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. 
Strickland, B. 2023. Comparison of three environmentally friendly enrichments in single-housed Sprague Dawley rats. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 11(5) (September/October), 56-57.

Numerous studies have shown the negative side effects the lack of enrichment has on the overall health of animals in research. This lack in data may lead to unnecessary risks for welfare issues, like the...

Caires, C. R. S., Bossolani-Martins, A. L. 2023. Which form of environmental enrichment is most effective in rodent models of autism? Behavioural Processes 211, 104915.

Environmental enrichment (EE) is known to produce experience-dependent changes in the brains and behaviors of rodents, and it has therefore been widely used to study neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism. Current studies show significant protocol variation...

Calisir, M., Yilmaz, O., Kolatan, H. E. et al. 2023. Effects of litter size and caging on physical and mental development in rats. Physiology & Behavior 267, 114200.

As a multidisciplinary field, laboratory animal science promotes or accelerates the emergence of innovative ideas and products. As research has increased, so has the demand for laboratory animals with reliable, standardized characteristics. Thus, the breeding...

Neville, V., Hunter, K., Benato, L. et al. 2023. Developing guidelines for pet rat housing through expert consultation. Veterinary Record 192(3), e1839.

Background Pet care guidelines play an important role in ensuring that owners are well informed about good husbandry practices, allowing them to provide the best care for their animals. However, the development of such guidelines...

Neville, V., Lind, J., Mendl, E. et al. 2023. A mapping review of refinements to laboratory rat housing and husbandry. Lab Animal 52(3), 63–74.

Refining the housing and husbandry of laboratory rats is an important goal, both for ethical reasons and to allow better quality research. We conducted a mapping review of 1,017 studies investigating potential refinements of housing...

Xu, L., Jiao, M., Cui, Z.-L. et al. 2023. Enriched environment during adolescence modulates lipid metabolism and emotion-related behaviors in mice. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 26(2), 218–228.

Enriched environment (EE) is an important animal experimental paradigm to decipher gene-environment interaction. It is thought to be efficient in aiding recovery from certain metabolism disorders or cognitive impairments. Recently, the effects of EE during...

Cho, E., Walsh, C. A., D’Angelo-Gavrish, N. M. et al. 2023. Effects of housing density on reproductive performance, intracage ammonia, and welfare of mice continuously housed as breeders in standard mouse and rat caging. JAALAS 62(2), 116–122.

Maintaining compliance with cage density recommendations in The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals precludes continuous trio breeding in standard-sized mouse cages. This study evaluated and compared several parameters of reproductive performance...

LaFollette, M. R., Cloutier, S., Brady, C. M. et al. 2023. Benchmarking enrichment efforts in the US & Canada across species and enrichment categories. JAALAS 62(4), 303–316.

Enrichment is important for animal welfare and data quality. Provision of enrichment opportunities varies between species and enrichment category. However, data benchmarking these differences does not exist. Our objective was to characterize enrichment provision and...

Ratuski, A. S., Weary, D. M. 2022. Environmental enrichment for rats and mice housed in laboratories: A metareview. Animals 12(4), 414.

Environmental enrichment has been widely studied in rodents, but there is no consensus on what enrichment should look like or what it should achieve. Inconsistent use of the term “enrichment” creates challenges in drawing conclusions...

Kapusta, J., Kruczek, M., Pochroń, E. et al. 2022. Welfare of encaged rodents: Species specific behavioral reaction of voles to new enrichment items. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 246, 105522.

The enrichment of the environment of captive animals is one of the methods applied to reduce stress of the animals and to assure their proper welfare. However, placing objects in a limited space of a...

Habenicht, L. M., Staley, A. W., Clancy, B. M. et al. 2022. Characterization of a jumping stereotypy in gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus) and assessment of opaque tubing enrichment on stereotypies and breeding. JAALAS 61(2), 149-158.

Mongolian gerbils can develop stereotypic behaviors, including corner digging. At our institution, gerbils also engage in repetitive corner jumping, which we sought to characterize as a potentially novel stereotypy in gerbils. We then attempted to...

Medina, A. 2022. Creative enrichment for nonhuman primates. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 10(1) (January/February), 42-43.

Providing novel and creative enrichments for nonhuman primates improves their mental wellbeing and is thus an important aspect of all husbandry programs. These enrichments are often presented through variations in diet, toys, and environmental features...

Buchanan, K. 2022. DIY: Ants on a log. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 10(1) (January/February), 44.

This traditional snack has a variety of options for NHP enrichment. From fruit to cereals, get creative with the “ants” and remember to consider different fillings for the celery log.

Hobbiesiefken, U., Mieske, P., Lewejohann, L. et al. 2021. Evaluation of different types of enrichment - their usage and effect on home cage behavior in female mice. PLOS ONE 16(12), e0261876.

