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. 

This is the third volume of discussions that took place on the Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum (LAREF). This forum is dedicated to the exchange of personal experiences of refining the conditions under which...

Research has shown animals are sensitive to environment changes and novel caretakers. The behavioral response to environmental change is often expressed as a decrease in willingness to comply or perform learned tasks. We assessed the...

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...

Animal training programs are used at many animal facilities to refine human-animal interactions. While there is a strong focus on positive reinforcement training (PRT) over negative reinforcement training (NRT) or punishment, animals vary in responsiveness...

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...

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.

We have successfully trained with a laser pointer at least one cyno in each pair/group to target to their lixits. Currently this stands at about 35 cages housing a total of 63 animals. We no...

Xenopus laevis is a commonly used research animal for which well accepted enrichment strategies have not been established. Our overall objective was to identify enrichment strategies that are most beneficial to Xenopus as a step...

Environmental enrichment has become an important aspect of animal care in research facilities over the years. It is easy to come up with enrichment for mice, rats, and other mammals; however, what do you get...

The impact of operantly training domestic cats to accept jugular blood collections in a dorsally recumbent (novel) position was assessed. Cats were assigned to one of three groups: Group 1 (N = 14): no training...

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...

As research subjects, cats have contributed substantially to our understanding of biological systems, from the development of mammalian visual pathways to the pathophysiology of feline immunodeficiency virus as a model for human immunodeficiency virus. Few...

Xenopus are a hardy, long-lived, aquatic amphibian species which readily adapt to a captive environment. This characteristic makes Xenopus ideal for the laboratory, where they are used extensively in basic and biomedical research. Though husbandry...

There are many benefits of positive reinforcement training (PRT). PRT reduces stress for subjects and as such is a significant refinement to animal care practices. However, training can be time intensive, and not all animals...

Positive reinforcement training (PRT) methods can be applied to gain the voluntary cooperation of laboratory primates with the collection of biological samples. Information will be provided on training techniques used and the amount of training...

Traditional procedures for training nonhuman primates to be restrained in chairs typically involve very little use of positive reinforcement. In this talk, we detail a refined chair training procedure which uses a mix of positive...

Since there is evidence that the bottom cages can impact research, this should be a good reason to eliminate the two-tier system with its species-inappropriate bottom-tier cages.

While clinical reptile medicine as a science is in its ascendancy among veterinary surgeons and other interested groups, familiarity with the often related issue of reptilian behavioural and psychological health appears less common. Behavioural change...

Cognitive abilities likely evolved in response to specific environmental and social challenges and are therefore expected to be specialized for the life history of each species. Specialized cognitive abilities may be most readily engaged under...

Xenopus laevis is the most widely used model amphibian species in laboratories, yet there is almost no experimental evidence to guide best practice for captive housing. Enrichment is an important component of maintenance and welfare...

Using behavioral data to predict pair stability would be helpful for improving management of pairs and prevention of injury. Differences in reactions to presumed laboratory stressors, such as location moves, may provide information about pair...

In the last decade several surveys of primate care and training programs highlight a common theme; despite scientific evidence that animal training can be effective in reducing stress, increasing efficiency and improving veterinary care, animal...

This study examined whether allowing 10 singly-housed adult male rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) 2-week access to a larger play cage would increase their species-typical behavior and decrease anxiety and abnormal behavior. The play cage consisted...

This review will examine how individual differences in temperament might affect, or be affected by, behavioral management practices for captive primates. Measuring temperament may help us predict the outcome of social introductions. It can also...