Blackburn, N., Cronshaw, G., Mitchell, M. 2020. Environmental enrichment for a small colony of rats. Animal Technology and Welfare 19(2), 158.

Due to limited space and resource for equipment, we came up with some easy and cost-effective ways to improve enrichment for the rat colony. Since implementing our protocol for forage feeding and out of cage enrichment, we have found the rats easier to handle and more confident. A small amount of forage mix is buried in the bedding material of the rat’s home cages during cage cleaning and daily checks, as they spend time foraging until they have found and eaten all of the food. We also hand feed the rats to encourage human interaction and this helps us monitor health effectively as they have to reach up to the cage door to take it. Rats are provided with supervised out of cage enrichment in a larger cage that is small enough to fit inside a downdraft cabinet.