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. 
Brunet, V., Lafond, T., Kleiber, A. et al. 2023. Environmental enrichment improves cognitive flexibility in rainbow trout in a visual discrimination task: First insights. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 10.
Birolo, M., Trocino, A., Zuffellato, A. et al. 2022. Use of gnawing hay blocks: Effects on productive performance, behavior and reactivity of growing rabbits kept in parks with different sex-group compositions. Animals 12(9), 1212.

To improve animal welfare in collective park housing systems, this study assessed the effects of the provision of gnawing hay blocks and the group composition (F: females, M: males, FM: mixed sex) on performance, behavior...

Spitzer, H. B., Meagher, R. K., Proudfoot, K. L. 2022. The impact of providing hiding spaces to farmed animals: A scoping review. PLOS ONE 17(11), e0277665.

Many wild animals perform hiding behaviours for a variety of reasons, such as evading predators or other conspecifics. Unlike their wild counterparts, farmed animals often live in relatively barren environments without the opportunity to hide...

Kleiber, A., Le-Calvez, J. M., Kerneis, T. et al. 2022. Positive effects of bubbles as a feeding predictor on behaviour of farmed rainbow trout. Scientific Reports 12(1), 11368.

Occupational enrichment emerges as a promising strategy for improving the welfare of farmed animals. This form of enrichment aims to stimulate cognitive abilities of animals by providing them with more opportunities to interact with and...

Anderson, M. G., Campbell, A. M., Kuhn, D. D. et al. 2022. Impact of environmental complexity and stocking density on affective states of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). Animal Cognition 25(5), 1331–1343.

Environmental condition, such as environmental complexity or stocking density, can directly or indirectly influence animal emotion and ultimately, affective state. Affective states of animals can be assessed through judgement bias tests, evaluating responses to ambiguous...

Ramos, J., Balasch, J. C., Tort, L. 2021. About welfare and stress in the early stages of fish. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 8, 634434.

In conclusion, the investigations carried out up to now demonstrate that during the early stages fish show high sensitivity to many types of stressors involving an array of responses to overcome alterations that could affect...

Sørensen, D., Cloutier, S., Gaskill, B. (Eds.). 2021. Animal-centric Care and Management - Enhancing Refinement in Biomedical Research. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.

The concept of the 3Rs (Refinement, Reduction and Replacement) has been used as a framework for improving the welfare of laboratory animals for the last half century. By establishing an animal-centric view on housing and...

Ellis, T., Katsiadaki, I. 2021. Clarification of early end-points for refinement of animal experiments, with specific reference to fish. Laboratory Animals 55(3), 244-253.

Appropriate end-points are integral to the refinement of laboratory animal experiments. Our recent experience has highlighted that ambiguity around end-points is hampering their adoption in experiments that cause severe suffering to fish. In toxicology, the...

Lambert, K. 2021. DIY: Dehydrated watermelon training chips. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 9(4) (July/August), 48.

This simple DIY training treat is great for NHP, swine, rabbits, rodents, and dogs. Note that dehydrated watermelon may resemble muscle tissue!

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...

Mondin, C., Trestini, S., Trocino, A. et al. 2021. The economics of rabbit farming: A pilot study on the impact of different housing systems. Animals 11(11), 3040.

This research evaluates the economic sustainability of rabbit farms using different housing systems—bicellular (BI), conventional dual-purpose (DP) and enriched cages designed according to the World Rabbit Science Association guidelines (WRSA)—through a field-based study involving six...

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...

Buchanan, K. 2020. DIY: Foraging balls. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(3) (May/June), 51.

This article describes the steps for making a DIY guinea pig or rabbit cardboard foraging ball. Pictures are provided for each step as well as the completed ball. These cardboard foraging balls can be made...

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...

Worlds, T., Kearney, M., De La Garza, F. et al. 2020. Development of a rabbit enrichment program and contribution to a culture of transparency and care. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(6) (November/December), 38-40.

