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. 
Theil, J. H., Beisner, B. A., Hill, A. E. et al. 2017. Effects of human management events on conspecific aggression in captive rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). JAALAS 56(2), 122-130.

Conspecific aggression in outdoor-housed rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) at primate research facilities is a leading source of trauma and can potentially influence animal wellbeing and research quality. Although aggression between macaques is a normal part...

Pomerantz, O., Baker, K. C. 2017. Higher levels of submissive behaviors at the onset of the pairing process of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) are associated with lower risk of wounding following introduction. American Journal of Primatology 79(8), e22671.

Social housing of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) is considered to be the cornerstone of behavioral management programs in biomedical facilities. However, it also involves the risk of socially inflicted trauma. The ability to avoid such...

Truelove, M. A., Martin, A. L., Perlman, J. E. et al. 2017. Pair housing of macaques: A review of partner selection, introduction techniques, monitoring for compatibility, and methods for long-term maintenance of pairs. American Journal of Primatology 79(1), e22485.

Pair housing of macaques has become a widely implemented compromise between meeting the social needs of the monkeys and allowing for their use in biomedical research. While beneficial to the animals, pair housing can provide...

Hannibal, D. L., Bliss-Moreau, E., Vandeleest, J. et al. 2017. Laboratory rhesus macaque social housing and social changes: Implications for research. American Journal of Primatology 79(1), e22528.

Macaque species, specifically rhesus (Macaca mulatta), are the most common nonhuman primates (NHPs) used in biomedical research due to their suitability as a model of high priority diseases (e.g., HIV, obesity, cognitive aging), cost effective...

Capitanio, J. P., Blozis, S. A., Snarr, J. et al. 2017. Do “birds of a feather flock together” or do “opposites attract”? Behavioral responses and temperament predict success in pairings of rhesus monkeys in a laboratory setting. American Journal of Primatology 79(1), e22464.

The growing recognition that social needs of primates in captivity must be addressed can present challenges to staff at primate facilities charged with implementing pair‐housing solutions for animals. Unfortunately, there are few published papers that...

Jorgensen, M. J., Lambert, K. R., Breaux, S. D. et al. 2017. Pair housing of vervets/African green monkeys for biomedical research. American Journal of Primatology 79(1), e22501.

Vervets, also known as African green monkeys, are a nonhuman primate species widely used in biomedical research. However, there are currently few references available describing techniques and rates of success for pair‐housing this species. We...

Worlein, J. M.,Kroeker, R., Lee, G. H. et al. 2017. Socialization in pigtailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina). American Journal of Primatology 79(1), e22556.

In response to new emphasis by regulatory agencies regarding socialization, behavioral management programs are allocating greater resources to maximize socialization opportunities for laboratory primates. Information regarding predictors of compatibility and risk of injury for all...

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...

Sands, C., Evans, C., Buckmaster, C. A. 2017. The grooming sleeve: Encouraging conspecific-like behavior and strengthening the human-animal bond. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 5(2) (June), 52-53.

The act of grooming has been found to greatly decrease stress, heart rate, and cortisol levels in nonhuman primates; this decrease in stress and cortisol is seen in the animal being groomed, as well as...

Daoudi, S., Badihi, G., Buchanan-Smith, H. 2017. Is mixed-species living cognitively enriching? Enclosure use and welfare in two captive groups of tufted capuchins (Sapajus apella) and squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus). Animal Behavior and Cognition 4(1).

Non-human primates have complex relationships with conspecifics and also other animals with whom they share their habitat in the wild. Some primates, such as capuchin monkeys (Sapajus apella) and squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus), naturally associate...

Perdue, B. 2017. Mechanisms underlying cognitive bias in nonhuman primates. Animal Behavior and Cognition 4(1), 105–118.

Recent research in nonhuman animals highlights the exciting possibility that performance on cognitive bias tasks might indirectly measure an individual’s subjective, affective state. Subjects first learn to perform a conditional discrimination task with two differentially...

Harl, H., Stevens, L., Margulis, S. W. et al. 2016. Gibbon aggression during introductions: An international survey. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 19(3), 260-270.

Little is known regarding the prevalence of aggression seen during introductions of captive gibbons (Hylobatidae). In this study, an online survey was developed to quantify and collect contextual details regarding the frequency and types of...

Wark, J. D., Amendolagine, L., Lukas, K. E. et al. 2016. Fecal glucocorticoid metabolite responses to management stressors and social change in four species of callitrichine monkeys. Primates 57(2), 267-277.

The use of enzyme immunoassays (EIA) for the non-invasive measurement of glucocorticoids provides a valuable tool for monitoring health and welfare in sensitive species. We validated methods for measuring fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (FGM) using the...

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...

Abney, D. M., Moomaw, H. A. 2015. Strategies for successfully social housing incompatible cynomolgus macaque trios. American Journal of Primatology 77(S1), 59-60. (38th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #65)

At Charles River, we are committed to ensuring all animals have the highest level of care and welfare. At our facility, the typical study design requires primates to be housed in groups of 3 (or...

Gulledge, J. P., Fernandez-Carriba, S., Rumbaugh, D.M. et al. 2015. Judgments of monkey's (Macaca mulatta) facial expressions by humans: Does housing condition "affect" countenance? The Psychological Record 65(1), 203-207.

The ability to interpret facial expressions of others is one of the more important abilities possessed by humans. However, is it possible for humans to interpret the facial expressions of another species of primate accurately...

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.

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 study...

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...

Cassidy, L., Semple, S., Hannibal, D. et al. 2015. Behavioural and physiological effects of housing type on laboratory housed female rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Folia Primatologica 86(4), 259-60.

Due to the despotic nature of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) and their frequent use in biomedical research, it is important to understand the impact that standard housing practices can have on individuals of this species...

Molesti, S., Majolo, B. 2015. No short-term contingency between grooming and food tolerance in Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus). Ethology 121(4), 372-82.

The exchange of services such as allo-grooming, allo-preening, food tolerance and agonistic support has been observed in a range of species. Two proximate mechanisms have been proposed to explain the exchanges of services in animals...

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...

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...