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. 
Golledge, H., Richardson, C. (Eds.) 2024. The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory and Other Research Animals (9th ed.). Wiley-Blackwell. 1040 p.

The latest edition of the seminal reference on the care and management of laboratory and research animals. The newly revised ninth edition of The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory and Other...

Association of Primate Veterinarians. 2023. Association of Primate Veterinarians guidelines for domestic transport of nonhuman primates in biomedical research. JAALAS 62(3), 198-201.

The purpose of this guidance document is to provide veterinarians and other individuals associated with domestic transportation of nonhuman primates (NHP) with an overview of the critical aspects of the process including planning, execution, and...

Alizadeh, E. A., Graf, K., Schiwon, J. et al. 2023. Thirty years of telemetry-based data acquisition for cardiovascular drug safety evaluation: Applications and optimization. Journal of Pharmacological and Toxicological Methods 122, 107279.

Conducting safety evaluations of new drugs using conscious animals has been a specialty of our working group for thirty years. In this article, we review the various technical challenges and solutions dealt with over the...

Psarou, E., Vezoli, J., Schölvinck, M. L. et al. 2023. Modular, cement-free, customized headpost and connector-chamber implants for macaques. Journal of Neuroscience Methods 393, 109899.

Background: Neurophysiological studies with awake macaques typically require chronic cranial implants. Headpost and connector-chamber implants are used to allow head stabilization and to house connectors of chronically implanted electrodes, respectively. New method: We present long-lasting...

Buckmaster, C. L., Levesque, D., LaFollette, M. et al. 2022. Five hot topics in refinement of nonhuman primate neuroscience research. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 10(1) (January/February), 24-26.

Members of the North American 3Rs Collaborative (NA3RsC) refinement initiative have chosen to summarize developments in five hot topics of interest: 1. Tips for welfare-friendly transport, chairing, and restraint; 2. Guidance on refining food and...

Hirata, S. 2022. Sky after 30 years: A brief biography of three biomedical research chimpanzees in Japan. Primates 63(2), 105–108.

This article describes the strategies employed by Kumamoto Sanctuary in Japan to integrate 3 retired chimpanzees – who each spent 30 years singly housed in a biomedical facility – with the sanctuary’s other residents.

Knaebe, B., Weiss, C. C., Zimmermann, J. et al. 2022. The promise of behavioral tracking systems for advancing primate animal welfare. Animals 12(13), 1648.

Recent years have witnessed major advances in the ability of computerized systems to track the positions of animals as they move through large and unconstrained environments. These systems have so far been a great boon...

Tuozzi, A., Arhant, C., Anderle, K. et al. 2021. Effects of human presence and voice on the behaviour of shelter dogs and cats: A preliminary study. Animals 11(2), 406.

Reading books to shelter animals combining auditory enrichment with human presence is increasingly used although its effects on animal welfare have not yet been investigated. This study compared the behaviour of single-housed shelter dogs and...

Prior, H., Holbrook, M. 2021. Strategies to encourage the adoption of social housing during cardiovascular telemetry recordings in non-rodents. Journal of Pharmacological and Toxicological Methods 108, 106959.

The National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) is working with industry to promote social housing during cardiovascular telemetry recordings within non-rodent safety pharmacology and toxicology studies. Following surveys...

Sørensen, D., Cloutier, S., Gaskill, B. (Eds.). 2021. Animal-centric Care and Management - Enhancing Refinement in Biomedical Research. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.

The concept of the 3Rs (Refinement, Reduction and Replacement) has been used as a framework for improving the welfare of laboratory animals for the last half century. By establishing an animal-centric view on housing and...

Perry, B. A. L., Mason, S., Nacef, J. et al. 2021. Protective cranial implant caps for macaques. Journal of Neuroscience Methods 348, 108992.

Background: Neuroscience studies with macaque monkeys may require cranial implants to stabilize the head or gain access to the brain for scientific purposes. Wound management that promotes healing after the cranial implant surgery in non-human...

Argüelles, J., Echaniz, M., Bowen, J. et al. 2021. The impact of a stress-reducing protocol on the quality of pre-anaesthesia in cats. Veterinary Record 188(12), e138.

Introduction: Transport to the clinic is a major source of stress for cats. The process involves being put into a carrier, driven in a car and handled. Cats are therefore removed from the safe-haven of...

Onozawa, E., Azakami, D., Seki, S. et al. 2021. Effect of an insulation device in preventing hypothermia during magnetic resonance imaging examinations for dogs and cats under general anesthesia. Animals 11(8), 2378.

