Mouse

Home improvement: mice with more naturalistic nesting materials build better nests

Environmental enrichment of laboratory mice can improve the quality of research, but debate arises over the means of enrichment and its ability to be used in a sterile environment. One important form of enrichment is nesting material. Mice in the...

Year Published: 2008Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Hess SE, Rohr S, Dufour B, et al. 2008. Home improvement: mice with more naturalistic nesting materials build better nests. J Am Assoc Lab Anim Sci. 47;25-31.

Small changes, big results

This paper examines how weaning age influences the welfare of laboratory mice. Results indicate that delaying weaning reduces adult anxiety, as measured by an elevated plus-maze. In females, weaning at a later age seems to decrease the prevalence of both...

Year Published: 2007Animal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Bechard, A. 2007. Small changes, big results. Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) Quarterly 56(3), 17.

Enforced restraint of rodents: A discussion by the Refinement & Enrichment Forum

The question was asked: "Rodents are often restrained for data collection procedures, such as blood collection and injection, by coaxing them into tubes, for example syringe cylinders or perspex tubes. What can be done to buffer the stress response of...

Year Published: 2007Topics: Animal Training, RestraintAnimal Type: Guinea Pig, Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Barley, J., Mikkelsen, L. F., Francis, R. et al. 2007. Enforced restraint of rodents: A discussion by the Refinement & Enrichment Forum. Animal Technology and Welfare 6(1), 11-13.

Quality of life and the rodent laboratory

Preference studies show that lab mice and rats value opportunities to take cover, build nests, explore, forage, and gain social contact, behavioural needs that are by and large thwarted by standard laboratory housing systems. Eighty additional studies were reviewed to...

Year Published: 2007Animal Type: Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Balcombe, J. P. 2007. Quality of life and the rodent laboratory. Animal Welfare 16 Supplement(Poster abstract), 166.

A targeted approach to developing environmental enrichment for two strains of laboratory mice

Previous studies on environmental enrichment have generally placed a purported enrichment in the cage and observed changes in behavioural and physiological indicators of welfare. However, many of these enrichments are not purposely designed, or appear to be designed with anthropomorphic...

Year Published: 2008Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Nicol, C. J., Brocklebank, S., Mendl, M. et al. 2008. A targeted approach to developing environmental enrichment for two strains of laboratory mice. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 110(3-4), 341-353.

Identification of appropriate measures for the assessment of laboratory mouse welfare

A Delphi consultation process was used to examine the validity and feasibility of potential resource-input and animal-based outcome measures of laboratory mouse welfare identified by a comprehensive literature search. The consultation was an iterative two-stage technique that used web and...

Year Published: 2008Animal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Leach, M. C., Thornton, P. D., Main, D. C. J. 2008. Identification of appropriate measures for the assessment of laboratory mouse welfare. Animal Welfare 17, 161-170.

Can we improve the welfare of laboratory mice by cleaning their cages less frequently? Lab Animal 37(5), 216-217

Preliminary results suggest that the frequency of cage cleaning did not affect the stress response in the mice studied.

Year Published: 2008Animal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Latham, N., Mason, G., Dawkins, M. 2008. Can we improve the welfare of laboratory mice by cleaning their cages less frequently? Lab Animal 37(5), 216-217.

Effects of a running wheel-igloo enrichment on aggression, hierarchy linearity, and stereotypy in group-housed male CD-1 (ICR) mice

Environmental enrichment is an important strategy to improve the welfare of laboratory animals. Running wheels might serve as enrichment devices for laboratory mice, since mice use them extensively when they are provided. However, competition among group-housed mice for such highly...

Year Published: 2008Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Howerton, C. L., Garner, J. P., Mench, J. A. 2008. Effects of a running wheel-igloo enrichment on aggression, hierarchy linearity, and stereotypy in group-housed male CD-1 (ICR) mice. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 115, 90-103.

Home Improvement: C57BL/6J Mice Given More Naturalistic Nesting Materials Build Better Nests

Year Published: 2008Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Hess, S. E., Rohr, S., Dufour, B. D. et al. 2008. Home Improvement: C57BL/6J Mice Given More Naturalistic Nesting Materials Build Better Nests . Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [Contemporary Topics in Laboratory Animal Science] 47(6), 25-32.

Report of the 2006 RSPCA/UFAW Rodent Welfare Group meeting

The RSPCA/UFAW Rodent Welfare Group holds a one-day meeting every autumn to discuss current welfare research and to exchange views on rodent welfare issues. A key aim of the group is to encourage people to think about the lifetime experience...

Year Published: 2008Topics: Disease/Experimental Model, Euthanasia, Housing, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Reed, B., Hawkins, P., Latham, N. et al. 2008. Report of the 2006 RSPCA/UFAW Rodent Welfare Group meeting. Lab Animal 37(5), 216-222.