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. 
Wiley, J. N., Leeds, A., Carpenter, K. D. et al. 2018. Patterns of wounding in hamadryas baboons (Papio hamadryas) in North American zoos. Zoo Biology 37(2), 74–79.

In North American zoos, hamadryas baboons (Papio hamadryas) have traditionally been housed as single one‐male units (single male groups). In recent years, efforts have been made to house hamadryas in groups composed of multiple one‐male...

Coke, C., Skoumbourdis, E., Rodgers, J. C. et al. 2018. Blunting/cutting canines of adult male monkeys: A discussion by the Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum. Animal Technology & Welfare 17(2), 105-107.

"When you keep adult Rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta) males, adult Cynomolgus (Macaca fascicularis) males or adult Vervet males (Chlorocebus pygerythrus), in the same enclosure, is it advisable to have the canines of the males blunted...

Lutz, C. K. 2018. A cross-species comparison of abnormal behavior in three species of singly-housed old world monkeys. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 199, 52-58.

Abnormal behavior occurs in a number of captive nonhuman primate species and is often used as an indicator of welfare. However, reported levels of abnormal behavior often vary across species, making general welfare judgments difficult...

Mason, A., Tolo, E., Hektoen, L. et al. 2018. The effect of electrical head-to-chest stunning on the EEG in sheep. Animal Welfare 27(4), 343-350.

Head-to-body stunning is regarded as ‘best practice’ stunning for sheep. The benefits are loss of consciousness followed by cardiac arrest, death, prevention of animal movements post stun/kill and improved meat quality. Commercial equipment places electrodes...

Cannas, S., Palestrini, C., Canali, E. et al. 2018. Thermography as a non-invasive measure of stress and fear of humans in sheep. Animals 8(9), 146.

No data have been published on the use of infrared thermography (IRT) to evaluate sheep emotions. We assessed whether this technique can be used as a non-invasive measure of negative emotions. Two voluntary animal approach...

Tamioso, P. R., Maiolino Molento, C. F., Boivin, X. et al. 2018. Inducing positive emotions: Behavioural and cardiac responses to human and brushing in ewes selected for high vs low social reactivity. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 208, 56-65.

Welfare concerns not only the absence of negative emotional experiences but also the presence of positive experiences. However, scientific investigation on positive emotions in farm animals has been long neglected. This study aimed to investigate...

Grant, E. P., Brown, A., Wickham, S. L. et al. 2018. What can the quantitative and qualitative behavioural assessment of videos of sheep moving through an autonomous data capture system tell us about welfare? Applied Animal Behaviour Science 208, 31-39.

Sheep can be exposed to a variety of challenges and failure to adapt to these challenges can compromise their health and wellbeing. Regular monitoring of stock on large-scale or extensive systems may not always be...

Damián, J. P., Hötzel, M. J., Banchero, G. et al. 2018. Growing without a mother during rearing affects the response to stressors in rams. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 209, 36-40.

Early maternal care contributes to the normal development of the physiological, social and emotional functions of the offspring. As sheep are a strongly gregarious species, separation and isolation of an individual from the flock provokes...

Perdue, B. M., Beran, M. J., Washburn, D. A. 2018. A computerized testing system for primates: Cognition, welfare, and the Rumbaughx. Behavioural Processes 156, 37-50.

Innovations in apparatus technology come about for a variety of reasons such as the need to use the same methodology with various species, the opportunity to present dynamic and carefully controlled stimuli, the goal of...

González-Pech, P. G., Marín-Tun, C. G., Valladares-González, D.A. et al. 2018. A protocol of human animal interaction to habituate young sheep and goats for behavioural studies. Behavioural Processes 157, 632-637.

Animal habituation is key to obtain reliable data on behavioural studies but detailed procedures to achieve it are scarce. This study designed a set of actions to habituate sheep and goats to human observers. Pelibuey...

Edwards, G. L., Michael, J. A., Parks., A. 2018. Agricultural animals as biomedical models: Occupational health and safety considerations. ILAR Journal 59(2), 161-167.

The use of agricultural animals in biomedical research is increasing. Their overall size and metabolic rate, organ size, longer gestation period, and other physiological similarities make them good candidates for animal models of human disease...

O’Rourke, D. P., Baccanale, C. L., Stoskopf, M. K. 2018. Nontraditional laboratory animal species (cephalopods, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and birds). ILAR Journal 59(2), 168-176.

Aquatic vertebrates and cephalopods, amphibians, reptiles, and birds offer unique safety and occupational health challenges for laboratory animal personnel. This paper discusses environmental, handling, and zoonotic concerns associated with these species.

De, K., Saxena, V. K., Balaganur, K. et al. 2018. Effect of short-term seclusion of sheep on their welfare indicators. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 27, 1-7.

