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. 
Figueiredo, F., Aragão, C., Pinto, W. et al. 2020. Optimizing rearing and welfare in Senegalese sole (Solea senegalesensis) broodstock: Effect of ambient light intensity and handling time on stress response. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 222, 104880.

Broodstock rearing conditions and handling procedures should be optimized in aquaculture species in order to benefit fish welfare and guarantee optimal conditions for spawning. In teleosts, basal cortisol levels display daily rhythms, oscillating along the...

da Silva, A., Lima, M. R., Meletti, P. C. et al. 2020. Impact of environmental enrichment and social group size in the aggressiveness and foraging activity of Serrapinnus notomelas. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 224, 104943.

Fish are widely used in scientific research, and many species are bred for ornamental purposes and human consumption. Despite the large number of fish kept in captivity, research on the welfare of these animals has...

Hubert, J., Neo, Y. Y., Winter, H. V. et al. 2020. The role of ambient sound levels, signal-to-noise ratio, and stimulus pulse rate on behavioural disturbance of seabass in a net pen. Behavioural Processes 170, 103992.

Anthropogenic sources increasingly contribute to the underwater soundscape and this may negatively impact aquatic life, including fish. Anthropogenic sound may mask relevant sound, alter behaviour, physiology, and may lead to physical injury. Behavioural effect studies...

Hanzen, C., Lucas, M. C., OʼBrien, G. et al. 2020. Surgical implantation of radio tags in three eel species (Anguilla spp.) in South Africa. Journal of Fish Biology 96(3), 847-852.

Studies have reported poor survival of surgically tagged freshwater fishes in warm African waters. This study aimed to assess the applicability of using radio telemetry (and surgical implantation of tags) for Anguilla spp. Nineteen yellow...

Rogers, L., Sales, E., Shamsi, S. et al. 2020. Aggressive encounters lead to negative affective state in fish. PLOS ONE 15(4), e0231330.

Animals show various behavioural, neural and physiological changes in response to losing aggressive encounters. Here, we investigated affective state, which are emotion-like processes influenced by positive or negative experiences, in a territorial fish following aggressive...

Skov, C., Hansen, J. H., Baktoft, H. et al. 2020. A field evaluation of long‐term effects of PIT tagging. Journal of Fish Biology 96(4), 1055-1059.

Passive integrated transponder (PIT)‐tagging is commonly used in behavioural studies of fish, although long‐term evaluations of effects from tagging under natural conditions are scarce. We PIT‐tagged common bream Abramis brama, European perch Perca fluviatilis, pike...

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...

Amaya, V., Paterson, M. B. A., Phillips, C. J. C. 2020. Effects of olfactory and auditory enrichment on the behaviour of shelter dogs. Animals 10(4), 581.

Shelter environments are stressful for dogs, as they must cope with many stimuli over which they have little control. This can lead to behavioural changes, negatively affect their welfare and downgrade the human‐animal bond, affecting...

Alfonso, S., Sadoul, B., Cousin, X. et al. 2020. Spatial distribution and activity patterns as welfare indicators in response to water quality changes in European sea bass, Dicentrarchus labrax. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 226, 104974.

In aquaculture, fish are exposed to unavoidable stressors that can be detrimental for their health and welfare. However, welfare in farmed fish can be difficult to assess, and, so far, no standardized test has been...

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...

Chu, D. 2020. Malawi cichlids: A colorful 4th R story. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(3) (May/June), 24-25.

This article describes the successful rehoming of 60 Malawi cichlids from a vivarium at Stanford University to San Diego Zoo and the California Academy of Sciences.

Barber, J. 2020. Getting to know Siamese fighting fish. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(3) (May/June), 26-27.

This article describes the biology, husbandry, and care of Siamese fighting fish (also known as the betta fish) at Columbia University.

Arechavala-Lopez, P., Caballero-Froilán, J. C., Jiménez-García, M. et al. 2020. Enriched environments enhance cognition, exploratory behaviour and brain physiological functions of Sparus aurata. Scientific Reports 10, 11252.

