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. 
Robinson, L. M., Weiss, A. (Eds.) 2023. Nonhuman Primate Welfare: From History, Science, and Ethics to Practice. Springer, Cham, Switzerland. 671 p.

This volume reviews the broad topic of welfare in nonhuman primates under human care. Chapters detail the history of primates in captivity, ethical and legal issues surrounding the use of nonhuman primates as entertainment or...

Ausderau, K. K., Colman, R. J., Kabakov, S. et al. 2023. Evaluating depression- and anxiety-like behaviors in non-human primates. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience 16, 1006065.

Depression and anxiety are some of the most prevalent and debilitating mental health conditions in humans. They can present on their own or as co-morbidities with other disorders. Like humans, non-human primates (NHPs) can develop...

Chakkingal Bhaskaran, B., Meyermans, R., Gorssen, W. et al. 2023. A comparative study on the effect of euthanasia methods and sample storage conditions on RNA yield and quality in porcine tissues. Animals 13(4), 698.
Cohen, S., Ho, C. 2023. Review of rat (Rattus norvegicus), Mouse (mus musculus), Guinea pig (Cavia procellus), and rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) indicators for welfare assessment. Animals 13(13), 2167.

The monitoring and assessment of animals is important for their health and welfare. The appropriate selection of multiple, validated, and feasible welfare assessment indicators is required to effectively identify compromises or improvements to animal welfare...

Marks, C. A., Allen, L., Lindeberg, H. 2023. Non-lethal dose-response models replace lethal bioassays for predicting the hazard of para-animopropiophenone to Australian wildlife. Animals 13(3), 472.

Para-aminopropiophenone (PAPP) is a potent methaemoglobin (MetHb) forming agent used for the lethal control of exotic carnivores and mustelids. To assess the sensitivity of Australian wildlife to PAPP we developed an in vivo assay that...

Neal Webb, S., Schapiro, S. 2023. Locomotion as a measure of well-being in captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Animals 13(5), 803.

Locomotion in non-human primates, including walking, climbing, and brachiating among other types of movement (but not pacing), is a species-typical behavior that varies with age, social housing conditions, and environmental factors (e.g., season, food availability...

Robles, I., Luna, S. P. L., Trindade, P. H. E. et al. 2023. Validation of the Unesp-Botucatu pig composite acute pain scale (UPAPS) in piglets undergoing castration. PLOS ONE 18(4), e0284218.

To accurately assess pain and support broadly-based analgesic protocols to mitigate swine pain, it is imperative to develop and validate a species-specific pain scale. The objective of this study was to investigate the clinical validity...

Söderquist, A., Wallenbeck, A., Lindahl, C. 2023. Social support in a novel situation aimed for stunning and euthanasia of pigs may be increased by familiar pigs—A behavioural study with weaners. Animals 13(3), 481.

The common method of stunning pigs using high concentration carbon dioxide prior to slaughter poses an animal welfare issue, as the gas is aversive. Proof of concept for using nitrogen gas encapsulated in high-expansion foam...

Whitham, J. C., Hall, K., Lauderdale, L. K. et al. 2023. Integrating reference intervals into chimpanzee welfare research. Animals 13(4), 639.

Animal welfare researchers are committed to developing novel approaches to enhance the quality of life of chimpanzees living in professional care. To systematically monitor physical, mental, and emotional states, welfare scientists highlight the importance of...

Edes, A. N., Brown, J. L., Edwards, K. L. 2023. Evaluating individual biomarkers for predicting health risks in zoo-housed chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and bonobos (Pan paniscus). American Journal of Primatology 85(3), e23457.

Although biomarkers are often used for predicting morbidity and mortality in humans, similar data are lacking in our closest relatives. This study analyzed 16 biomarkers in zoo-housed chimpanzees and bonobos from serum samples collected during...

Ghassani, Y. K., Rianti, P., Priambada, N. P. et al. 2023. Welfare assessment of slow loris (Nycticebus spp.) at an Indonesian primate rehabilitation center: Development and validation of body condition score. American Journal of Primatology 85(8), e23524.

Body condition scoring (BCS) assessment can reflect animal welfare status and help the veterinarian to make a quick health management decision, including for confiscated slow loris (Nycticebus spp.). The confiscated slow loris should be rehabilitated...

Ede, T., Parsons, T. D. 2023. Cognitive tasks as measures of pig welfare: A systematic review. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 10.

Cognitive approaches are increasingly used to assess animal welfare, but no systematic review has been conducted on pigs despite their cognitive capacities. Our aims were two-fold: first, to assess the popularity and heterogeneity of this...

Ferreira, M. F., Fàbrega, E., Pires, I. et al. 2023. Agonic aspiration of blood: Not useful as an animal-based indicator of electrical stunning ineffectiveness in pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus). Animals 13(14), 2292.

