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. 

Providing social housing that mimics the species' natural group composition should be an aim for all captive environments. Aotus are nocturnal, monogamist primates whose offspring (both male and female) disperse at sexual maturity, living solitarily...

Abnormal behavior in macaque monkeys has been associated with risk factors such as nursery rearing and single housing. However, less is known about the extent of, and risk factors for, abnormal behavior in baboons. The...

This study compares the benefits between the two housing types by video recording 14 pairs of adult female Macaca fascicularis in four sequential housing phases following an ABBA design: baseline grooming-contact, full contact shortly after...

Our NHP import quarantine facility has close to a 90% success rate with pairing adult male (> 5 kg) cynomolgus macaques. Given the challenges of pairing adult male NHP, our goal was to determine if...

A new application of a device enabling the long-term enteral administration of drugs or nutritional supplementation was developed for implementing in research entailing the use of macaques (Macaca fascicularis). After implanting a subcutaneous port, a...

The eighth edition of The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals establishes social housing as the "default" for social species including non-human primates. The advantages of social housing for primates have been...

The ideal animal model would contribute no confounding variables in experimental science. Variables affect experimental design resulting in increased animal use or repeated studies. We demonstrated a simple refinement which may reduce the number of...

Lean management-based visual tools have been used to improve the quality of animal care associated with a complex research study involving immune-compromised cynomolgus monkeys (M. fascicularis) in various postsurgical recovery states. In order to effectively...

Guinea pigs are difficult to oral gavage dose. Previous adverse effects from this dosing method, using rigid catheters, had caused an earlier endpoint to studies and loss of data. We therefore developed a prototype gag...

Pair housing for caged macaques in the laboratory generally allows unrestricted tactile contact but, less commonly, may involve limited contact via grooming-contact bars or perforated panels. The purpose of using this protected contact housing, which...

There is a general consensus among those studying the welfare of captive primates that social housing is the most effective means for promoting psychological well-being. It is well established that socially-housed rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta)...

Introducing singly housed rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) into isosexual pairs is widely considered to improve welfare. The population of laboratory rhesus macaques is heterogeneous on a variety of factors and there is little literature available...

The purpose of this study was to test whether long-term pair housing of male rhesus macaques ameliorated negative responses to stressful events that can occur in the course of routine husbandry or research procedures. Twelve...

In captive research environments for nonhuman primates (NHP), social housing strategies are often in conflict with protocols designed to minimize disease transmission. This is particularly true in breeding colonies, and is especially relevant when attempting...

Pair-bonded relationships form during periods of close spatial proximity and high sociosexual contact. Like other monogamous species, marmosets form new social pairs after emigration or ejection from their natal group resulting in periods of social...

Despite the enactment in the early 1990s of regulations requiring social housing of nonhuman primates (NHP), single housing is still prevalent in American research facilities. The publication of the 2011 edition of The Guide for...

The three main divisions of 'marmosetcare.com' aim respectively to promote: an understanding of the range of behaviour in this species, placing this behaviour in the context of its natural habitat and promoting good welfare in...

However, tactile contact can also be provided by means of barred or perforated panels that permit physical interaction but prevent entry into pair-mates' cages. Behavioral outcomesmay differ between these housing configurations and between species. To...

The question was asked: “Research protocols sometimes require that compatible macaque pairs be physically separated for a limited time period (e.g., controlled food-intake studies; sample collection from chair-restrained subjects). Obviously – and as documented in...

At Charles River Laboratories (Reno, NV), we have a high rate of success when socializing juvenile and sub-adult cynomolgus macaques (Macaca fascicularis). Until recently, we would rarely attempt to introduce adult males through progressive contact...

Forming successful groups of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) can be challenging. Males in particular do not always get along, and some need to be permanently removed due to fighting and trauma. Early rearing condition may...

Previous research has suggested that chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) display higher levels of aggression in captivity than in the wild. One of the challenges of captive management, therefore, is to balance the chimpanzees' need for social...

A clear, perforated, plexiglass divider was installed between neighboring cynos to test whether it altered their proximity to one another, or prompted any behavioral changes. ... Adult male cynomolgus monkeys tend not to spend a...

The benefits to nonhuman primates living in social groupings are well established. However, when certain research that requires housing subjects singly is performed, there are no guidelines as to how paired nonhuman primates should best...