Dogs and cats under general anesthesia may develop hypothermia. When performing a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination, it is not possible to place a magnetic material in the MRI room, and MRI equipment requires a...

Grigg, E. K., Ueda, Y., Walker, A. L. et al. 2021. Comparative assessment of heart rate variability obtained via ambulatory ECG and polar heart rate monitors in healthy cats: A pilot study. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 8, 741583.

Chronic exposure to stressful environments can negatively impact cats' health and welfare, affecting behavioral, autonomic, endocrine, and immune function, as with cats in shelters. Low-stress handling practices likely improve shelter cat welfare, but data supporting...

Tölgyesi, B., Bakker, J., Nagy, K. et al. 2021. Refined acquisition of high-resolution chest CTs in macaques by free breathing. Laboratory Animals 55(6), 551-559.

The use of medical imaging as a non-invasive or minimally invasive method to assess disease or treatment response continues to grow. A similar trend is observed in pre-clinical research, in general, and more specifically in...

Wang, P., Ma, Y., Liang, F. et al. 2020. Non-contact vital signs monitoring of dog and cat using a UWB radar. Animals 10(2), 205.

As pets are considered members of the family, their health has received widespread attention. Since pets cannot talk and complain when they feel uncomfortable, monitoring vital signs becomes very helpful in disease detection, as well...

Padalino, B., Raidal, S. 2020. Effects of transport conditions on behavioural and physiological responses of horses. Animals 10(1), 160.

The regulations for minimal space and direction of travel for land transport in horses vary worldwide and there is currently no definitive guidance to promote equine health and welfare. This study evaluated the effects of...

Bensoussan, S., Tigeot, R., Meunier-Salaün, M.-C. et al. 2020. Broadcasting human voice to piglets (Sus scrofa domestica) modifies their behavioural reaction to human presence in the home pen and in arena tests. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 225, 104965.

The human-pig relationship develops through visual, tactile, olfactory, and auditory interactions. Our objective was to determine the effect of human voices on the development of the human-pig relationship. We hypothesised that human voice facilitates the...

de la Garza, F., Cannon, C. Z. 2020. Piggy see, piggy do: A swine training program enhances animal welfare and research. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(2) (March/April), 54-57.

Becton Dickinson (BD) Animal Research Program developed an extensive training and environmental enrichment program to acclimate newly arrived swine to daily husbandry routines. The program seeks to build trust between swine and animal care and...

Bøgh, N., Agger, P., Omann, C. et al. 2020. New device for noninvasive telemetric monitoring of vital signs in healthy and newly operated piglets. JAALAS 59(1), 90–93.

Measuring vital signs is central to medical practice, but they are difficult to monitor in awake laboratory animals. We examined the feasibility of a noninvasive device [Cortrium C3 device] for telemetric assessment of respiration rate...

Sharpe, S. A., Scott, S., Taylor, I. et al. 2020. Use of high frequency jet ventilation as a refinement for imaging macaques with respiratory disease. Laboratory Animals 54(4), 386–390.

Imaging is used in human medicine to diagnose disease and monitor treatment efficacy. Computed tomography (CT) positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance (MR) are applied to animal models of infectious diseases to increase data...

Reinhardt, V. (ed.) 2020. It’s Okay to Cry - Discussions by the Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum [LAREF], Volume V. Animal Welfare Institute, Washington, DC.

This is the 5th volume of selected discussions that took place on the electronic Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum between February 2016 and December 2019. The forum was created in October 2002; it allows...

Ober, R. A., Geist, G. E. 2020. Assessment of a noninvasive chronic glucose monitoring system in euglycemic and diabetic swine (Sus scrofa). JAALAS 59(4), 430-437.

Models of type-I diabetes are well-characterized and commonly used in the preclinical evaluation of drugs and medical devices. The diabetic minipig is an excellent example of a translational model. However, chronic glucose monitoring in this...

Baker, K. C. 2020. Cage position and response to humans in singly-housed rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). JAALAS 59(5), 503-507.

Traditional laboratory caging for nonhuman primates is typically configured in a 2-tiered manner, with caging arranged in 2 horizontal rows stacked vertically. Studies of the effects of cage row have yielded inconsistent results with respect...

Ladewig, J. 2019. Body language: Its importance for communication with horses. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 29, 108-110.

Body language is important for communication between individuals. Body language is based on the fact that the thought of performing a known action, alone, will activate the motor neurons used for the action, resulting in...