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. 
Dettmer, A. M., Slonecker, E., Suomi, S. J. et al. 2018. Dams’ social behaviour and long-term cortisol profiles in response to their infants being nursery-reared. American Journal of Primatology 80(S1), 33 (40th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #67).

The influence of early rearing experiences on infants’ social and neuroendocrine development is well characterized. However, little is known about the effects of nursery rearing (NR) on the infants’ mothers. Such information is important in...

Worlein, J. M., Kroeker, R., Lee, G. H. et al. 2018. Behavioral and physiological outcomes in nursery-reared pigtailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina). American Journal of Primatology 80(S1), 34 (40th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #92).

The Infant Primate Research Laboratory at the Washington National Primate Research Center incorporates a number of rearing techniques aimed at assuring the welfare and enhancing behavioral outcomes for infants reared in the nursery. We recently...

Lane, J. F. 2018. Nursery rearing macaques – An overview from a veterinary perspective. American Journal of Primatology 80(S1), 34 (40th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #93).

A variety of clinical and research scenarios require nursery rearing of infant macaques. Nursery rearing practices vary across institutions and are conducted with a range of personnel and facility resources. Caretakers, veterinarians, research and behavioral...

Coleman, K., Robertson, N. D. 2018. Training non-lactating rhesus macaques to act as foster mothers. American Journal of Primatology 80(S1), 34-35 (40th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #94).

There can be psychological and physiological consequences resulting from nursery rearing rhesus macaques. To reduce the need for nursery rearing, orphaned infants are often placed with lactating foster mothers. Unfortunately, a supply of these lactating...

Bloomsmith, M. A., Truelove, M. A., Cowan‐Brown, J. et al. 2018. Comparing abnormal and fear-related behaviour under two nursery rearing conditions for infant rhesus macaques. American Journal of Primatology 80(S1), 35 (40th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #95).

Two nursery rearing strategies for infant rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) were compared to measure effects on abnormal and fear‐related behavior. Changes made from the standard nursery‐rearing procedures (SN) included earlier exposure to peers, frequent peer‐group...

Pierre, P. J., Sullivan, J., Rosga, M. et al. 2018. Long term behavioral and clinical outcomes for nursery reared macaques. American Journal of Primatology 80(S1), 70 (40th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #96).

Nursery rearing (NR) as an experimental manipulation has informed our understanding of the basic bio‐behavioral mechanisms of development. Nursery rearing also occurs for clinical support of infants that fail to thrive or are rejected by...

Baker, K. C., Ruhde, A. 2018. Macroenvironmental effects on the well-being of singly-caged male rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). American Journal of Primatology 80(S1), 47 (40th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #146).

Determining the effects of the macroenvironment on the welfare of nonhuman primates can help identify their needs and guide their behavioral management. We evaluated the behavior of 37 adult male rhesus macaques in two housing...

Hanniba, D., Beisner, B., Nathman, A. et al. 2018. Removals based on low within-matriline relatedness can reduce severe aggression in captive rhesus macaques. American Journal of Primatology 80(S1), 48 (40th Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists Scientific Program, Abstract #151).

Previous observational research of captive rhesus macaques suggests that higher coefficients of relatedness within matrilines are associated with lower rates of severe within‐matriline aggression and more cohesive grooming communities. We tested whether experimental removals targeted...

Fenkes, M., Shiels, H. A., Nudds, R. L. 2018. Body shape and robustness response to water flow during development of brown trout Salmo trutta parr. Journal of Fish Biology 93(2), 360-369.

Domesticated brown trout Salmo trutta parr were subjected to increased, variable flow under controlled experimental conditions. Using geometric morphometric analyses, (a mass:length index) and caudal fin area:body length ratio, this study assessed morphological responses in...

Coursodon, P., Cox, L., Largent-Milnes, T. M. et al. 2018. Enhanced environmental enrichment strategies for retired rhesus macaques. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 6(2) (June), 41-43.

One challenge in providing enrichment to NHP arises following completion of their assigned studies (retired) when there tends to be a sudden decrease in provision of daily human interaction and overall stimulation that results from...

Wilson, L. A., Miller, J. J., Work, R. K. et al. 2018. Novel diet regimen for rabbits in a compromised oral wound healing study. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 6(1) (March), 49-51.

Rabbits are known to be finicky about food and will reject it based upon several factors: odor, texture, form, or method of presentation. It can be an even greater challenge to get rabbits to eat...

Edmonds, D., Razaiarimahefa, T., Kessler, E. et al. 2018. Natural exposure to ultraviolet-B radiation in two species of chameleons from Madagascar. Zoo Biology 37(6), 452-457.

Many reptiles require ultraviolet-B radiation between 290 and 315 nm (UV-B) to synthesize vitamin D3 and process dietary calcium. In captivity, exposure to too little or too much UV-B can result in health problems such...

