Refinement Database

Database on Refinement of Housing, Husbandry, Care, and Use of Animals in Research

This database, created in 2000, is updated every three months with newly published scientific articles, books, and other publications related to improving or safeguarding the welfare of animals used in research.

Links to the full text for publications that appear in open access journals or are published on the AWI website are provided under the abstract.

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 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. Most publications older than 2010 can only be searched by keyword. 
Zeltner, A., Cristofferson, C. 2022. Taking blood from a Göttingen minipig while placed in a sling. Animal Technology and Welfare 21(1), 58-61.
Traditionally Göttingen minipigs are restrained in dorsal recumbency to have access to the blood vessels in the neck. Minipigs, like any other animal do not particularly like to be restrained and being turned on their...
Boardman, R. M., Pinder, A. C., Piper,A. T. et al. 2022. Non-lethal sampling for the stable isotope analysis of the critically endangered European eel Anguilla anguilla: How fin and mucus compare to dorsal muscle. Journal of Fish Biology 100(3), 847-851.
Ecological studies on the critically endangered European eel Anguilla anguilla often incorporate stable isotope analysis that typically uses dorsal muscle sampled from euthanised eels. To minimise the lethal sampling of imperilled populations, fin tissue and/or...
Johansson, Ö, Kachel, S., Weckworth, B. 2022. Guidelines for telemetry studies on snow leopards. Animals 12(13), 1663.
Animal-borne tracking devices have generated a wealth of new knowledge, allowing us to better understand, manage and conserve species. Fitting such tracking devices requires that animals are captured and often chemically immobilized. Such procedures cause...
O'Malley, C. I., Hubley, R., Tambadou, H. et al. 2022. Refining restraint techniques for research pigs through habituation. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 9, 1016414.
Pigs are common research models and are strong animals that can be difficult to restrain. Improper restraint can put pigs and research personnel at risk for injury and induce stress, which can affect research outcomes...
Casey, K. M., Gore, F., Vilches-Moure, J. G. et al. 2021. Management of morbidity and mortality in a New Zealand white rabbit model of steroidinduced osteonecrosis of the femoral head. Comparative Medicine 71(1), 86-98.
Steroid-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head (SONFH) is a condition documented in humans and animals exposed to chronic steroid administration. The rabbit has become a preferred animal model for investigating the pathogenesis and treatment of...
Archibald, W., Glynn, C. 2021. Refining cages for social housing of non-human primates on ADME studies. Animal Technology and Welfare 20(2), 172-174.
The assessment and understanding of Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism and Elimination (ADME) for new pharmaceuticals is required in regulatory submissions. Typically, ADME studies are conducted using metabolism cages designed for the single housing of animals to...
Holdsworth, S. E., Kells, N. J., Chidgey, K. L. et al. 2021. Characterisation of the behavioural effects of a thoracic squeeze in healthy newborn piglets. Animals 11(8), 2465.
Firmly squeezing the chests of newborn foals and calves that are showing abnormal behaviours after birth causes them to enter a less-responsive state, characterised by lying down with eyes closed and no limb movements. Once...
Prior, H., Blunt, H., Crossman, L. et al. 2021. Refining procedures within regulatory toxicology studies: Improving animal welfare and data. Animals 11(11), 3057.
During the development of potential new medicines or agrochemicals, an assessment of the safety profile to humans and environmental species is conducted using a range of different in silico and in vitro techniques in conjunction...
Yeowell, G., Burns, D., Fatoye, F. et al. 2021. Indicators of health-related quality of life in cats with degenerative joint disease: Systematic review and proposal of a conceptual framework. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 8, 582148.
Objectives: The assessment of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is becoming increasingly important in companion animals. This study describes a systematic review and development of a proposed conceptual framework to assess HRQoL in cats with...
Schodl, K., Wiesauer, L., Winckler, C. et al. 2021. Reduced stocking density and provision of straw in a rack improve pig welfare on commercial fattening farms. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 8, 656211.
The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of reduced stocking density in combination with provision of additional enrichment material on pig welfare on-farm. On three growing-finishing farms in Austria, in total 974...
Falendysz, E. A., Calhoun, D. M., Smith, C. A. et al. 2020. Outside the box: Working with wildlife in biocontainment. ILAR Journal 61(1), 72-85.
Research with captive wildlife in Animal Biosafety Level 2 (ABSL2) and 3 (ABSL3) facilities is becoming increasingly necessary as emerging and re-emerging diseases involving wildlife have increasing impacts on human, animal, and environmental health. Utilizing...
da Silva Medeiros Elidio, H., Coelho, J. W. R., Cavalcanti Pereira da Silva, L. C. et al. 2021. Housing density and aggression in Syrian hamsters. JAALAS 60(5), 506-509.
