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 that include earlier publications) can be filtered by Animal Type, Setting, and Topic. 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...

Mantz, M., Pugerud, A. 2024. Overcoming the hurdles of lab animal enrichment: Natural behaviors vs. scientific need. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 12(1) (January/February), 32-34.

The Animal Resources Core (ARC) at the Abigail Wexner Research Institute (AWRI) at Nationwide Children’s Hospital (NCH) faces many of the same challenges other institutions manage in terms of enrichment for laboratory animals. A Behavior...

Borthwick, E. J., Preshaw, L., Wheeler-Launder, C. et al. 2023. Stable design influences relaxation and affiliative behavior in horses during short isolation bouts. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 69–70, 1–7.

Domesticated horses are often housed in individual stables for long periods where physical contact with conspecifics is not possible. Although common, this form of stable design is known to be detrimental to horse welfare. This...

Copelin, C., Hayman, B., Bergeron, R. et al. 2024. Compliance or confusion? The usefulness of blindfolding horses as a handling technique. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 271, 106180.

Blindfolds have commonly been suggested to make horses more tractable in emergency or high-stress situations such as barn fire evacuations or trailer loading. However, little research has been done on the veracity of this claim...

Copelin, C., Hayman, B., Bergeron, R. et al. 2024. Compliance or confusion? The usefulness of blindfolding horses as a handling technique. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 271, 106180.

Blindfolds have commonly been suggested to make horses more tractable in emergency or high-stress situations such as barn fire evacuations or trailer loading. However, little research has been done on the veracity of this claim...

Da Luz, M. P. F., Maia, C. M., Puoli Filho, J. N. P. 2024. Equine rolling behavior: Thermoregulation mechanism after exercise and substrate preference. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 27(3), 477–486.

Rolling is a natural behavior of equids that is beneficial to their well-being. However, more intensive domestic environments offer fewer opportunities for animals to roll, neglecting its importance. We believe that the inclusion of recreational...

Damm, J., Aureli, F., Rangel-Negrín, A. et al. 2024. Analytical and biological validation of a noninvasive measurement of glucocorticoid metabolites in feces of Geoffroy’s spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi). American Journal of Primatology 86(4), e23598.

We report on an analytical and biological validation of a commercial cortisol enzyme immunoassay (EIA) to measure glucocorticoids (GC) in feces of Geoffroy’s spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi). Validation of endocrinological methods for each sample matrix...

Ehrie, A. J., Iruri-Tucker, A. A., Lord, Y. B. et al. 2024. Measuring mantled howler monkey (Alouatta palliata) testes via parallel laser photogrammetry: Expanding the use of noninvasive methods. American Journal of Primatology 86(6), e23616.

Parallel laser photogrammetry (PLP), which consists of attaching two or three parallel laser beams at a known inter-beam distance to a camera, can be used to collect morphological measurements of organisms noninvasively. The lasers project...

Jastrzębska, E., Wytrążek, K., Earley, B. et al. 2024. Is observation of horses when they are outdoors adequate for detecting individuals with abnormal behaviour? Applied Animal Behaviour Science 272, 106201.

It is reported that outdoor housing of horses reduces stereotypic (SB) and aberrant (AB) behaviour, however, observation of the horse only when outdoors may not preclude it from being stereotypic when in the stable. The...

Paterson, E. A., O’Malley, C. I., Turner, P. V. 2024. Sleep quality in cynomolgus macaques (Macaca fascicularis) varies by housing type and following surgery. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 272, 106188.

Sleep is an important contributor to good physical and mental health and an important component of post-surgical recovery. The assessment of dark phase (‘nighttime’) behavior can provide insight into the efficacy of analgesic treatments and...

Phelipon, R., Ascione, A., Ruet, A. et al. 2024. Differences in behaviour, facial expressions and locomotion between positive anticipation and frustration in horses. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 274, 106262.

Animal welfare is a result of accumulated negative and positive emotions. Therefore, it is important to limit the former and promote the latter. Doing so requires a precise identification of these emotions. The aim of...

Pritchard, A. J., Beisner, B. A., Nathman, A. et al. 2024. Social stability via management of natal males in captive rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 27(2), 408–425.

Keystone individuals are expected to disproportionately contribute to group stability. For instance, rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) who police conflict contribute towards stability. Not all individuals’ motivations align with mechanisms of group stability. In wild systems...

Simpson, L., Grove, J., Bronson, E. et al. 2024. Quality of Life assessment: The value of longitudinal data in making the end-of-life care decision for a macaque (Macaca silenus/Macaca nemestrina). Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 27(2), 316–329.

