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. 
Lambert, H., Cornish, A., Waley, D. 2024. The value of regulating stocking densities in aquaculture must not be dismissed: A reply to Saraiva et al. 2022. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 10.

We would like to rebut the argument made by Saraiva et al. (1) in their paper “Finding the “golden stocking density”: a balance between fish welfare and farmers' perspectives,” that stocking densities should not be...

Diao, W., Jia, R., Hou, Y. et al. 2023. Effects of stocking density on the growth performance, physiological parameters, antioxidant status and lipid metabolism of Pelteobagrus fulvidraco in the integrated rice-fish farming system. Animals 13(11), 1721.

Pelteobagrus fulvidraco is a freshwater fish commonly raised in rice fields, yet the optimal stocking density for this species remains unknown. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the appropriate stocking density of P. fulvidraco in...

Peruga, M., Kawala, B., Sarul, M. et al. 2023. Are currently selected laboratory animals useful in the research of how female hormones influence orthodontic biomechanics? Animals 13(4), 629.

Animal testing was and remains the only method of introducing a certain treatment and medical procedure on humans. On the other hand, animals have their rights resulting from applicable legal acts, including Directive 2010/63/EU and...

Baßmann, B., Hahn, L., Rebl, A. et al. 2023. Effects of stocking density, size, and external stress on growth and welfare of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus Burchell, 1822) in a commercial RAS. Fishes 8(2), 74.

The effects of semi-intensive (100 kg m−3), intensive (200 kg m−3), and super-intensive (400 kg m−3) stocking densities on the growth and welfare of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) were investigated under commercial production conditions. Plasma...

Deng, J., Zhang, H., Wang, Q. et al. 2023. An optimized environmental DNA method to improve detectability of the endangered Sichuan taimen (Hucho bleekeri). Fishes 8(7), 339.

Environmental DNA (eDNA) techniques have emerged as a cost-effective and non-invasive strategy for monitoring the distribution of endangered aquatic species. Despite their numerous advantages, operational uncertainty at each step of the process represents a significant...

Schneidewind, S. J., Meemken, D., Langforth, S. 2023. Measures and penalties for animal welfare violations at german abattoirs: A compilation of current recommendations and practices. Animals 13(18), 2916.

Protecting animal welfare during preslaughter handling and slaughter is an important ethical concern with growing importance to consumers. However, animal welfare violations in abattoirs remain a serious problem, and the enforcement of relevant laws and...

Van Loo, P. L. P., Janssens, M. R. E. 2023. Why all healthy laboratory animals should be rehomed, no matter how small. Animals 13(17), 2727.

This paper explores the ethical imperative of rehoming all healthy animals of sentient species after experiments have finished or when they have become otherwise redundant. We take into account disparate perspectives in animal ethics and...

Calisir, M., Yilmaz, O., Kolatan, H. E. et al. 2023. Effects of litter size and caging on physical and mental development in rats. Physiology & Behavior 267, 114200.

As a multidisciplinary field, laboratory animal science promotes or accelerates the emergence of innovative ideas and products. As research has increased, so has the demand for laboratory animals with reliable, standardized characteristics. Thus, the breeding...

Molinaro, H. G., Anderson, G. S., Gruny, L. et al. 2022. Use of blood lactate in assessment of manual capture techniques of zoo-housed crocodilians. Animals 12(3), 397.

Species-specific welfare indicators are important in promoting positive welfare for zoo animals. Reptiles are a notoriously understudied group in regards to behavior, welfare needs, and husbandry requirements. Using opportunistically obtained samples, we evaluated how blood...

Thompson, J. S., Hudson, C. D., Huxley, J. N. et al. 2022. A randomised controlled trial to evaluate the impact of indoor living space on dairy cow production, reproduction and behaviour. Scientific Reports 12(1), 3849.

As a global society, we have a duty to provide suitable care and conditions for farmed livestock to protect animal welfare and ensure the sustainability of our food supply. The suitability and biological impacts of...

Saraiva, J. L., Rachinas-Lopes, P., Arechavala-Lopez, P. 2022. Finding the “golden stocking density”: A balance between fish welfare and farmers’ perspectives. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 9, 930221.

