Rat

Lab toys – How does cage enrichment affect rodents?

Excellent review of practical questions pertaining to environmental enrichment for rats and mice.

Year Published: 2009Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Katsnelson, A. 2009. Lab toys - How does cage enrichment affect rodents? The Scientist 23(10), 30.

Effects of physical activiy and group size on animal welfare in laboratory rats

Ras kept in larger groups had more social interactions and an improved performance in the exercise test and did also show more explorative activity and reduced emotional reactivity.''

Year Published: 2009Animal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Spangenberg, E., Dahlborn, K., Ess?n-Gustavsson, B. et al. 2009. Effects of physical activiy and group size on animal welfare in laboratory rats. Animal Welfare 8, 159-169.

Decline in aggression in cotton rats through the use of enrichment

The cotton rat (Sigmodon hispidus) presents a unique susceptibility towards human pathogens and is currently used in studies of human respiratory syncytial virus, adenovirus, and parainfluenza virus. Though valuable, this animal model has earned a challenging reputation with husbandry, veterinary,...

Year Published: 2009Topics: Environmental Enrichment, HousingAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Neubauer, T. L., Zabriskie, R., Buckmaster, C. A. 2009. Decline in aggression in cotton rats through the use of enrichment. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 609 (Abstract #P157).

There’s a rat in my room! Now what? Mice show now chronic physiological response to the presence of rats

The study concluded that housing rats and mice in the same room is at least less disturbing than cage cleaning.

Year Published: 2009Animal Type: Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Meijer, M. K., van Loo, P. L. P., Baumans, V. 2009. There's a rat in my room! Now what? Mice show now chronic physiological response to the presence of rats. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 12, 293-305.

Adult rats exposed to early-life social isolation exhibit increased anxiety and conditioned fear behavior, and altered hormonal stress responses

Social isolation of rodents during development is thought to be a relevant model of early-life chronic stress. We investigated the effects of early-life social isolation on later adult fear and anxiety behavior, and on corticosterone stress responses, in male rats....

Year Published: 2009Animal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Lukkes, J. L., Mokin, M. V., Scholl, J. L. et al. 2009. Adult rats exposed to early-life social isolation exhibit increased anxiety and conditioned fear behavior, and altered hormonal stress responses. Hormones and Behavior 55, 248-256.

Sublingual blood collection in unanesthetized rats

This technique can be used with minimal resources while at the same time exposing the animal to minimal damage and discomfort.

Year Published: 2009Animal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Kohlert, D. J. 2009. Sublingual blood collection in unanesthetized rats. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 79 (Abstract).

Playful handling mitigates the stressfulness of injections in laboratory rats

Rats can be playfully handled (tickled) in a manner that mimics playful social contact with conspecifics. We hypothesized that the timing of tickling in relation to an intraperitoneal injection would affect the efficacy of tickling in reducing stress associated with...

Year Published: 2010Topics: Drug/Substance Administration, HandlingAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Cloutier, S., Wahl, K., Newberry, R. C. 2010. Playful handling mitigates the stressfulness of injections in laboratory rats. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 721 (Abstract #P126).

Physiological and behavioural responses of laboratory rats housed at different tier levels and levels of visual contact with conspecifics and humans

Laboratory rats are typically housed in clear or opaque cages on multi-tiered racks. Clear-walled cages allow a view of the room and facilitate visual social contact with neighbouring rats but may induce anxiety due to lack of visual cover. We...

Year Published: 2010Topics: Housing, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Cloutier, S., Newberry, R. C. 2010. Physiological and behavioural responses of laboratory rats housed at different tier levels and levels of visual contact with conspecifics and humans. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 125(1-2), 69-79.

Organic wheatgrass as environmental enrichment

Environmental enrichment must be provided for the various animal species that are housed in laboratory animal facilities. Wheatgrass can be used as a natural form of enrichment that requires minimal preparation and effort. Wheatgrass is appropriate enrichment for cats, rabbits,...

Year Published: 2010Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Bird, Cat, Chicken, Finch, Guinea Pig, Mouse, Other Bird, Parrot, Rabbit, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Brown, C. 2010. Organic wheatgrass as environmental enrichment. Lab Animal 39(3), 74-75.

Enrichment and behavioral management programs around the world

To do justice to the diverse approaches to enrichment and behavioral management around the world would entail a discussion beyond the limits of this publication. Therefore, guidelines and regulations in a representative sample of countries in select regions of the...

Year Published: 2010Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Housing, Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: All/General, Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Bayne, K. 2010. Enrichment and behavioral management programs around the world. Enrichment Record 4, 4-7.