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. 
Stanwicks, L. L., Hamel, A. F., Novak, M. A. 2017. Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) displaying self-injurious behavior show more sleep disruption than controls. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 197, 62-67.

Self-injurious behavior (SIB) is a pathology observed in both humans and animals. In humans, SIB has been linked to various mental health conditions that are also associated with significant sleep disruption. In rhesus macaques, SIB...

McMillan, J. L., Bloomsmith, M. A., Prescott, M. J. 2017. An international survey of approaches to chair restraint of nonhuman primates. Comparative Medicine 67(5), 442–451.

Specifically designed restraint chairs are the preferred method of restraint for research studies that require NHP to sit in place for sustained periods of time. In light of increasing emphasis on refinement of restraint to...

Cooke, G. M. 2017. Stereotypic behavior is not limited to terrestrial taxa: A response to Rose et al. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 22, 17-18.

This comment is in response to a recent review of stereotypical behavior in captive exotic animals (Rose et al., 2017). Negative stereotypical behavior occurs across most if not all taxa, including notable aquatic invertebrates. A...

Cannon, T. H., Heistermann, M., Hankison, S. J. et al. 2016. Tailored enrichment strategies and stereotypic behavior in captive individually housed macaques (Macaca spp.). Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 19(2), 171-182.

The welfare of nonhuman animals in captivity is widely dependent on the natural psychological, physical, and behavioral needs of the animals and how adequately these needs are met. Inability to engage in natural behaviors can...

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...

Goumon, S., Špinka, M. 2016. Emotional contagion of distress in young pigs is potentiated by previous exposure to the same stressor. Animal Cognition 19(3), 501–511.

This study tested whether emotional contagion occurs when piglets directly observe a penmate in distress (restraint) and whether there is an effect of previous experience on the response to subsequent restraint or exposure to conspecific...

Gottlieb D. H., Maier, A., Coleman, K. 2015. Evaluation of environmental and intrinsic factors that contribute to stereotypic behavior in captive rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Applied Animal Behaviour Science 171,184-91.

Full body repetitive behaviors, known as motor stereotypic behaviors (MSBs), are one of the most commonly seen abnormal behaviors in captive non-human primates, and are frequently used as a behavioral measure of well-being. The main...

Pearson, B. L., Reeder, D. M., Judge, P. G. 2015. Crowding increases salivary cortisol but not self-directed behavior in captive baboons. American Journal of Primatology 77, 462-67.

Reduced space can lead to crowding in social animals. Crowding increases the risk of agonistic interactions that, in turn, may require additional physiological defensive coping mechanisms affecting health. To determine the stress induced from increased...

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...

Cornale, P., Macchi, E., Miretti, S. et al. 2015. Effects of stocking density and environmental enrichment on behavior and fecal corticosteroid levels of pigs under commercial farm conditions. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 10(6), 569-576.

In intensive pig farming of Western and Southern Europe, welfare concerns are still often related to barren environments and crowded conditions. Pig producers need to balance the requirements to improve welfare conditions at farm with...

Bayne, K. A., Beaver, B. V., Mench, J. A. et al. 2015. Laboratory animal behavior. In: Laboratory Animal Medicine, 3rd edition. Fox, J. G., Anderson, L., Otto, G., et al. (eds). Elsevier, Inc., Amsterdam, NL. pp. 1617-1651.

The study of laboratory animal behavior has increased steadily over the last decade, with expanding emphasis on a variety of commonly used species. In the United States, this trend was initially focused on species for...

Pizzi, R., Dowling, A., Brown, D. et al. 2015. Facial thermography is not useful in assessing body temperature in common squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) in comparison to rectal temperatures. Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research 3(3), 94-98.

A group of 39 captive common squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) had their body temperature measurements compared by rectal thermometry and facial infrared thermal imaging (Flir i3, Flir Systems Inc). Squirrel monkeys were caught up and...

Nääs, I. A., Garcia, R. G., Caldara, F. R. 2015. Infrared thermal image for assessing animal health and welfare. Journal of Animal Behaviour and Biometeorology 2(3), 66-72.

Infrared thermal imaging is a non-destructive testing technology that can be used to determine the superficial temperature of objects. This technology has an increasing use in detecting diseases and distress in animal husbandry within the...