Assessing quality of life in animals is an art as much as a science. Despite the use of questionnaires and keeper reports which consider several aspects of well-being, the process often remains subjective. Keepers have...

Zobrist, C. N., Bishop, R. C., McCoy, A. M. 2024. Noncontact infrared thermometer measurements offer a reasonable alternative to rectal temperature measurement in afebrile horses. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 262(6), 791–797.

OBJECTIVE To assess the repeatability of infrared thermometer temperature readings and evaluate the correlation between digital rectal temperature and infrared thermometer temperatures taken at different locations in healthy afebrile horses. ANIMALS 101 afebrile horses ≥...

Bordin, C., Raspa, F., Greppi, M. et al. 2024. Pony feeding management: The role of morphology and hay feeding methods on intake rate, ingestive behaviors and mouth shaping. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 11.

In the last decade, haynets and slow feeders have been promoted as sustainable tools to improve the feeding management of horses and reduce forage waste, but little is known about their effects on ponies. Therefore...

Dazord, A., Primault, M. 2024. Development of an animal welfare tool for zoo-housed primates, considering intra- and inter-rater reliability. Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research 12(2), 69–78.

Over the past few decades, the concept of animal welfare has become increasingly prominent in Western societies. Faced with this collective awareness, various organisations are now making it a point of honour to consider the...

Lucas, R. J., Allen, A. E., Brainard, G. C. et al. 2024. Recommendations for measuring and standardizing light for laboratory mammals to improve welfare and reproducibility in animal research. PLOS Biology 22(3), e3002535.

Light enables vision and exerts widespread effects on physiology and behavior, including regulating circadian rhythms, sleep, hormone synthesis, affective state, and cognitive processes. Appropriate lighting in animal facilities may support welfare and ensure that animals...

Newman, R., Quirke, T., McKeown, S. et al. 2024. The use of a simple and practical water-based enrichment in a pair of lion-tailed macaques. Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research 12(2), 121–124.

Environmental enrichment is frequently used to improve the captive environment, aiming to enhance the quality of captive animal care. Water-based enrichment can increase exploratory behaviour and tool use, promoting object manipulation, particularly in macaque species...

Oddsdóttir, C., Jónsdóttir, H. K., Sturludóttir, E. et al. 2024. The effect of repeated blood harvesting from pregnant mares on haematological variables. Animals 14(5), 745.

Studies have been carried out on the effect of large-volume blood harvesting from horses, but they were performed on nonpregnant horses of various breeds other than Icelandic horses. This study aimed to investigate the effect...

Paterson, E. A., O’Malley, C. I., Abney, D. M. et al. 2024. Development of a novel primate welfare assessment tool for research macaques. Animal Welfare 33, e3.

Primates are important species for biomedical research and ensuring their good welfare is critical for research translatability and ethical responsibility. Systematic animal welfare assessments can support continuous programme improvements and build institutional awareness of areas...

Richardson, S. 2024. Primate enrichment categories: A literature review of current trends. Animal Behavior and Cognition 11(1), 87–100.

Environmental enrichment aims to enhance primate wellbeing by providing physical and mental stimuli to address the biological and psychological needs of individuals. However, lack of knowledge regarding the development of enrichment research hampers implementors and...

Suba-Bokodi, É., Nagy, I., Molnár, M. 2024. The impact of transportation on the cortisol level of dwarf rabbits bred to animal-assisted interventions. Animals 14(5), 664.

(1) Background: the popularity of rabbits has increased during the last decade and become the third most common companion animal in the EU. Rabbits’ participation in Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAIs) is growing. It is highly important...

Van Damme, L. G. W., Ipek, N., Verwaeren, J. et al. 2024. Cage enrichment to minimize aggression in part-time group-housed female breeding rabbits. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 11.

In most rabbit farms, breeding does kindle and nurse their kits in single-litter cages throughout their entire reproduction cycle. However, the protective behavior can lead to aggressive displays and injuries when the does are housed...

Zhang, J., Hu, R., Chen, L. et al. 2024. Contactless vital signs monitoring in macaques using a mm-wave FMCW radar. Scientific Reports 14(1), 13863.

Heart rate (HR) and respiration rate (RR) play an important role in the study of complex behaviors and their physiological correlations in non-human primates (NHPs). However, collecting HR and RR information is often challenging, involving...

Robinson, L. M., Weiss, A. (Eds.) 2023. Nonhuman Primate Welfare: From History, Science, and Ethics to Practice. Springer, Cham, Switzerland. 671 p.

This volume reviews the broad topic of welfare in nonhuman primates under human care. Chapters detail the history of primates in captivity, ethical and legal issues surrounding the use of nonhuman primates as entertainment or...