Environmental enrichment is considered as a recommended tool to guarantee or improve the welfare of captive fish. This study demonstrates for the first time that structural environmental enrichment enhances cognition, exploratory behaviour and brain physiological...

Turcsán, B., Tátrai, K., Petró, E. et al. 2020. Comparison of behavior and genetic structure in populations of family and kenneled beagles. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 7, 183.

In dogs, the social and spatial restriction associated with living in a kennel environment could lead to chronic stress and the development of abnormal behaviors (“kennel-dog syndrome”). However, little is known about how kenneled dogs...

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...

Ibrahim, S. A., Goma, A. A., Alsenosy, A.-w. A. 2020. Springing bottles enrichment toy effect on behaviors and cortisol level of kenneled dogs (Canis lupus familiaris). Alexandria Journal of Veterinary Sciences 66(2), 20-29.

Environmental enrichment used in captive animals with goals of increasing the activity, behavioral diversity, utilization of the environment and reducing abnormal behaviors. The present study was designed to determine the springing feeding bottles toy ameliorative...

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...

Kendrick, J., Stow, R., Ibbotson, N. et al. 2020. A novel welfare and scientific approach to conducting dog metabolism studies allowing dogs to be pair housed. Laboratory Animals 54(6), 588-598.

Metabolism cages are designed to conduct absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion (ADME) studies, enabling an ‘excretion balance’ scientific objective to be met. Historically, the design of dog metabolism cages has involved single housing. This type...

Buchanan, K. 2020. DIY: Frozen chicken broth treats. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(6) (November/December), 37.

This article gives the recipe for making dog treats. These treats are not only refreshing for dogs, but also easy to make. Mix and match dog friendly fruits and veggies to make many treat varieties.

Chapa, J. M., Maschat, K., Iwersen, M. et al. 2020. Accelerometer systems as tools for health and welfare assessment in cattle and pigs – A review. Behavioural Processes 181, 104262.

Welfare assessment has traditionally been performed by direct observation by humans, providing information at only selected points in time. Recently, this assessment method has been questioned, as ‘Precision Livestock Farming’ technologies may be able to...

Cloutier Barbour, C., Danforth, M. D., Murphy, H. et al. 2020. Monitoring great ape heart health through innovative electrocardiogram technology: Training methodologies and welfare implications. Zoo Biology 39(6), 443-447.

Assessing and treating cardiovascular disease (or heart disease) is a growing concern for institutions housing great apes, as it is a major cause of mortality in all four taxa managed in human care. As part...

Dorey, N. R., Blandina, A., Udell, M. A. R. 2020. Clicker training does not enhance learning in mixed-breed shelter puppies (Canis familiaris). Journal of Veterinary Behavior 39, 57-63.

Clicker training has been a popular form of training for decades and is used in zoos, aquariums, and shelters. Only a handful of studies have investigated the efficacy of the clicker-training method itself despite its...

Griffin, K. E., John, E., Pike, T. et al. 2020. Can this dog be rehomed to you? A qualitative analysis and assessment of the scientific quality of the potential adopter screening policies and procedures of rehoming organisations. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 7, 1121.

Unwanted dogs are an international problem, and rehoming organisations are tasked with finding many of them appropriate homes. Whilst the processes involved in assessing dogs' suitability for rehoming have received considerable academic attention, the policies...

Pérez Fraga, P., Gerencsér, L., Andics, A. 2020. Human proximity seeking in family pigs and dogs. Scientific Reports 10(1), 20883.

Family dogs (Canis familiaris) seek human contact from an early age, can discriminate and prefer their caregivers over other humans. To investigate if being kept as a family animal is sufficient to induce similar early...

Ruberto, T., Talbot, J. L., Reddon, A. R. 2020. Head up displays are a submission signal in the group-living daffodil cichlid. Behavioural Processes 181, 104271.

Dominance hierarchies can reduce conflict within social groups and agonistic signals can help to establish and maintain these hierarchies. Behaviours produced by subordinates in response to aggression are often assumed to function as signals of...