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. 
Raspa, F., Tarantola, M., Bergero, D. et al. 2020. Time-budget of horses reared for meat production: Influence of stocking density on behavioural activities and subsequent welfare. Animals 10(8), 1334.

Horses reared for meat production can be kept in intensive breeding farms where they are housed in group pens at high stocking densities. The present study aimed to evaluate whether the expressed behaviours correlated with...

Do, J. P., Defensor, E. B., Ichim, C. V. et al. 2020. Automated and continuous monitoring of animal welfare through digital alerting. Comparative Medicine 70(4), 313-327.

A primary goal in preclinical animal research is respectful and responsible care aimed toward minimizing stress and discomfort while enhancing collection of accurate and reproducible scientific data. Researchers use hands-on clinical observations and measurements as...

Lefebvre, E., Granon, S., Chauveau, F. 2020. Social context increases ultrasonic vocalizations during restraint in adult mice. Animal Cognition 23(2), 351–359.

Adult mice emit many ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) during social interaction tasks, but only a few studies have yet reported USVs in stressed adult mice. Our aim was to study which experimental conditions favor USV emission...

Cowley, P. M., Roberts, C. R., Baker, A. J. 2019. Monitoring the health status of mice with bleomycin-induced lung injury by using body condition scoring. Comparative Medicine 69(2), 95–102.

Well-defined, humane endpoints aid in monitoring animal health status during disease development. Body condition scoring (BCS) is a method for assessing health status in mouse studies where wasting and death are potential endpoints. Whether BCS...

Smith, B. J., Bruner, K., Kendall, L. V. 2019. Female- and intruder-induced ultrasonic vocalizations in C57BL/6J mice as proxy indicators for animal wellbeing. Comparative Medicine 69(5), 374–383.

Female urine-induced male mice ultrasonic vocalizations (FiUSV) are ultrasonic vocalizations produced by adult male mice after presentation of adult female urine, whereas intruder-induced ultrasonic vocalizations (IiUSV) are produced by resident adult female mice when interacting...

Stomp, M., Leroux, M., Cellier, M. et al. 2018. An unexpected acoustic indicator of positive emotions in horses. PLOS ONE 13(7), e0197898.

Indicators of positive emotions are still scarce and many proposed behavioural markers have proven ambiguous. Studies established a link between acoustic signals and emitter’s internal state, but few related to positive emotions and still fewer...

Bailoo, J. D., Murphy, E., Varholick, J. A. et al. 2018. Evaluation of the effects of space allowance on measures of animal welfare in laboratory mice. Scientific Reports 8, 713.

We studied how space allowance affects measures of animal welfare in mice by systematically varying group size and cage type across three levels each in both males and females of two strains of mice (C57BL/6ByJ...

Collymore, C., Kent, L., Ahn, S. K. et al. 2018. Humane endpoints for guinea pigs used for Mycobacterium tuberculosis vaccine research. Comparative Medicine 68(1), 41–47.

Guinea pigs are a commonly used model for tuberculosis vaccine research. Loss of body weight is the most frequently described humane endpoint for animals used in these studies. During a chronic study, we noted labored...

Wolfe, A. M., Rahman, M., McFadden, D. G. et al. 2018. Refinement and successful implementation of a scoring system for myxomatosis in a susceptible rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) model. Comparative Medicine 68(4), 280–285.

Myxoma virus is a member of Leporipoxviridae whose tropism is tightly restricted to lagomorphs. In susceptible Oryctolagus rabbits, the virus causes a highly lethal disease known as myxomatosis, which begins as a localized infection but...

Toth, L. A. 2018. Identifying and implementing endpoints for geriatric mice. Comparative Medicine 68(6), 439–451.

The types of changes in physical appearance and behavior that occur in elderly people similarly develop in elderly animals. Signs and symptoms that might cause concern in younger people or mice may be normal in...

Wilson, L. A., Miller, J. J., Work, R. K. et al. 2018. Novel diet regimen for rabbits in a compromised oral wound healing study. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 6(1) (March), 49-51.

Rabbits are known to be finicky about food and will reject it based upon several factors: odor, texture, form, or method of presentation. It can be an even greater challenge to get rabbits to eat...

Mattheis, L., Jung, J.-S., Hiebl, B. et al. 2016. Perioperative support reduces mortality of obese BALB/c mice after ovariectomy. Lab Animal 45(7), 262-267.

The incidence of obesity is on the rise in most western countries and represents major risks to health. Obesity causes complex metabolic dysfunctions and can be associated with a large number of secondary diseases. To...

Kanghae, H., Thongprajukaew, K., Jatupornpitukchat, S. et al. 2016. Optimal?rearing density for head?starting green turtles (Chelonia mydas Linnaeus, 1758). Zoo Biology 35(5), 454-461.

