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. 
Yamanashi, Y., Teramoto, M., Morimura, N. et al. 2016. Effects of relocation and individual and environmental factors on the long-term stress levels in captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): Monitoring hair cortisol and behaviors. PLOS ONE 11(7), e0160029.

Understanding the factors associated with the long-term stress levels of captive animals is important from the view of animal welfare. In this study, we investigated the effects of relocation in addition to individual and environmental...

Holdgate, M. R., Meehan, C. L., Hogan, J. N. et al. 2016. Recumbence behavior in zoo elephants: Determination of patterns and frequency of recumbent rest and associated environmental and social factors. PLOS ONE 11(7), e0153301.

Resting behaviors are an essential component of animal welfare but have received little attention in zoological research. African savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana) and Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) rest includes recumbent postures, but no large-scale investigation...

Miller, M. A., Hogan, J. N., Meehan, C. L. 2016. Housing and demographic risk factors impacting foot and musculoskeletal health in African elephants [Loxodonta africana] and Asian elephants [Elephas maximus] in North American zoos. PLOS ONE 11(7), e0155223.

For more than three decades, foot and musculoskeletal conditions have been documented among both Asian [Elephas maximus] and African [Loxodonta africana] elephants in zoos. Although environmental factors have been hypothesized to play a contributing role...

Prado-Oviedo, N. A., Bonaparte-Saller, M. K., Malloy, E. J. et al. 2016. Evaluation of demographics and social life events of Asian (Elephas maximus) and African elephants (Loxodonta africana) in North American zoos. PLOS ONE 11(7), e0154750.

This study quantified social life events hypothesized to affect the welfare of zoo African and Asian elephants, focusing on animals that were part of a large multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional elephant welfare study in North America. Age...

Morfeld, K. A., Meehan, C. L., Hogan, J. N. et al. 2016. Assessment of body condition in African (Loxodonta africana) and Asian (Elephas maximus) elephants in North American zoos and management practices associated with high body condition scores. PLOS ONE 11(7), e0155146.

Obesity has a negative effect on health and welfare of many species, and has been speculated to be a problem for zoo elephants. To address this concern, we assessed the body condition of 240 elephants...

Wallace, P. Y., Asa, C. S., Agnew, M. et al. 2016. A review of population control methods in captive-housed primates. Animal Welfare 25(1), 7-20.

The success of breeding primates in captivity has led to a surplus number of animals in collections. This review examines published journals and key books to investigate the various methods of primate population control. Hormonal...

Sullivan, K., Kerr, K., Wanty, R. et al. 2016. Dietary management, husbandry, and body weights of African elephants (Loxodonta africana) during successful pregnancies at Disney's Animal Kingdom. Zoo Biology 35(6), 574-578.

Successful pregnancy in African elephants is influenced by biological and environmental factors. For managed elephants many of these factors are set directly or indirectly by their human care takers, including nutrition and husbandry. While African...

Fuller, G., Raghanti, M. A., Dennis, P. M. et al. 2016. A comparison of nocturnal primate behavior in exhibits illuminated with red and blue light. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 184, 126-134.

Over evolutionary time, light from the sun, moon, and stars has provided organisms with reliable information about the passage of time; but modern artificial lighting has drastically altered these cues. Evidence is accumulating that exposure...

Stevens, T. 2016. Biscuit feeder increases foraging in baboons and reduces biscuit waste. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 4(3) (September), 54-55.

At the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Department of Comparative Medicine, we have a large captive colony of Olive Baboons (Papio anubis). Environmental enhancement is an integral part of the Comparative Medicine Baboon Research...

Prior, H., Bottomly, A., Champéroux, P. et al. 2016. Social housing of non-rodents during cardiovascular recordings in safety pharmacology and toxicology studies. Journal of Pharmacological and Toxicological Methods 81, 75-87.

Introduction: The Safety Pharmacology Society (SPS) and National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement & Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) conducted a survey and workshop in 2015 to define current industry practices relating to housing...

Slater, H., Milne, A. E., Wilson, B. et al. 2016. Individually customisable non-invasive head immobilisation system for non-human primates with an option for voluntary engagement. Journal of Neuroscience Methods 269, 46-60.

Background: Head immobilisation is often necessary for neuroscientific procedures. A number of Non-invasive Head Immobilisation Systems (NHIS) for monkeys are available, but the need remains for a feasible integrated system combining a broad range of...

Pritchett-Corning, K. R., Gaskill, B. N. 2015. Lack of negative effects on Syrian hamsters and Mongolian gerbils housed in the same secondary enclosure. JAALAS 54(3), 261-266.

In cases where different species might be housed in the same room or secondary enclosure, the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals recommends that the animals should be behaviorally compatible and have...

