Recently environmental enrichment for laboratory housed fish has received increasing levels of attention from a variety of interested parties from hobbyists, through animal technologists and aquaculturists, to scientists. Over the last few years, the growth...
The average survival rate for our Zebrafish (ZF) embryos was 65%. When it was time to create our next generation of Wild Type (WT) (used for embryo production), we decided to run a trial focussing...
Fin clipping of live fish under anaesthesia is widely used to collect tissues samples for DNA extraction. However, this technique raises a number of ethical concerns, since the use of anaesthetic and/or physical fin damage...
The zebrafish has become a valuable research model within the laboratory. Currently the proven method of genotyping involves taking a tail fin clip from the fish to gain the sample. This involves surgically removing a...
Recent empirical studies have reported evidence that many aquatic species, including fish, cephalopods and crustaceans, have the capacity for nociception and pain, and that their welfare should be taken into consideration. Some sceptics, rejecting the...
Local anesthetics are an integral part of routine pain management in mammals, yet their use is relatively limited in fish, amphibians and reptiles. These animals frequently undergo potentially painful surgical procedures and therefore could possibly...
The health of laboratory animals is an ethical responsibility of researchers and a critical determinant of experimental outcome. Therefore, all Husbandry & Management procedures should be evaluated for their effects on mortality, behavior, and physiology...
Despite increased use of zebrafish (Danio rerio) in biomedical research, consistent information regarding appropriate euthanasia methods, particularly for embryos, is sparse. Current literature indicates that rapid cooling is an effective method of euthanasia for adult...
Analgesics are an integral part of routine pain management in mammals, yet their use in fish is still limited. Some recommendations on the use of analgesics in fish are currently in the literature; however, information...
Millions of laboratory animals are killed each year worldwide. There is an ethical, and in many countries also a legal, imperative to ensure those deaths cause minimal suffering. However, there is a lack of consensus...