioral effects of stress, its reduction, and the later psychological and behavioral consequences of unmitigated stress responses. Many of the stressors employed in...

Rault, J.-L., Waiblinger, S., Boivin, X. et al. 2020. The power of a positive human–animal relationship for animal welfare. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 7, 590867.

Domestic animals often seek and enjoy interacting with humans. Positive human–animal relationships can elicit positive emotions and other positive welfare outcomes. Nevertheless, our understanding of the underlying processes that govern the positive perception of humans...

Villain, A. S., Lanthony, M., Guérin, C. et al. 2020. Manipulable object and human contact: Preference and modulation of emotional states in weaned pigs. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 7, 577433.

Enriching the life of farm animals is a legal obligation in intensive farming conditions in the European Union, though not worldwide. In pigs, manipulable materials are mandatory when no bedding is available. Like manipulable objects...

Marcet-Rius, M., Pageat, P., Bienboire-Frosini, C. et al. 2020. The provision of toys to pigs can improve the human-animal relationship. Porcine Health Management 6, 29.

It is now widely recognised that a positive human-animal relationship is beneficial not only for farm animals’ welfare but also for productivity and the quality of products. A better understanding of animal emotions is an...