Kaiser, R. A., Tichenor, S. D., Regalia, D. E. et al. 2015. Telemetric assessment of social and single housing: Evaluation of electrocardiographic intervals in jacketed cynomolgus monkeys. Journal of Pharmacological and Toxicological Methods 75, 38-43.

Introduction: Proactive efforts to socially house laboratory animals are a contemporary, important focus for enhancing animal welfare. Jacketing cynomolgus monkeys has been traditionally considered an exclusionary criterion for social housing based on unsubstantiated concerns that...

Novak, M., Hamel, A., Coleman, K. et al. 2014. Hair loss and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis activity in captive rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). JAALAS 53(3), 261-266.

Hair loss is a common problem in captive macaque colonies. A potential factor is the possible influence of stressful environments in the development of hair loss. We examined the relationship between hair loss and chronic...

Meade, T. M., Hutchinson, E., Krall, C. et al. 2014. Use of an aquarium as a novel enrichment item for singly housed rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). JAALAS 53(5), 472-477.

Locomotor stereotypies are behaviors often seen in singly housed rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) and are considered to represent a maladaptive response to captive environments. Active and passive enrichment items are commonly used to mitigate these...

McMillan, J. L., Perlman, J. E., Galvan, A. et al. 2014. Refining the pole-and-collar method of restraint: Emphasizing the use of positive training techniques with rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). JJAALAS 53(1), 61-68.

The pole-and-collar method is one of several techniques that enable the safe transfer of a nonhuman primate from its home environment into a restraint chair without the need for sedation. It has been used within...

Lutz, C. K., Williams, P. C., Sharp, R. M. 2014. Abnormal behavior and associated risk factors in captive baboons (Papio hamadryas spp.). American Journal of Primatology 76(4), 355-361.

Abnormal behavior, ranging from motor stereotypies to self‐injurious behavior, has been documented in captive nonhuman primates, with risk factors including nursery rearing, single housing, and veterinary procedures. Much of this research has focused on macaque...

Kroeker, R., Bellanca, R. U., Lee, G. H. et al. 2014. Alopecia in three macaque species housed in a laboratory environment. American Journal of Primatology 76(4), 325-334.

Alopecia is a persistent problem in captive macaque populations and despite recent interest, no factors have been identified that can unequivocally explain the presence of alopecia in a majority of cases. Seasonal, demographic, and environmental...

Gottlieb, D. H., O'Connor, J. R., Coleman, K. 2014. Using porches to decrease feces painting in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). JAALAS 53(6), 653-656.

The goal of this project was to evaluate the efficacy of a porch in decreasing feces painting in captive rhesus macaques. The porch is a small extension that is hung on the outside of a...

Roller, J. E., Meyers, M. 2014. Positive reinforcement training in a research setting: An introduction to sling training the Ossabaw pig. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 539. (Abstract #PS51).

Over the past year, the large animal care staff at our institution was introduced to an unfamiliar breed of pig, the Ossabaw Island pig. Not only were they tasked with adapting to this unique research...

Andrews, C. 2014. Using positive reinforcement training to refine daily medical treatment of a cynomolgus macaque. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 565-566. (Abstract #P63).

Medical care of nonhuman primates in a laboratory setting can be challenging due to the safety concerns inherent in handling conscious animals. A mature, adult male cynomolgus macaque presented with a chronic foot condition that...

Lutz, C. K., Coleman, K., Worlein, J. et al. 2013. Hair loss and hair-pulling in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). JAALAS 52(4), 454-457.

Alopecia is a common problem in rhesus macaque colonies. A possible cause of this condition is hair-pulling; however the true relationship between hair-pulling and alopecia is unknown. The purpose of this study was to examine...

Lutz, C. K. 2013. Alopecia in corral-housed baboons: the impact of season, sex, and age. American Journal of Primatology 75(S1), 52. (36th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #70)

Although alopecia in captive baboons has previously been assessed, the incidence of alopecia in large groups of baboons housed in more expansive outdoor settings has not been evaluated. The purpose of this study was to...

Kroeker, R., Bellanca, R. U., Lee, G. H. et al. 2013. Alopecia in three macaque species housed in a laboratory environment. American Journal of Primatology 75(S1), 38. (36th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #30)

Alopecia is a persistent problem in laboratory macaques, and is important to address due to the perceived implication for health and psychological well-being. Alopecia ratings were taken at 4 time points over a 12-month period...