Numerous studies ascertained positive effects of enriched environments on the well-being of laboratory animals including behavioral, physiological and neurochemical parameters. Conversely, such conclusions imply impaired animal welfare and health in barren husbandry conditions. Moreover, inappropriate...

Stevens, C., Dobbinson, K., Brook, E. et al. 2022. Report of the 2021 RSPCA/UFAW Rodent Welfare Group meeting. Animal Technology and Welfare 21(2), 83-91.

The RSPCA/UFAW Rodent Welfare Group has held a one-day meeting every autumn for the last 28 years, so that its members can discuss current welfare research, exchange views on welfare issues and share experiences of...

Birolo, M., Trocino, A., Zuffellato, A. et al. 2022. Use of gnawing hay blocks: Effects on productive performance, behavior and reactivity of growing rabbits kept in parks with different sex-group compositions. Animals 12(9), 1212.

To improve animal welfare in collective park housing systems, this study assessed the effects of the provision of gnawing hay blocks and the group composition (F: females, M: males, FM: mixed sex) on performance, behavior...

Aldhshan, M. S., Mizuno, T. M. 2022. Effect of environmental enrichment on aggression and the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor transcript variants in group-housed male mice. Behavioural Brain Research 433, 113986.

Social and environmental factors influence behavior via modulation of brain physiological functions. Environmental enrichment (EE) is an animal housing technique that provides complex sensory, motor, and social stimulation, leading to modifications in the innate aggressiveness...

Mieske, P., Hobbiesiefken, U., Fischer-Tenhagen, C. et al. 2022. Bored at home?—A systematic review on the effect of environmental enrichment on the welfare of laboratory rats and mice. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 9, 899219.

Boredom is an emotional state that occurs when an individual has nothing to do, is not interested in the surrounding, and feels dreary and in a monotony. While this condition is usually defined for humans...

Corredor, K., Marín, D. P., García, C. C. et al. 2022. Providing environmental enrichment without altering behavior in male and female Wistar rats (Rattus norvegicus). JAALAS 61(3), 234-240.

In research using animal models, subjects are commonly maintained under standard housing conditions, mainly because of the idea that enhancing welfare conditions could alter experimental data. Another common practice in many laboratories relates to the...

Scariot, P. P., Gobatto, C. A., Polisel, E. E. et al. 2022. Early-life mice housed in standard stocking density reduce the spontaneous physical activity and increase visceral fat deposition before reaching adulthood. Laboratory Animals 56(4), 344-355.

Laboratory rodents spend the entire day housed in standard cages that provide a restricted area for movements and might, therefore, limit physical activity. However, it has not been tested in immature rodents of ages ranging...

Hinchcliffe, J. K., Jackson, M. G., Robinson, E. S. 2022. The use of ball pits and playpens in laboratory Lister Hooded male rats induces ultrasonic vocalisations indicating a more positive affective state and can reduce the welfare impacts of aversive procedures. Laboratory Animals 56(4), 370-379.

The advancement and quality of science rely on research that is robust and unbiased in its experimental design, execution, analysis, and reproducibility. In preclinical research, a better understanding of animal emotions and refinement of their...

Abazaris, J., Hashway, S. 2022. Vole husbandry at Colorado University Boulder. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 10(4) (July/August), 12-15.

Since they arrived at CU Boulder, we have learned a lot about the voles from the laboratory, other institutions, and our trial-and-error. We hope this information can be helpful to any considering adding voles to...

Pantophlet, J., McClusky, D. 2022. Compressed paper column housing enrichment for Naked Mole-rats. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 10(5) (September/October), 42-44.

Naked Mole-rats are relative newcomers in the research world. Due to the complexity of their natural subterranean tunneling system, it has been difficult to replicate in the laboratory environment. Housing standards often differ from the...

Ramírez-Rodríguez, G. B., Gutiérrez-Vera, B., Ortiz-López, L. et al. 2022. Environmental enrichment: Dissociated effects between physical activity and changing environmental complexity on anxiety and neurogenesis in adult male Balb/C mice. Physiology & Behavior 254, 113878.

Several factors, including environmental modifications, stimulate neuroplasticity. One type of neuroplasticity consists in the generation of new neurons in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. Neurogenesis is modulated by environmental enrichment (ENR, tunnels plus running...

Spitzer, H. B., Meagher, R. K., Proudfoot, K. L. 2022. The impact of providing hiding spaces to farmed animals: A scoping review. PLOS ONE 17(11), e0277665.

Many wild animals perform hiding behaviours for a variety of reasons, such as evading predators or other conspecifics. Unlike their wild counterparts, farmed animals often live in relatively barren environments without the opportunity to hide...