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. 
Brudzynski, S. M. 2019. Emission of 22 kHz vocalizations in rats as an evolutionary equivalent of human crying: Relationship to depression. Behavioural Brain Research 363, 1-12.

There is no clear relationship between crying and depression based on human neuropsychiatric observations. This situation originates from lack of suitable animal models of human crying. In the present article, an attempt will be made...

Parsons, C. E., LeBeau, R. T., Kringelbach, M. L. et al. 2019. Pawsitively sad: Pet-owners are more sensitive to negative emotion in animal distress vocalizations. Royal Society Open Science 6(8), 181555.

Pets have numerous, effective methods to communicate with their human hosts. Perhaps most conspicuous of these are distress vocalizations: in cats, the ‘miaow’ and in dogs, the ‘whine’ or ‘whimper’. We compared a sample of...

Nash, C. G. R., Kelton, D. F., Vasseur, E. et al. 2019. A survey of practices implemented to improve cow comfort following an initial assessment on Canadian dairy farms. Canadian Journal of Animal Science 99(1), 107-115.

The objectives of this study were to determine the difficulty of implementing changes to improve cow comfort on Canadian dairy farms, to determine if any changes were implemented to improve dairy cow comfort following an...

Marti, S., Meléndez, D. M., Pajor, E. A. et al. 2019. Effect of a single dose of subcutaneous meloxicam before knife castration alone or combined with hot-iron branding on scrotal healing, inflammatory response, and behaviour in 2-mo-old beef calves over 42 d post procedure. Canadian Journal of Animal Science 99(1), 179-190.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a single subcutaneous injection of meloxicam on scrotal healing, inflammatory response, and behaviour in castrated or castrated and branded beef calves for 42 d...

Costa, J. H. C., Cantor, M. C., Adderley, N. A. et al. 2019. Key animal welfare issues in commercially raised dairy calves: social environment, nutrition, and painful procedures. Canadian Journal of Animal Science 99(4), 649-660.

Dairy calf welfare concerns are growing and new evidence suggests that the early life environment influences appropriate physical, behavioral, and cognitive development lasting into adulthood. This review highlights key evidence for the impacts of housing...

Kelln, L., Newkirk, R. W., Smillie, J. et al. 2019. Does pellet size affect the ability of beef heifers to consume a pelleted supplement in a simulated grazing model? Canadian Journal of Animal Science 99(4), 943-950.

The objective was to evaluate pellet consumption and refusals as affected by pellet size. Six ruminally cannulated heifers were used in a replicated 3 × 3 Latin square. Heifers were individually housed and fed a...

Jiron, J. M., Mendieta Calle, J. L., Castillo, E. J. et al. 2019. Comparison of isoflurane, ketamine-dexmedetomidine, and ketamine-xylazine for general anesthesia during oral procedures in rice rats (Oryzomys palustris). JAALAS 58(1), 40-49.

Rice rats (Oryzomys palustris) are an unconventional laboratory species that has been used to study photoperiodicity, periodontitis, and osteonecrosis of the jaw. Interventional procedures that require anesthesia, including oral procedures, are sometimes necessary in preclinical...

Winn, C. B., Issa, E. B., Curcillo, C. P. et al. 2019. Daily water intake by common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) and recommendations regarding fluid regulation. JAALAS 58(1), 16-20.

The typical daily water intake of common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) in a research setting has not been well characterized. Because these New World primates are in demand as animal models for neurobehavioral experiments, which can...

Engel, R. M., Thomas III, M. L., Banks, R. E. 2019. Regional anesthesia for dentistry and orofacial surgery in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). JAALAS 58(2), 223-230.

Regional anesthesia is a commonly used adjunct to orofacial dental and surgical procedures in companion animals and humans. However, appropriate techniques for anesthetizing branches of the mandibular and maxillary nerves have not been described for...

Association of Primate Veterinarians. 2019. Association of Primate Veterinarians’ guidelines for nonhuman primate restraint. JAALAS 58(3), 282-284.

The Association of Primate Veterinarians (APV) recognizes that several forms of restraint, including physical and chemical, are necessary for the safe handling of nonhuman primates (NHPs). The following guidelines aim to provide information to researchers...

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Care, Use, and Welfare of Marmosets as Animal Models for Gene Editing-Based Biomedical Research: Proceedings of a Workshop. The National Academies Press: Washington, DC, 122 pp.

The marmoset, a type of small monkey native to South America, is a research model of increasing importance for biomedical research in the United States and globally. Marmosets offer a range of advantages as animal...

Jones, C. T., Fransson, B. A. 2019. Evaluation of the effectiveness of preoperative administration of maropitant citrate and metoclopramide hydrochloride in preventing postoperative clinical gastroesophageal reflux in dogs. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 255(4), 437-445.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the prophylactic effectiveness of preoperative administration of maropitant citrate and metoclopramide hydrochloride in preventing postoperative clinical gastroesophageal reflux (GER) in dogs and to identify risk factors for clinical postoperative GER in dogs...

Gill, S. S., Buote, N. J., Peterson, N. W. et al. 2019. Factors associated with dehiscence and mortality rates following gastrointestinal surgery in dogs. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 255(5), 569-573.

