Guinea Pig

Humane endpoints for guinea pigs used for Mycobacterium tuberculosis vaccine research

Guinea pigs are a commonly used model for tuberculosis vaccine research. Loss of body weight is the most frequently described humane endpoint for animals used in these studies. During a chronic study, we noted labored breathing in some tuberculosis-infected guinea...

Year Published: 2018Topics: Disease/Experimental Model, Humane EndpointAnimal Type: Guinea Pig, Rodent

Citation: Collymore, C., Kent, L., Ahn, S. K. et al. 2018. Humane endpoints for guinea pigs used for Mycobacterium tuberculosis vaccine research. Comparative Medicine 68(1), 41–47.

Team awesome: Why we can be proud

The presentation I gave at IAT Congress 2019 was based on the changes and refinements the University of Dundee, Medical School Resource Unit (MSRU) has made over the past 18 months. These changes, described in this paper, include: guinea pig...

Year Published: 2019Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Housing, Husbandry & Management, ReproductionAnimal Type: Guinea Pig, Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: King, J. 2019. Team awesome: Why we can be proud. Animal Technology and Welfare 18(2), 127-131.

Alternatives to carbon dioxide—Taking responsibility for humanely ending the life of animals

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is commonly used to kill rodents. However, a large body of research has now established that CO2 is aversive to them. A multidisciplinary symposium organized by the Swiss Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office discussed the drawbacks...

Year Published: 2019Topics: EuthanasiaAnimal Type: Chinchilla, Gerbil, Guinea Pig, Hamster, Mouse, Other Rodent, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Axiak Flammer, S., Eskes, C., Kohler, I. et al. 2019. Alternatives to carbon dioxide—Taking responsibility for humanely ending the life of animals. Animals 9(8), 482.

Effects of human contact and intra-specific social learning on tonic immobility in guinea pigs, Cavia porcellus

Social learning is the capacity of animals to acquire adaptive information from others. In the case of fear responses, animals can learn fearful or non-fearful responses by observing the behavior of conspecifics. Tonic immobility (TI) is an anti-predatory behavior elicited...

Year Published: 2017Topics: Human-Animal InteractionAnimal Type: Guinea Pig, Rodent

Citation: de Lima Rocha, A. D., Menescal-de-Oliveira, L., da Silva, L. F. S. 2017. Effects of human contact and intra-specific social learning on tonic immobility in guinea pigs, Cavia porcellus. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 191, 1-4.

Validation of a behavioral ethogram for assessing postoperative pain in guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus)

Although guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) have been used in research for more than a century and remain the most prevalent USDA-covered species, little has been elucidated regarding the recognition of clinical pain or analgesic efficacy in this species. We sought...

Year Published: 2016Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Guinea Pig, Rodent

Citation: Dunbar, M. L., David, E. M., Aline, M. R. et al. 2016. Validation of a behavioral ethogram for assessing postoperative pain in guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus). JAALAS 55(1), 29–34.

Evaluation of pain assessment techniques and analgesia efficacy in a female guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) model of surgical pain

Guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) are a frequently used species in research, often involving potentially painful procedures. Therefore, evidence-based recommendations regarding analgesia are critically needed to optimize their wellbeing. Our laboratory examined the efficacy of carprofen and extended-release (ER) buprenorphine, alone...

Year Published: 2017Topics: Analgesia, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Guinea Pig, Rodent

Citation: Oliver, V. L., Athavale, S., Simon, K. E. et al. 2017. Evaluation of pain assessment techniques and analgesia efficacy in a female guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) model of surgical pain. JAALAS 56(4), 425-435.

Pharmacokinetics and adverse effects of 3 sustained-release buprenorphine dosages in healthy guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus)

In guinea pigs, studies addressing the efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetic profiles of different sustained-release buprenorphine (SRB) formulations are still in their infancy. Here we assessed the pharmacokinetic profiles of 3 SRB dosages (SR-LAB, ZooPharm; SRBLow, 0.15 mg/kg; SRBMedium, 0.3 mg/kg;...

Year Published: 2017Topics: AnalgesiaAnimal Type: Guinea Pig, Rodent

Citation: Zanetti, A. S., Putta, S. K., Casebolt, D. B. et al. 2017. Pharmacokinetics and adverse effects of 3 sustained-release buprenorphine dosages in healthy guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus). JAALAS 56(6), 768-778.

Instituting dark-colored cover to improve central space use within guinea pig enclosure

Domestic guinea pigs (Cavia aperea f. porcellus) in laboratories have been shown to actively avoid the centers of their cages. This experiment tested a novel, dark-colored “shader” placed over the central portion of a cage. Based on the observed behavior...

Year Published: 2016Topics: Environmental Enrichment, HousingAnimal Type: Guinea Pig, Rodent

Citation: Byrd, C. P., Winnicker, C., Gaskill, B. N. 2016. Instituting dark-colored cover to improve central space use within guinea pig enclosure. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 19(4), 408-413.

Animal facility videoendoscopic intubation station: Tips and tricks from mice to rabbits

Endotracheal intubation of laboratory animals is a common procedure shared by several research fields for different purposes, such as mechanical ventilation of anaesthetized animals, instillation of cytotoxic nanoparticles, infectious agents or tumour cells for induction of disease models, and even...

Year Published: 2017Topics: Cannulation, Catheterization, & IntubationAnimal Type: Guinea Pig, Mouse, Rabbit, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Miranda, A., Pego, J. M., Correia-Pinto, J. 2017. Animal facility videoendoscopic intubation station: Tips and tricks from mice to rabbits. Laboratory Animals 51(2), 204-207.

The gingival vein as a minimally traumatic site for multiple blood sampling in guinea pigs and hamsters

Laboratory animals are still necessary in scientific investigation and vaccine testing, but while novel methodological approaches are not available for their replacement, the search for new, humane, easy, and painless methods is necessary to diminish their stress and pain. When...

Year Published: 2017Topics: Biological Sampling & Physiological MeasurementAnimal Type: Guinea Pig, Hamster, Rodent

Citation: Rodrigues, M. V., de Castro, S. O., de Albuquerque, C. Z. 2017. The gingival vein as a minimally traumatic site for multiple blood sampling in guinea pigs and hamsters. PLOS ONE 12(5), e0177967.