The Becton Dickinson (BD) Research Animal Care Program has developed an acclimation and enrichment program that has enhanced animal welfare for studies requiring single housing, contributed to a culture of care, increased transparency, and improved...

McMahon, S. A., Wigham, E. 2020. ‘All Ears’: A questionnaire of 1516 owner perceptions of the mental abilities of pet rabbits, subsequent resource provision, and the effect on welfare. Animals 10(10), 1730.

Pet rabbit welfare is a hidden crisis: Inappropriately housed, fed, and not routinely provided healthcare—rabbits can often suffer painful conditions and shortened lifespans. This study provides novel understanding of owners’ perceptions of rabbits’ mental capabilities...

Coda, K. A., Fortman, J. D., García, K. D. 2020. Behavioral effects of cage size and environmental enrichment in New Zealand white rabbits. JAALAS 59(4), 356-364.

One of the goals of environmental enrichment is to encourage species-typical behaviors, while discouraging abnormal behaviors or stereotypies. Assessing the effectiveness of various enrichment modalities can be challenging, particularly for prey species such as rabbits...

Arechavala-Lopez, P., Saraiva, J. L. 2019. Welfare of Cultured and Experimental Fishes. Basel, Switzerland: MDPI, 132 pages.

This open access book is a printed edition of the Special Issue on Welfare of Cultured and Experimental Fishes that was published in the journal Fishes. The PDF is free for download.

Mastellone, V., Bovera, F., Musco, N. et al. 2019. Mirrors improve rabbit natural behavior in a free-range breeding system. Animals 9(8), 533.

The aim of this research was to evaluate the possible usefulness of mirrors in improving rabbit behavior in a free-range breeding system. Three groups (each consisting of nine replicates of three animals) were compared: isolated...

Trocino, A., Zomeño, C., Filiou, E. et al. 2019. The use of environmental enrichments affects performance and behavior of growing rabbits housed in collective pens. Animals 9(8), 537.

This study assessed the effects of an elevated plastic-slatted platform and/or a plastic hiding tube in collective pens with large group sizes (27 or 36 rabbits/pen; 16 rabbits/m2) on the performance and welfare of rabbits...

Madureira, T. V., Costa, J. L., Malhão, F. et al. 2019. Design of a multi-parametric profile for assessing the acclimation period of juvenile brown trout after an acute transport to new housing environment. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 219, 104835.

Fish batches are often transported from aquacultures to laboratory facilities, and this fact triggers a pre-stressed condition that can cause alterations in both physiological and behavioural status of animals. The acclimation before fish trials is...

Watz, J. 2019. Structural complexity in the hatchery rearing environment affects activity, resting metabolic rate and post-release behaviour in brown trout Salmo trutta. Journal of Fish Biology 95(2), 638-641.

The effects of structural enrichment in the hatchery rearing environment of brown trout Salmo trutta was linked to post-release performance. Enrichment resulted in reduced swimming activity scored in an open field test and reduced movement...

Animal Welfare Institute. 2019. A new beginning for retired laboratory rabbits. Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) Quarterly 68(4) Winter, 10-11.

This article describes the rehoming of 10 laboratory female rabbits now living as a group in a private shelter.

Animal Welfare Institute. 2019. Rabbit enrichment items: Getting bang for the buck (and doe). AWI Quarterly 68(1) Spring, 24-25.

A recent discussion on the Laboratory Animal Refinement and Enrichment Forum (LAREF) focused on new enrichment ideas for rabbits. Contributors shared their experiences about which toys and treats get rave reviews from rabbits.

Peric, T., Comin, A., Corazzin, M., et al. 2018. Hair cortisol concentrations in New Zealand white rabbits subjected to surgery. Animal Welfare 27(1), 13-20.

The aim of this study was to assess hair cortisol concentrations in New Zealand white rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) that were subjected to relocation and surgery to evaluate HPA-axis activity; in addition, we used this marker...