OBJECTIVE To identify factors associated with dehiscence and mortality rates following gastrointestinal surgery in dogs. ANIMALS 170 client-owned dogs that underwent gastrointestinal surgery from 2010 to 2016. PROCEDURES Medical records of all included dogs were...

Padalino, B., Loy, J., Hawson, L. et al. 2019. Effects of a light-colored cotton rug use on horse thermoregulation and behavior indicators of stress. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 29, 134-139.

When environmental temperatures exceed 25°C, horses are potentially subjected to thermal stress. It has therefore been recommended that horses should be provided with shade during hot days. However, this is not possible for horses grazing...

Alves de Paula, R., Cruz Aleixo, A. S., Peternelli da Silva, L. et al. 2019. A test of the effects of the equine maternal pheromone on the clinical and ethological parameters of equines undergoing hoof trimming. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 31, 28-35.

“Pheromonal therapy” has been promoted as a promising alternative therapy to improve the human-animal relationship and to reduce behavioral reactions to stressful stimuli. This placebo-controlled double blind study evaluated the use of a synthetic equine...

ur Rahman, M. A., Xia, C., Ji, L. et al. 2019. Nutrient intake, feeding patterns, and abnormal behavior of growing bulls fed different concentrate levels and a single fiber source (corn stover silage). Journal of Veterinary Behavior 33, 46-53.

Twenty-eight bulls weighing 227 ± 6.8 (SD) kg were randomly assigned to four concentrate levels (1-1.5 kg [low level of concentrate {LC}], 1.5-2 kg [medium level of concentrate], 2-2.5 kg [high level of concentrate {HC}]...

Buckley, L. A., Whalley, C. 2019. The use of synthetic grass as a novel substrate within veterinary practice canine inpatient elimination enclosures. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 34, 42-51.

Dogs form toileting preferences that may influence canine elimination behaviors. This study aimed to assess the effect of providing a novel substrate (synthetic grass) on indices of canine willingness to eliminate, plus associated behavioral parameters...

Heyworth, C. 2019. Inventive enrichment to facilitate weight gain in the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) during invasive studies. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 7(4) (December), 38-41.

To provide the highest standard of care to marmosets during invasive surgical studies, studies that often lead to weight loss, it is paramount to call upon inherent species-specific enrichment tactics to mitigate weight loss. Weight...

Edwards, K. L., Miller, M. A., Carlstead, K. et al. 2019. Relationships between housing and management factors and clinical health events in elephants in North American zoos. PLOS ONE 14(6), e0217774.

Elephants experience a number of health issues that can contribute to their well-being and survival. In managed populations, housing conditions and management practices can influence individual health, so potential risk factors associated with morbidity or...

Brown, J. L., Carlstead, K., Bray, J. D. et al. 2019. Individual and environmental risk factors associated with fecal glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations in zoo-housed Asian and African elephants. PLOS ONE 14(9), e0217326.

A recent large-scale welfare study in North America involving 106 Asian (Elephas maximus) and 131 African (Loxodonta africana) elephants at 64 accredited facilities identified links (i.e., risk factors) between zoo environmental factors and a number...

Harikrishnan, V. S., Krishnan, L. K., Abelson, K. S. P. 2019. A novel technique to develop thoracic spinal laminectomy and a methodology to assess the functionality and welfare of the contusion spinal cord injury (SCI) rat model. PLOS ONE 14(7), e0219001.

This study reports the advantage of a novel technique employing a motorised dental burr to assist laminectomy over the conventional manual technique at T10-T11 vertebra level in a rat model of spinal cord injury. Twenty-four...

Kojima, T., Oishi, K., Matsubara, Y. et al. 2019. Cows painted with zebra-like striping can avoid biting fly attack. PLOS ONE 14(10), e0223447.

Experimental and comparative studies suggest that the striped coats of zebras can prevent biting fly attacks. Biting flies are serious pests of livestock that cause economic losses in animal production. We hypothesized that cows painted...

Franchi, G. A., Herskin, M. S., Jensen, M. B. 2019. Dairy cows fed a low energy diet before dry-off show signs of hunger despite ad libitum access. Scientific Reports 9, 16159.

Drying-off is one important management step in commercial dairy farms and consists of ceasing milk production artificially at a specific point in time, generally 2 months before the next calving. Drying-off typically comprises dietary changes...

Green, A., Clark, C., Favaro, L. et al. 2019. Vocal individuality of Holstein-Friesian cattle is maintained across putatively positive and negative farming contexts. Scientific Reports 9, 18468.

Cattle mother-offspring contact calls encode individual-identity information; however, it is unknown whether cattle are able to maintain individuality when vocalising to familiar conspecifics over other positively and negatively valenced farming contexts. Accordingly, we recorded 333...

Hansen, S., Klintoe, K., Austevoll, M. et al. 2019. Equine airway inflammation in loose-housing management compared with pasture and conventional stabling. Veterinary Record 184(19), 590.

Icelandic horses are often stabled in loose-housing systems, and to date this type of stabling has not been evaluated with regard to its potential impact on respiratory health. The objective was to assess if differences...