In standard laboratory environments mice are housed at 20-24 °C. However, their thermoneutral zone ranges between 26 °C and 34 °C. This challenge to homeostasis is by definition stressful, and could therefore affect many aspects...
The cotton rat (Sigmodon hispidus) presents a unique susceptibility towards human pathogens and is currently used in studies of human respiratory syncytial virus, adenovirus, and parainfluenza virus. Though valuable, this animal model has earned a...
Veterinary technician Evelyn Skoumbourdis and environmental enrichment coordinator Casey Coke Murphy discuss proper feeding of small laboratory mammals.
Stereotypic behaviours are common in animals in impoverished housing, arising from two complementary processes: (1) thwarted attempts to perform motivated behaviours; (2) forebrain dysfunction impeding normal behavioural inhibition. When enriched animals are moved to impoverished...
It is now more than 20 years since both Council of Europe Convention ETS123 and EU Directive 86/609/EEC were introduced, to promote the implementation of the Three Rs in animal experimentation and to provide guidance...
The result demonstrates that bedding material, a variable not often considered in research, could have profound influence on the data for many studies of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, or metabolism.
To do justice to the diverse approaches to enrichment and behavioral management around the world would entail a discussion beyond the limits of this publication. Therefore, guidelines and regulations in a representative sample of countries...
Environmental enrichment must be provided for the various animal species that are housed in laboratory animal facilities. Wheatgrass can be used as a natural form of enrichment that requires minimal preparation and effort. Wheatgrass is...
Laboratory rats are typically housed in clear or opaque cages on multi-tiered racks. Clear-walled cages allow a view of the room and facilitate visual social contact with neighbouring rats but may induce anxiety due to...
Rats can be playfully handled (tickled) in a manner that mimics playful social contact with conspecifics. We hypothesized that the timing of tickling in relation to an intraperitoneal injection would affect the efficacy of tickling...