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. 
Melfi, V. 2013. Is training zoo animals enriching? Applied Animal Behaviour Science 147, 299-305.

Husbandry training of zoo animals (training) has been associated with many benefits, and indisputably is a valuable tool; training facilitates movement of animals within their environment, and participation in husbandry and medical procedures. Training has...

Pater, C. S. 2013. Rabbit hypnosis as a form of mild restraint: A forgotten method. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 615 (Abstract #PS42).

Rabbit hypnosis or “trancing” was a common restraint technique used for minor procedures such as: nail clipping, tooth trimming, eye exams, and subcutaneous injections. In years past the technique was originally used on pet rabbits...

Hrapkiewicz, K., Colby, L. A., Denison, P. 2013. Clinical Laboratory Animal Medicine: An Introduction (4th Ed). Wiley-Blackwell, Ames, IA.

Clinical Laboratory Animal Medicine: An Introduction, Fourth Edition offers a user-friendly guide to the unique anatomy and physiology, care, common diseases, and treatment of small mammals and nonhuman primates. Carefully designed for ease of use...

Gaskill, B. N., Winnicker, C., Garner, J. P. et al. 2013. The naked truth: Breeding performance in nude mice with and without nesting material. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 143(2-4), 110-116.

In laboratories, mice are housed at ambient temperatures between 20 and 24 C, which is below their lower critical temperature of 30 C, but comfortable for human workers. Thus, mice are under chronic thermal stress...

David, J. M., Knowles, S., Lamkin, D. M. et al. 2013. Individually ventilated cages impose cold stress on laboratory mice: A source of systemic experimental variability. JAALAS 52(6), 738-744.

Individual ventilated cages (IVC) are increasing in popularity. Although mice avoid IVC in preference testing, they show no aversion when provided additional nesting material or the cage is not ventilated. Given the high ventilation rate...

David, J. M., Stout, D. 2013. Individually ventilated cages impose cold-stress on laboratory mice: A source of systemic experimental variability. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 610 (Abstract #PS10).

Individual ventilated cages (IVC) have recently been increasing in popularity. Based on the high rates of ventilation with IVCs, we developed 3 hypotheses: first, mice housed in IVCs experience significantly more cold-stress than mice housed...

Cruden, J. 2013. Can regular access to floor pens affect caged rabbit behavior? American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 615-616 (Abstract #PS43).

The main objective of the program of research, of which this study is part, is to evaluate the housing and environmental enrichment for laboratory rabbits. The aim is to determine whether modifications to basic housing...

Burghardt, G. M. 2013. Environmental enrichment and cognitive complexity in reptiles and amphibians: Concepts, review, and implications for captive populations. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 147(3-4), 286-298.

Reptiles and amphibians have been neglected in research on cognition, emotions, sociality, need for enriched and stimulating environments, and other topics that have been greatly emphasized in work on mammals and birds. This is also...

Gaskill, B. N., Gordon, C. J., Davis, J. K. et al. 2013. Impact of nesting material on mouse body temperature and physiology. Physiology & Behavior 110, 87-95.

In laboratories, mice are housed at 20-24 °C, which is below their lower critical temperature (≈30 °C). Thus, mice are potentially cold stressed, which can alter metabolism, immune function, and reproduction. These physiological changes reflect...

Clark, F. E. 2013. Marine mammal cognition and captive care: A proposal for cognitive enrichment in zoos and aquariums. Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research 1(1), 1-6.

Marine mammals, particularly cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises) and pinnipeds (seals, sea lions and walruses) are popular in zoos and aquariums worldwide. Bottlenose dolphins and California sea lions have also been popular study species in...

Froberg-Fejko, K. M., Lecker, J. L. 2012. Going back to nature: The benefits of wood enrichment. Lab Animal 41(11), 345-347.

Environmental enrichment can be defined as altering the living environment of captive animals in order to provide them with opportunities to express more of their natural behavioral repertoire. The challenge of providing effective enrichment in...

Varmana, D. R., Marimuthub, G., Rajana, K. E. 2012. Environmental enrichment exerts anxiolytic effects in the Indian field mouse (Mus booduga). Applied Animal Behaviour Science 136(2-4), 166-173.

The adult male field mouse Mus booduga (n = 42) captured at agricultural field, were housed in non-enriched standard condition (SC) for 7 days and considered as directly from wild (DW). Another two groups of...

Shair, H. N., Nunez, Y., Osman, M. M. 2012. Enrichment materials do not negatively affect reproductive success and offspring survival and weight in mice. Lab Animal 41(1), 14-19.

Environmental enrichment is designed to improve the overall welfare of laboratory animals, including mice. Few studies have directly assessed the effects of different types of enrichment on mouse offspring survival and growth. The authors examined...