While ex situ conservation programs of juvenile green turtles (Chelonia mydas Linnaeus, 1758), before release to natural habitats, have been conducted in several countries, the optimal‐stocking density for husbandry has not yet been reported. The...

Jarvi, J., Tewodros, M., Wang, M. et al. 2016. Refining the PDX mouse model: Development of a less invasive and disposable tumor engraftment process. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 4(1) (March), 47-51.

Patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models are created using fragments of human tumors subcutaneously implanted into immunodeficient mice. Solid tumor engraftment of mice is commonly performed with a 10-13 gauge trocar needle under general anesthesia. In this...

Tokumaru, R. S., Ades, C., Monticelli, P. F. 2015. Social support does not require attachment: Any conspecific tranquilizes isolated guinea-pig pups. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 171, 197-203.

Guinea pig pups produce typical distress whistles when isolated. Whistles’ frequency is decreased or abolished when they contact with the mother and, to a lesser degree, a sibling or even an unfamiliar female, is regained...

Jirkof, P. 2015. Effects of experimental housing conditions on recovery of laboratory mice. Lab Animal 44(2), 65-70.

The beneficial effects of environment and social support during disease recovery in humans are widely accepted. Because laboratory mice are social animals and are highly motivated to interact with each other and with their environment...

Cesarovic, N., Arras, M., Jirkof, P. 2014. Impact of inhalation anaesthesia, surgery and analgesic treatment on home cage behaviour in laboratory mice. Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 157, 137-145.

Anaesthesia and analgesia are used frequently in laboratory routine to ensure animal welfare and good scientific outcomes in experiments that may elicit pain or require immobilisation of the animal. However, there is concern regarding the...

Jirkof, P., Cesarovic, N., Rettich, A. et al. 2013. Housing of female mice in a new environment and its influence on post-surgical behaviour and recovery. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 48, 209-217.

The transportation of mice into a new clean cage after surgery is a standard procedure but might have detrimental effects during the critical post-surgical recovery phase. To analyse the effect of post-surgical housing, female C57BL/6J...

Warwick, C., Arena, P., Lindley, S. et al. 2013. Assessing reptile welfare using behavioural criteria. In Practice 35(3), 123-131.

While clinical reptile medicine as a science is in its ascendancy among veterinary surgeons and other interested groups, familiarity with the often related issue of reptilian behavioural and psychological health appears less common. Behavioural change...

Whittaker, A. L., Howarth, G. S., Hickman, D. L. 2012. Effects of space allocation and housing density on measures of wellbeing in laboratory mice: A review. Laboratory Animals 46(1), 3-13.

In the majority of countries where there are legislative requirements pertaining to the use of animals in research, figures are quoted for minimum cage sizes or space allocation to be provided per animal. These figures...

Howard, B., Nevalainen, T., Perretta, G. (ed). 2010. The COST Manual of Laboratory Animal Care and Use: Refinement, Reduction, and Research (1st Ed). CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.

COST Action B-24 established four working groups to research and discuss issues relevant to laboratory animal science. These included the housing of animals, environmental needs, refinement of procedures, genetically modified animals, and cost-benefit analysis. Based...

Onbasilar, E. E., Onbasilar, Í. 2007. Effect of cage density and sex on growth, food utilization and some stress parameters of young rabbits. Scandinavian Journal of Laboratory Animal Science 34(3),189-195.

The aim of the experiment was to study the effects of cage density (1, 3 and 5 rabbits per cage) and sex (male and female) on stress parameters of young rabbits. A total of 90...

Van Loo, P. L. P., Kuin, N., Sommer, R. et al. 2007. Impact of 'living apart together' on postoperative recovery of mice compared with social and individual housing. Laboratory Animals 41(4), 441-455.

We investigated whether housing two female mice in a cage, separated by a grid partition ('living apart together') counters the adverse effects of individual housing on postoperative recovery. Results indicated that socially housed mice appear...

Van Loo, P., Skoumbourdis, E., Reinhardt, V. 2006. Postsurgical pairing: A discussion by the Refinement & Enrichment Forum. Animal Technology and Welfare 5(1), 17-19.

Our experience-based discussion suggests that social animals benefit from compatible companionship during post-operative recovery. The traditional practice of keeping animals alone in an unfamiliar environment after surgery increases the subjects surgery-associated stress. Providing a familiar...

Conour, L. A., Murray, K. A., Brown, M. J. 2006. Preparation of animals for research -- Issues to consider for rodents and rabbits. ILAR Journal 47(4), 283-293.

This article provides details to consider when preparing to use animals in biomedical research. The stress of transport and receipt of animals into a new environment mandate the need for a period of stabilization and...