The Syrian hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) is a solitary and naturally territorial animal, with female hamsters being more aggressive than males. This behavior makes handling difficult because they are usually housed in groups, which can lead...
Kinaci, A., Vaessen, K., Redegeld, S. et al. 2021. Minimizing complications in a porcine survival craniotomy model. Laboratory Animals 55(5), 435-442.
A large craniotomy survival porcine model is useful for scientific research. The surgical approaches and complications of craniotomies in pigs have not been published before. This study describes how large craniotomies were performed in 46...
Moody, C. M., Mason, G. J., Dewey, C. E. et al. 2020. Getting a grip: Cats respond negatively to scruffing and clips. Veterinary Record 186(12), 385.
Use of scruffing and scruffing tools (eg, clipnosis clips) to immobilise cats is contentious, and cat handling guidelines vary in recommendations regarding these techniques. The current study examined whether cats show negative responses to the...
Waiblinger, S., Hajek, F., Lambacher, B. et al. 2020. Effects of the method of restraint for shearing on behaviour and heart rate variability in alpacas. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 223, 104918.
Alpacas are increasingly kept in Europe for different purposes including fibre production. Yearly shearing is necessary to harvest fibre and for welfare reasons. Different methods of restraint are used during shearing, which may affect the...
Filliettaz, C., Maxwell, L., Dragon, M. et al. 2020. Novel bleeding techniques in hamsters. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(1) (January/February), 44-46.
Hamsters have historically been used in our pharmacokinetic (PK) studies using the retro-orbital (RO) bleeding technique to collect blood samples. If performed incorrectly, this technique has the potential for animal welfare complications not usually seen...
Zemanova, M. A. 2020. Towards more compassionate wildlife research through the 3Rs principles: Moving from invasive to noninvasive methods. Wildlife Biology 2020(1), no page numbers.
Research in ecology and wildlife biology remains crucial for increasing our knowledge and improving species management and conservation in the midst of the current biodiversity crisis. However, obtaining information on population status often involves invasive...
Lawrence, M. J., Raby, G. D., Teffer, A. K. et al. 2020. Best practices for non-lethal blood sampling of fish via the caudal vasculature. Journal of Fish Biology 97(1), 4–15.
Blood sampling through the caudal vasculature is a widely used technique in fish biology for investigating organismal health and physiology. In live fishes, it can provide a quick, easy and relatively non‐invasive method for obtaining...
Hagemeister, K., Ernst, L., Kadaba Srinivasan, P. et al. 2020. Severity assessment in pigs after partial liver resection: Evaluation of a score sheet. Laboratory Animals 54(3), 251–260.
Severity assessment in biomedical research is required by the European authorities. Therefore, a variety of score sheets are available. The first score sheets were designed and introduced by Morton and Griffith (M&G) in 1985, to...
Hedenqvist, P., Trbakovic, A., Mellgren, T. et al. 2020. The effect of housing environment on bone healing in a critical radius defect in New Zealand white rabbits. PLoS ONE 15(5), e0233530.
In animal studies on bone healing, the effect of housing space and physical activity are seldom taken into account. Bone formation was evaluated in New Zealand White rabbits (mean ± SEM BW: 3.9 ± 0.11...
Reinhardt, V. (ed.) 2020. It’s Okay to Cry - Discussions by the Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum [LAREF], Volume V. Animal Welfare Institute, Washington, DC.
This is the 5th volume of selected discussions that took place on the electronic Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum between February 2016 and December 2019. The forum was created in October 2002; it allows...
Thoré, E. S. J., Brendonck, L., Pinceel, T. 2020. Conspecific density and environmental complexity impact behaviour of turquoise killifish (Nothobranchius furzeri). Fish Biology 97(5), 1448–1461.
Fish models are essential for research in many biological and medical disciplines. With a typical lifespan of only 6 months, the turquoise killifish (Nothobranchius furzeri) was recently established as a time- and cost-efficient model to...
Rydén, A., Manell, E., Biglarnia, A. et al. 2020. Nursing and training of pigs used in renal transplantation studies. Laboratory Animals 54(5), 469-478.
The pig is commonly used in renal transplantation studies since the porcine kidney resembles the human kidney. To meet the requirements of intense caretaking and examination without stress, a 2-week socialisation and training programme was...
Ober, R. A., Geist, G. E. 2020. Assessment of a noninvasive chronic glucose monitoring system in euglycemic and diabetic swine (Sus scrofa). JAALAS 59(4), 430-437.
Models of type-I diabetes are well-characterized and commonly used in the preclinical evaluation of drugs and medical devices. The diabetic minipig is an excellent example of a translational model. However, chronic glucose monitoring in this...
Raillard, M., Detotto, C., Grepper, S. et al. 2019. Anaesthetic and perioperative management of 14 male New Zealand white rabbits for calvarial bone surgery. Animals 9(11), 896.
Calvarial bone surgery on rabbits is frequently performed. This report aims to document a simple and practical anaesthetic and perioperative management for this procedure. Fourteen male New Zealand white rabbits were included in the study...

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