Maertens, L., Buijs, S., Davoust, C. 2012. Gnawing blocks as cage enrichment and dietary supplement for does and fatteners: Intake, performance and behaviour. World Rabbit Science 21(S1), 185-192.

The aim of this study was to evaluate different experimental gnawing blocks as cage enrichment in rabbits. One hundred and five pregnant rabbit does housed in conventional wire cages were distributed according to their parity...

Fawcett, A. 2012. Tailoring enrichment to GA mice. Enrichment Record 7, 20-24.

Philosopher and ethicist Professor Bernard Rollin recently wrote that animal researchers should “do the utmost to minimise animal suffering arising in the course of animal research, and maximise the animal’s ability to live a life...

Coke-Murphy, C. S., Saborido, T. P., Buendia, M. et al. 2012. Shelter-style environmental enrichment affects neurobehavioral status of laboratory mice. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 639-640 (Abstract #PS47).

Environmental enrichment aims to improve the wellbeing of laboratory animals and provides an opportunity to improve experimental reliability and validity. Animals raised in more stimulating environments have improved learning and memory as well as more...

Gaskill, B. N., Lucas, J. R., Pajor, E. A. et al. 2012. Heat or insulation: Behavioral titration of mouse preference for warmth or access to a nest. PLOS ONE 7(3), e32799.

In laboratories, mice are housed at 20-24C, which is below their lower critical temperature (30C). This increased thermal stress has the potential to alter scientific outcomes. Nesting material should allow for improved behavioral thermoregulation and...

Buijs, S., Maertens, L., Tuyttens, F. A. M. et al. 2011. Glucocorticoid metabolites in rabbit faeces - Influence of environmental enrichment and cage size. Physiology & Behavior 104(3), 469-473.

The concentration of glucocorticoid metabolites (GCM) in rabbit faeces has been suggested as a non-invasive indicator of stress. In the present study, GCM concentrations were measured in faeces of fattening rabbits kept in groups of...

Poggiagliolmi, S., Crowell-Davis, S. L., Alworth, L. C. et al. 2011. Environmental enrichment of New Zealand white rabbits living in laboratory cages. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 6(6), 343-350.

The primary goal of environmental enrichment should be the avoidance of abnormal behaviors in laboratory animals such as rodents, lagomorphs, dogs, cats, and nonhuman primates. A total of 13 male single-housed New Zealand White rabbits...

Bechard, A., Meagher, R., Mason, G. 2011. Environmental enrichment reduces the likelihood of alopecia in adult C57BL/6J mice. JAALAS 50(2), 71-74.

Barbering (incessant grooming) is an abnormal behavior causing alopecia and commonly affects various strains of laboratory mice, including C57BL/6J. Barbering-induced alopecia is a potential symptom of brain impairment and can indicate a stressful environment. We...

Tosa, N., Yoshimatsu, K., Arikawa, J. 2011. Effect of environmental enrichment after the occurrence of wet bedding created by mice and abnormal fur in mice. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 779-780 (Abstract #P161).

In management of laboratory animals, wet bedding created by mice and abnormal fur in mice cause problems on housing, leading to negative effects both on the wellbeing of mice and on the validity of experimental...

Reed, M., Goldsteen, D. L., Moore, E. et al. 2011. Environmental enrichment program in transgenic mouse breeding colonies. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 779 (Abstract #P160).

Results of studies on the benefits of environmental enrichment in group-housed mice and breeding colonies are often inconsistent and conflicting. After observing a significant drop in some of the genetically engineered mice (GEM) breeding colonies...

Paula, A. A., Goyeneche, L., Crispo, M. 2011. Refining housing and husbandry techniques in transgenic mice through environmental enrichment. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 777 (Abstract #P148).

Dynamic changes in housing and husbandry techniques based on the concept of 3Rs should be included as routine practice in breeding and experimental animal facilities tending to improve animal welfare. Immunosupressed mice are susceptible to...

Pasalic, I., Bosnjak, B., Ivetic Tkalcevic, V. et al. 2011. Cage enrichment with paper tissue, but not plastic tunnels, increases variability in mouse model of asthma. Laboratory Animals 45(2), 121-123.

Environmental enrichment, besides having a great impact on animal welfare, can also be a potential variable in experimental research. Thus, we investigated whether enrichment of cages with paper tissues or plastic tunnels affects scientific outcome...

Niu, Y., Zhang, M., Liu, J. 2011. The effect of cage enrichment on fluctuating asymmetry and fecal corticosterone of group-housed laboratory mice. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 740 (Abstract #PS91).

Fluctuating asymmetry (FA) represents small, random deviations from symmetry in bilaterally symmetrical anatomic characteristics, is highly correlated with the amount of stress during development, and thus, is considered as a potential welfare indicator. In the...