The effects of stocking density on fish welfare are complex and involve many interacting parameters. This complex relationship between fish welfare, stocking density and influencing factors make it challenging to define a specific optimal (“golden”)...

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...

Carbone, L. 2021. Estimating mouse and rat use in American laboratories by extrapolation from Animal Welfare Act-regulated species. Scientific Reports 11(1), 493.

Alone among Western nations, the United States has a two-tier system for welfare protections for vertebrate animals in research. Because its Animal Welfare Act (AWA) excludes laboratory rats and mice (RM), government veterinarians do not...

Lange, A., Waiblinger, S., van Hasselt, R. et al. 2021. Effects of restraint on heifers during gentle human-animal interactions. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 243, 105445.

Gentle human-animal interactions can induce positive emotions in cattle and enhance their welfare. We investigated whether a change in the animals’ perceived control over the situation influences their perception of the interactions. We compared the...

Zemanova, M. A. 2021. Noninvasive genetic assessment is an effective wildlife research tool when compared with other approaches. Genes 12(11), 1672.

Wildlife research has been indispensable for increasing our insight into ecosystem functioning as well as for designing effective conservation measures under the currently high rates of biodiversity loss. Genetic and genomic analyses might be able...

Ludwig, J. L. 2020. Is that a rat in your pocket? A novel pocket method for rat restraint. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(1) (January/February), 48-49.

At the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign (UIUC), we routinely teach novice research personnel how to appropriately handle, restrain, and perform basic experimental techniques on rats. Barriers to teaching include fear of animal bites...

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...

Park, R. M., Foster, M., Daigle, C. L. 2020. A scoping review: The impact of housing systems and environmental features on beef cattle welfare. Animals 10(4), 565.

Housing systems and environmental features can influence beef cattle welfare. To date, little information has been synthesized on this topic. The aim of this scoping review was to examine the relationship between housing and welfare...

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...

Tilley, C. A., Carreño Gutierrez, H., Sebire, M. et al. 2020. Skin swabbing is a refined technique to collect DNA from model fish species. Scientific Reports 10(1), 18212.

Model fish species such as sticklebacks and zebrafish are frequently used in studies that require DNA to be collected from live animals. This is typically achieved by fin clipping, a procedure that is simple and...

Cortese, M., Brščić, M., Ughelini, N. et al. 2020. Effectiveness of stocking density reduction on mitigating lameness in a Charolais finishing beef cattle farm. Animals 10(7), 1147.

This study aimed at assessing whether a reduction in stocking density (SKD) would mitigate lameness and positively affect the performance and health of Charolais bulls in an Italian commercial farm. Bulls were distributed in groups...

Harper, S. B., Bayne, K., Anderson, K. E. 2020. High-containment agriculture animal research: An AAALAC International perspective. ILAR Journal 61(1), 10-17.

Institutions that conduct high-containment agricultural research involving domestic livestock represent a specialized category of programs that are accredited by AAALAC International. The accreditation process includes a comprehensive assessment of the overall program of animal care...

Nawroth, C., Gygax, L. 2020. The legislative, ethical, and conceptual importance of replicability in farm animal welfare science. agriRxiv 2020, 20203211980.

In this commentary, we discuss three replicability issues that are specifically relevant to research regarding farm animal welfare: (1) Legislative action, and its potential economic consequences, should derive from robust and replicable research to benefit...

Lutz, J., Burla, J.-B., Gygax, L. et al. 2019. Horned and dehorned dairy cows differ in the pattern of agonistic interactions investigated under different space allowances. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 218, 104819.

Limited space in dairy cattle farming is associated with frequent encounters between cows, often resulting in agonistic interactions and injuries, especially in horned cows. Previous studies with dairy cows investigated space allowances in the waiting...

Association of Primate Veterinarians. 2019. Association of Primate Veterinarians’ guidelines for nonhuman primate restraint. JAALAS 58(3), 282-284.

The Association of Primate Veterinarians (APV) recognizes that several forms of restraint, including physical and chemical, are necessary for the safe handling of nonhuman primates (NHPs). The following guidelines aim to provide information to researchers...