Agonic aspiration of blood (AAB) may result from an inadequate exsanguination with accidental trachea severing, that can be favoured by ineffective stunning of pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus). This study aimed to evaluate AAB as an...

Fultz, A., Lewis, R., Kelly, L. et al. 2023. Behavioral welfare research for the management of sanctuary chimpanzees (pan troglodytes). Animals 13(16), 2595.

Chimp Haven is a sanctuary for chimpanzees retired from biomedical research, rescued from the pet trade, or re-homed after other organizations could no longer care for them. To provide optimal care for over 300 chimpanzees...

Goma, A. A., Uddin, J., Kieson, E. 2023. Lateralised behavioural responses in livestock to environmental stressors: Implications for using infrared thermography to assess welfare conditions. Animals 13(23), 3663.

Lateralised behavioural responses to environmental stressors have become more frequently used as indicators of social welfare in animals. These lateralised behavioural responses are under the control of asymmetrical brain functions as part of the primary...

Hognestad, B. W., Digranes, N., Opsund, V. G. et al. 2023. CO2 stunning in pigs: Physiological deviations at onset of excitatory behaviour. Animals 13(14), 2387.

Stunning by carbon dioxide (CO2) inhalation is controversial because it is associated with vigorous movements and behaviours which may or may not be conscious reactions. Furthermore, it is unknown whether some behaviours might indicate the...

Vaz, J., McElligott, A. G., Narayan, E. 2022. Linking the roles of personality and stress physiology for managing the welfare of captive big cats. Animal Welfare 31(1), 99-111.

Animal welfare is important for the humane treatment of animals under our care. Zoos and rescue centres manage various charismatic animals, such as big cats, with limited resources. It is therefore essential for caretakers to...

Rowe, E., Mullan, S. 2022. Advancing a “good life” for farm animals: Development of resource tier frameworks for on-farm assessment of positive welfare for beef cattle, broiler chicken and pigs. Animals 12(5), 565.

There is increasing recognition that farm animal welfare standards should ensure positive welfare, as well as prevent negative welfare. Resources that are valued by an animal and that provide opportunities to engage in motivated behaviours...

Kieffer, J. D., Campler, M. R., Cheng, T.-Y. et al. 2022. Evaluation of a water-based medium-expansion foam depopulation method in suckling and finisher pigs. Animals 12(8), 1041.

The threat of foreign animal disease introduction through contaminated animal products, feed ingredients, and wildlife vectors have highlighted the need for additional approved methods for mass depopulation of swine under emergency scenarios, especially methods that...

Hopper, L. M., Lake, B. R., Leinwand, J. G. et al. 2022. Assessing chimpanzees’ fluency of movement: Applications for monitoring health and welfare. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 250, 105612.

With age, primates’ activity levels and ease of movement may decline and changes in locomotory behaviour may reflect changes in health. Thus, developing quick and reliable measures of movement has important applications for measuring recovery...

Garai, M. E., Roos, T., Eggeling, T. et al. 2022. Developing welfare parameters for African elephants (Loxodonta africana) in fenced reserves in South Africa. PLOS ONE 17(3), e0264931.

South Africa has many fenced reserves harbouring small to medium sized populations of African elephant (Loxodonta africana), most of which have been translocated. Elephants on fenced reserves may be exposed to various management interventions and...

Hirata, S. 2022. Sky after 30 years: A brief biography of three biomedical research chimpanzees in Japan. Primates 63(2), 105–108.

This article describes the strategies employed by Kumamoto Sanctuary in Japan to integrate 3 retired chimpanzees – who each spent 30 years singly housed in a biomedical facility – with the sanctuary’s other residents.

Dell'Anna, F., Schino, G., Aureli, F. 2022. Anxiety in Geoffroy's spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi): Can scratching be used as an indicator? American Journal of Primatology 84(6), e23373.

Self-directed behavior, such as self-scratching (hereafter, scratching), occurs in several taxa across the animal kingdom, including nonhuman primates. There is substantial evidence that scratching is an indicator of anxiety-like emotions in a variety of nonhuman...

Zhang, J., Yu, L., Yin, G. 2022. Evaluation of behavior and affective state of different-parity sows with strong/weak pupil light reflex. Animals 12(9), 1184.

The stall-housing system is commonly used in the modern swine industry in many countries; however, long-term space restrictions can cause affective and physiological abnormalities in sows. The pupil light reflex (PLR) can reflect the psychological...

Knaebe, B., Weiss, C. C., Zimmermann, J. et al. 2022. The promise of behavioral tracking systems for advancing primate animal welfare. Animals 12(13), 1648.

Recent years have witnessed major advances in the ability of computerized systems to track the positions of animals as they move through large and unconstrained environments. These systems have so far been a great boon...