Nehete, P. N., Shelton, K. A., Nehete, B. P. et al. 2017. Effects of transportation, relocation, and acclimation on phenotypes and functional characteristics of peripheral blood lymphocytes in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta). PLOS ONE 12(12), e0188694.

Nonhuman primates from domestic sources constitute a small, but critical, proportion of animals studied in research laboratories. Many of these nonhuman primates are raised at one facility and subsequently transported/relocated to another facility for research...

Sommerville, R., Ruiz, R., Averós, X. 2017. A meta-analysis on the effects of the housing environment on the behaviour, mortality, and performance of growing rabbits. Animal Welfare 26(2), 223-238.

Although the number of rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) produced in Europe is important, they are under-represented in welfare research. Studies on the effects of housing conditions have focused on performance and mortality. We conducted a meta-analysis...

Pasmans, F., Bogaerts, S., Braeckman, J. et al. 2017. Future of keeping pet reptiles and amphibians: Towards integrating animal welfare, human health and environmental sustainability. Veterinary Record 181(17), 450.

The keeping of exotic pets is currently under debate and governments of several countries are increasingly exploring the regulation, or even the banning, of exotic pet keeping. Major concerns are issues of public health and...

Kluge, K., Larenza Menzies, M. P., Kloeppel, H. et al. 2017. Femoral and sciatic nerve blockades and incision site infiltration in rabbits undergoing stifle joint arthrotomy. Laboratory Animals 51(1), 54-64.

This study was designed to determine whether perineural injections of local anaesthetics decreases intraoperative nociception and improves postoperative analgesia in New Zealand White rabbits undergoing experimental stifle arthrotomy. All animals were anaesthetized using isoflurane and...

Peric, T., Comin, A., Corazzin, M. et al. 2017. Relocation and hair cortisol concentrations in New Zealand White rabbits. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 20(1), 1-8.

To investigate how long relocation modified hair cortisol concentrations in New Zealand white rabbits, 19 rabbits were subjected to a change in their breeding facility at the beginning of the trial and then were kept...

Salyards, G. W., Lemoy, M.-J., Knych, H. K. et al. 2017. Pharmacokinetics of a novel, transdermal fentanyl solution in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). JAALAS 56(4), 443-451.

Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) are the most commonly used NHP biomedical model and experience both research and clinical procedures requiring analgesia. Opioids are a mainstay of analgesic therapy. A novel, transdermal fentanyl solution (TFS) has...

Chatigny, F., Kamunde, C., Creighton, C. M. et al. 2017. Uses and doses of local anesthetics in fish, amphibians, and reptiles. JAALAS 56(3), 244-253.

Local anesthetics are an integral part of routine pain management in mammals, yet their use is relatively limited in fish, amphibians and reptiles. These animals frequently undergo potentially painful surgical procedures and therefore could possibly...

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...

Martin-Flores, M., Singh, B., Walsh, C. A. 2017. Effects of buprenorphine, methylnaltrexone, and their combination on gastrointestinal transit in healthy New Zealand White rabbits. JAALAS 56(2), 155-159.

Among the many analgesic agents available, buprenorphine appears to be the analgesic used most often in rabbits. Unfortunately, deleterious side effects of opioids, such as gastrointestinal stasis and anorexia, may discourage the use of these...

Rapp-Santos, K. J., Altamura, L. A., Norris, S. L. et al. 2017. Comparison of saliva collection methods for the determination of salivary cortisol levels in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta), cynomolgus macaques (Macaca fascicularis), and African green monkeys (Chlorocebus aethiops). JAALAS 56(2), 181-189.

The ability to quickly and accurately determine cortisol as a biomarker for stress is a valuable tool in assessing the wellbeing of NHP. In this study, 2 methods of collecting saliva (a commercial collection device...

Cinque, C., De Marco, A., Mairesse, J. et al. 2017. Relocation stress induces short-term fecal cortisol increase in Tonkean macaques (Macaca tonkeana). Primates 58(2), 315-321.

The level of glucocorticoids, especially if obtained from noninvasive sampling, can be used as an index of animal well-being, allowing evaluation of the animal’s response to environmental modifications. Despite evidence that these hormones play a...

Hawkins, P., McNeilly, A., Watson, J. et al. 2017. Report of the 2016 RSPCA/UFAW Rodent and Rabbit Welfare Group meeting. Animal Technology and Welfare 16(2), 77-86.

The RSPCA/UFAW Rodent (and now Rabbit) Welfare Group held a one-day meeting on 1 November 2016 at the University of Edinburgh and was attended by 70 delegates. Presentation topics included refinements in blood sampling rodents...

Carlson, A., Allen, C., Skoumbourdis, E. et al. 2017. Cooked food for non-human primates: A discussion by the Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum. Animal Technology and Welfare 16(2), 124-126.

"Do any of you give cooked food like pasta, potatoes or vegetables to non-human primates? What’s your experience? Do the animals benefit from cooked food; do they like it; does it affect their health in...