Separation from the group is a potent stressor for sheep and may have an adverse effect on animal welfare. Therefore, the present study was initiated to determine the effect of short-term seclusion of sheep on...

Heyworth, C., Olivo, D. 2018. Environmental and psychological enrichment for NHPs reimagined and repurposed. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 5(4) (December), 39-43.

This article describes creative enrichment ideas for nonhuman primates, including celery stalks embedded with seeds; paper rolled into tubes, braided and filled with fruit and seeds; pineapple crowns loaded with treats; dry spaghetti noodles coated...

Camacho, J., Morris, J. 2018. Breaking down the barriers: Social housing of previously single-housed adult baboons. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 5(4) (December), 55-57.

An important responsibility of each institution is to challenge preconceived notions that may limit social housing. At our institution’s center for comparative medicine (CCM), we recently challenged a historical mindset that 2 large (>25 kg)...

Unakafov, A. M., Möller, S., Kagan, I. et al. 2018. Using imaging photoplethysmography for heart rate estimation in non-human primates. PLOS ONE 13(8), e0202581.

For humans and for non-human primates heart rate is a reliable indicator of an individual’s current physiological state, with applications ranging from health checks to experimental studies of cognitive and emotional state. In humans, changes...

Iske, C. J., Morris, C. L., Colpoys, J. D. et al. 2018. Nutrient evaluation of a pork by-product and its use as environmental enrichment for managed large exotic cats. PLOS ONE 13(9), e0202144.

North American zoological institutions typically feed ground raw meat diets to large exotic cats. These diets typically are nutritionally complete, but lack physical properties characteristic of whole prey. Lack of mastication and prey manipulation may...

Norton, B. B., Tunseth, D., Holder, K. et al. 2018. Causes of morbidity in captive African lions (Panthera leo) in North America, 2001–2016. Zoo Biology 37(5), 354-359.

The lion (Panthera leo) is an iconic resident of zoos and wild animal parks throughout the world. Regular assessment of the morbidity of captive lions is necessary to address wellness concerns and improve the healthcare...

Ekesbo, I., Gunnarsson, S. 2018. Farm Animal Behaviour: Characteristics for Assessment and Welfare (2nd ed). CABI, Wallingford, UK.

Completely updated and revised, and with a new author team, this second edition of Farm Animal Behaviour continues to provide essential information on normal and stereotypic behaviors in a wide variety of farm animals to...

Straticò, P., Varasano, V., Suriano, R. et al. 2018. Analgesic effects of intravenous flunixin and intrafunicular lidocaine or their combination for castration of lambs. Veterinary Record Open 5(1), e000266.

Objective: To analyse the effectiveness of intrafunicular lidocaine and intravenous flunixin for reducing pain and signs of stress in lambs undergoing surgical castration. Design: Randomised controlled trial. Setting: One university teaching hospital in Italy. Participants...

Vaz, J., Narayan, E. J., Dileep Kumar, R. et al. 2017. Prevalence and determinants of stereotypic behaviours and physiological stress among tigers and leopards in Indian zoos. PLOS ONE 12(4), e0174711.

India’s charismatic wildlife species are facing immense pressure from anthropogenic-induced environmental perturbations. Zoos play a major role in the conservation of threatened species, but their adaptation in captivity is posing a major challenge globally. Stress...

Häger, C., Biernot, S., Buettner, M. et al. 2017. The Sheep Grimace Scale as an indicator of post-operative distress and pain in laboratory sheep. PLOS ONE 12(4), e0175839.

The EU Directive 2010/63/EU changed the requirements regarding the use of laboratory animals and raised important issues related to assessing the severity of all procedures undertaken on laboratory animals. However, quantifiable parameters to assess severity...

Rooke, J. A., Arnott, G., Dwyer, C. M. et al. 2017. Impact of maternal stress and nutrition on behavioural and physiological outcomes in young lambs. Animal Welfare 26(4), 403-415.

The pre-natal period is of critical importance in defining how individuals respond to their environment throughout life. Stress experienced by pregnant females has detrimental effects on offspring behaviour, health and productivity. The sheep (Ovis aries)...

Pasmans, F., Bogaerts, S., Braeckman, J. et al. 2017. Future of keeping pet reptiles and amphibians: Towards integrating animal welfare, human health and environmental sustainability. Veterinary Record 181(17), 450.

The keeping of exotic pets is currently under debate and governments of several countries are increasingly exploring the regulation, or even the banning, of exotic pet keeping. Major concerns are issues of public health and...

Editorial. 2017. Reducing lameness in sheep: new approach recommended. Veterinary Record 180(23), 555.

Farm vets can recommend that sheep farmers stop routine foot trimming to treat lameness in their flocks. Instead, they should treat cases of footrot, the major cause of lameness, with an injectable antibiotic and a...