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. 
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...

Chatigny, F. 2019. The controversy on fish pain: A veterinarian’s perspective. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 22(4), 400-410.

Fish welfare is still a relatively new field. As such, regulations and protocols to ensure fish welfare are currently limited and vary considerably in different jurisdictions. This is in part because of the ongoing controversy...

Sloman, K, A., Bouyoucos, I. A., Brooks, E. J. et al. 2019. Ethical considerations in fish research. Journal of Fish Biology 94(4), 556-577.

In this review, we focus primarily on the refinement of common methods used in fish research based on emerging knowledge with the aim of improving the welfare of fish used in scientific studies. We consider...

Animal Welfare Institute. 2019. Let’s get serious about animal play. AWI Quarterly 68(3) Fall, 19.

This article describes the importance of providing laboratory animals with opportunities to engage in play, and provides a few practical ideas for how to do this.

Warwick, C., Arena, P., Steedman, C. 2019. Spatial considerations for captive snakes. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 30, 37-48.

Captive environments for snakes commonly involve small enclosures with dimensions that prevent occupants from adopting straight line body postures. In particular, the commercial, hobby, and pet sectors routinely utilize small vivaria and racking systems, although...

Anderson, J. R., Ang, M. Y. L., Lock, L. C. et al. 2019. Nesting, sleeping, and nighttime behaviors in wild and captive great apes. Primates 60(4), 321–332.

The past few decades have seen a burgeoning of scientific studies on great apes’ use of nests for sleeping in the wild, as well as their nesting behavior and sleep in captivity. We review recent...

Sundin, J., Morgan, R., Finnøen, M. H. et al. 2019. On the observation of wild zebrafish (Danio rerio) in India. Zebrafish 16(6), 546-553.

Zebrafish is one of the world's most widely used laboratory species, and it is utilized to answer important research questions in disparate fields such as biomedicine, genetics, developmental biology, pharmacology, toxicology, physiology, and evolution. Despite...

Špinka, M. 2019. Animal agency, animal awareness and animal welfare. Animal Welfare 28(1), 11–20.

In nature, animals need to actively engage with the environment in order to prosper in survival and reproduction. Hence, agency is a central adaptive characteristic of animal life. In this paper, I propose that from...

Costa, R., Sousa, C., Llorente, M. 2018. Assessment of environmental enrichment for different primate species under low budget: A case study. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 21(2), 185-199.

The 2011 European Union Zoo Inquiry presented evidence that most zoos fail to achieve adequate levels of nonhuman animal welfare. Appropriate environmental enrichment (EE) can play a role in the promotion of welfare. However, financial...

Fox, L., Mans, C. 2018. Analgesic efficacy and safety of buprenorphine in chinchillas (Chinchilla lanigera). JAALAS 57(3), 286-290.

Buprenorphine is routinely used in chinchillas at reported doses of 0.01 to 0.1 mg/kg IM or SC. However, these dose recommendations are based on anecdotal reports or extrapolation from studies in other species. Therefore, the...

Evenson, E. A., Mans, C. 2018. Analgesic efficacy and safety of hydromorphone in chinchillas (Chinchilla lanigera). JAALAS 57(3), 282-285.

Limited information is available regarding the efficacy of opioid analgesics in chinchillas. Here we sought to evaluate the analgesic efficacy and safety of hydromorphone in chinchillas. In a randomized, controlled, blind, complete crossover design, hydromorphone...

Smith, B. D., Vail, K. J., Carroll, G. L. et al. 2018. Comparison of etomidate, benzocaine, and MS222 anesthesia with and without subsequent flunixin meglumine analgesia in African clawed frogs (Xenopus laevis). JAALAS 57(2), 202-209.

Often few alternative anesthetics for exotic species are available, due to the small numbers of these animals used in research. In this study, we evaluated the depth and duration of anesthesia in Xenopus laevis after...

Chatigny, F., Creighton, C. M., Stevens, E. D. 2018. Updated review of fish analgesia. JAALAS 57(1), 5-12.

Analgesics are an integral part of routine pain management in mammals, yet their use in fish is still limited. Some recommendations on the use of analgesics in fish are currently in the literature; however, information...

Graham, C., von Keyserlingk, M. A. G., Franks, B. 2018. Free-choice exploration increases affiliative behaviour in zebrafish. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 203, 103-110.

Cognitive stimulation has been shown to be rewarding and capable of eliciting positive emotions in several species. In contrast to the abundant learning and exploration opportunities available in nature, captive environments can be under-stimulating—with the...

Graham, C., von Keyserlingk, M. A. G., Franks, B. 2018. Zebrafish welfare: Natural history, social motivation and behaviour. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 200, 13-22.

Zebrafish are now one of the most used animal model species in scientific research worldwide. Our current knowledge of wild zebrafish is limited to an estimated range of their natural habitats and their tendencies to...

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...

Ekesbo, I., Gunnarsson, S. 2018. Farm Animal Behaviour: Characteristics for Assessment and Welfare (2nd ed). CABI, Wallingford, UK.

Completely updated and revised, and with a new author team, this second edition of Farm Animal Behaviour continues to provide essential information on normal and stereotypic behaviors in a wide variety of farm animals to...

Lopez-Luna, J., Al-Jubouri, Q., Al-Nuaimy, W. et al. 2017. Reduction in activity by noxious chemical stimulation is ameliorated by immersion in analgesic drugs in zebrafish. Journal of Experimental Biology 220(8), 1451-1458.

Research has recently demonstrated that larval zebrafish show similar molecular responses to nociception to those of adults. Our study explored whether unprotected larval zebrafish exhibited altered behaviour after exposure to noxious chemicals and screened a...

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...

Zanetti, A. S., Putta, S. K., Casebolt, D. B. et al. 2017. Pharmacokinetics and adverse effects of 3 sustained-release buprenorphine dosages in healthy guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus). JAALAS 56(6), 768-778.

In guinea pigs, studies addressing the efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetic profiles of different sustained-release buprenorphine (SRB) formulations are still in their infancy. Here we assessed the pharmacokinetic profiles of 3 SRB dosages (SR-LAB, ZooPharm; SRBLow...

Oliver, V. L., Athavale, S., Simon, K. E. et al. 2017. Evaluation of pain assessment techniques and analgesia efficacy in a female guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) model of surgical pain. JAALAS 56(4), 425-435.

Guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) are a frequently used species in research, often involving potentially painful procedures. Therefore, evidence-based recommendations regarding analgesia are critically needed to optimize their wellbeing. Our laboratory examined the efficacy of carprofen...

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...

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...

Lopez-Luna, J., Canty, M. N., Al-Jubouri, Q. et al. 2017. Behavioural responses of fish larvae modulated by analgesic drugs after a stress exposure. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 195, 115-120.

Fish are known to respond to a wide range of irritant chemicals, displaying clear behavioural changes after exposure to potentially noxious stimuli. Recent evidence shows that these agents can have an impact on larval forms...

Lopez-Luna, J., Al-Jubouri, Q., Al-Nuaimy, W. et al. 2017. Impact of analgesic drugs on the behavioural responses of larval zebrafish to potentially noxious temperatures. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 188, 97-105.

Recent studies have demonstrated that fish exhibit behavioural responses to noxious stimuli, including mechanical, chemical or thermal stimulation. In many cases, these responses are characterised by a reduction in the locomotor activity, which in turn...