Bakker, J., Ouwerling, B., Hedit, P. J. et al. 2015. Advantages and risks of housing changes to improve animal wellbeing in a breeding colony of common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus). JAALAS 54(3), 273-279.

Between 1975 and 2014, housing conditions for laboratory-housed marmosets changed dramatically after the introduction of new guidelines designed to improve their care and wellbeing. According to these guidelines, our facility provided marmosets with outside enclosures...

Xing, G., Lu, J., Hu, M. et al. 2015. Effects of group housing on ECG assessment in conscious cynomolgus monkeys. Journal of Pharmacological and Toxicological Methods 75, 44-51.

Assessing the cardiovascular safety of new chemical or biological entities is important during pre-clinical development. Electrocardiogram (ECG) assessments in non-human primate (NHP) toxicology studies are often made using non-invasive telemetry systems. We investigated whether ECG...

Case, L., Yanagi, A., Loeser, E. et al. 2015. Human-animal relationships: The use of species-typical food calls and chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) names: Welfare-oriented tools to manage sanctuary chimpanzees. Animal Behavior and Cognition 2(3), 254–266.

In captivity, positive human-animal interactions are often part of daily management procedures, which can enhance the welfare of animals and help caregivers with routine husbandry tasks. For example, the provisioning of food (produce or enrichment)...

Bennett, A. J., Perkins, C. M., Harty, N. M. et al. 2014. Assessment of foraging devices as a model for decision-making in nonhuman primate environmental enrichment. JAALAS 53(5), 452-463.

Continued progress to move evidence-based best practices into community and regulatory animal welfare standards depends in part on developing common metrics to assess cost, benefit, and relative value. Here we describe a model approach to...

Monts de Oca, N., Diaz, L., McMahen, D. et al. 2014. The use of lean management principles to enhance a nonhuman primate environmental enrichment program. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 580-581. (Abstract #P122).

Sewage back-up and overflows in the rooms of our primate facility initiated an analysis of the factors contributing to the clogging of the drains. An investigation reviewing the materials responsible for the clogging of the...

Stevens, T. 2014. NHP wire biscuit feeder. Enrichment Record Dec 2, 2014 (online publication).

This apparatus is used for single-housed baboons of all ages. The device is a wire suet feeder used for birds and squirrels. It can be purchased from Walmart, Home Depot, etc. There are many sizes...

Schultz, P. 2014. Peanut butter/banana feeder. Enrichment Record Oct 16, 2014 (online publication).

This device takes only a few minutes to make. 1. Start with a short piece of PVC pipe. 2. Drill a hole through both sides of the top and bottom. 3. Insert a stainless bolt...

Abney, D. M., Harding, K., Toscano, J. et al. 2014. Successful social housing of mature male cynomolgus macaques in mixed sex rooms. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 567. (Abstract #P70).

We are committed to ensuring all our animals have the highest level of care and welfare. To this end, our social housing program includes placing all animals in pairs or groups. We have a rate...

Hawkins, P. 2014. Refining housing, husbandry and care for animals used in studies involving biotelemetry. Animals 4(2), 361-373.

Biotelemetry can contribute towards reducing animal numbers and suffering in disciplines including physiology, pharmacology and behavioural research. However, the technique can also cause harm to animals, making biotelemetry a ‘refinement that needs refining’. Current welfare...

Kurtycz, L. M., Wagner, K. E., Ross, S. R. 2014. The choice to access outdoor areas affects the behavior of great apes. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 17(3), 185–197.

Outdoor access is often cited as a critical component of appropriate housing for great apes in captivity, and although studies have shown that offering primates choices can improve welfare, choice to access specific areas has...

Gottlieb, D. H., Capitanio, J. P., McCowan, B. 2013. Risk factors for stereotypic behavior and self-biting in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta): Animal's history, current environment, and personality. American Journal of Primatology 75(10), 995-1008.

Captive rhesus macaques sometimes exhibit undesirable abnormal behaviors, such as motor stereotypic behavior (MSB) and self-abuse. Many risk factors for these behaviors have been identified but the list is far from comprehensive, and large individual...

Gottlieb, D. H., Coleman, K., McCowan, B. 2013. The effects of predictability in daily husbandry routines on captive rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Applied Animal Behaviour Science 143, 117-127.

Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) housed indoors experience many routine husbandry activities on a daily basis. The anticipation of these events can lead to stress, regardless of whether the events themselves are positive or aversive in...

Giordano. K.A. 2013. Training nonhuman primates to check their watering system as a means to increase psychologic wellbeing and increase efficiency for husbandry staff. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 615 (Abstract #PS41).

Through the use of operant conditioning methods, that is, clicker training, it is possible to train nonhuman primates to check their automatic watering system. Primate species not indicated. We will detail a training study.