Rat

Long-term effects of housing and enrichment on affective behavior and responsiveness of Sprague-Dawley rats

Most rodent studies evaluate different caging paradigms over short periods of time, which may not be realistic for typical colony settings. Inappropriate housing may lead to boredom, aggression, stereotypies, and altered metabolism, which in turn may affect experimental responses. In...

Year Published: 2010Topics: Abnormal/Problematic Behavior, Environmental Enrichment, Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Turner, P. V., Ovari, J., Pinelli, C. et al. 2010. Long-term effects of housing and enrichment on affective behavior and responsiveness of Sprague-Dawley rats. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 658-659 (Abstract #PS12).

Environmental enrichment induces optimistic cognitive bias in rats

People's affective or emotional state can alter their cognitive processing, biasing interpretation of ambiguous stimuli. Those in a more positive state interpret such stimuli in a more optimistic manner than those in a negative state. Recently this research has extended...

Year Published: 2011Topics: Emotion, Pain, & Sentience, Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Brydges, N. M., Leach, M., Nicol, K. et al. 2011. Environmental enrichment induces optimistic cognitive bias in rats. Animal Behaviour 81(1), 169-175.

Post-surgical environmental enrichment in rodents

Environmental enrichment is a key component of rodent animal welfare since it influences the animal's overall well-being, provides opportunities for activity, and encourages rodent appropriate behaviors. Many aspects of rodent enrichment have received a significant amount of attention during the...

Year Published: 2010Topics: Social Housing & Companionship, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Baran, S. W., Froberg-Fejko, K., Lecker, J. et al. 2010. Post-surgical environmental enrichment in rodents. Enrichment Record 3, 4-6.

The effects of enhancing cage complexity on the behaviour and welfare of laboratory rats

This experiment was carried out to investigate the long-term effects of enhancing cage complexity on behavioural measures of welfare in laboratory rats. We housed 72 rats in groups of four in either ‘enriched' or ‘unenriched' cages for six weeks. Scan...

Year Published: 2010Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Abou-Ismail, U. A., Burman, O. H. P., Nicol, C. J. et al. 2010. The effects of enhancing cage complexity on the behaviour and welfare of laboratory rats. Behavioural Processes 85(2), 172-180.

Effect of animal facility construction on basal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal and renin-aldosterone activity in the rat

Although loud noise and intense vibration are known to alter the behavior and phenotype of laboratory animals, little is known about the effects of nearby construction. We studied the effect of a nearby construction project on the classic stress hormones...

Year Published: 2011Topics: Handling, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Raff, H., Bruder, E. D., Cullinan, W. E. et al. 2011. Effect of animal facility construction on basal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal and renin-aldosterone activity in the rat. Endocrinology 152(4), 1218-1221.

Decline in aggression in cotton rats through enrichment

The tubes provide shelter and nesting material to the rats, allowing them to exhibit species-specific behaviors. The change in the animals' behavior has been overwhelming. The rats are much less aggressive; in one year, fight wounds in our cotton rats...

Year Published: 2011Topics: Environmental Enrichment, HousingAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Neubauer, T., Buckmaster, C. 2011. Decline in aggression in cotton rats through enrichment. Tech Talk [The Newsletter for Laboratory Animal Science Technicians] 16(4), 2-3.

Is full physical contact necessary for buffering effects of pair housing on social stress in rats?

Our previous study showed that pair housing with a familiar male prevented an increase in anxiety caused by social defeat in male rats. The present study attempted to identify the aspects of social interactions with a familiar male that are...

Year Published: 2011Topics: Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Nakayasu, T., Kato, K. 2011. Is full physical contact necessary for buffering effects of pair housing on social stress in rats? Behavioural Processes 86(2), 230-235.

Refining cage change routines: Comparison of cardiovascular responses to three different ways of cage change in rats

Cage change is one of the unavoidable routines in laboratory rodent care. However, cage change disrupts the rodents' olfactory environment and can evoke stress reactions. In this study, the short-term cardiovascular responses to three different cage change procedures were compared...

Year Published: 2011Topics: Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Meller, A., Kasanen, I., Rukšėnas, O. et al. 2011. Refining cage change routines: Comparison of cardiovascular responses to three different ways of cage change in rats. Laboratory Animals 45(3), 167-173.

Comparative analysis of blood sampling techniques in the rat

Blood sampling is one of the most common procedures performed on laboratory animals as part of scientific research. As an ongoing commitment, our institution has identified a need to improve the current blood sampling method in rats from both a...

Year Published: 2011Topics: Biological Sampling & Physiological MeasurementAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Mathieu, C. 2011. Comparative analysis of blood sampling techniques in the rat. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 738 (Abstract #PS81).

How do rats respond to playing radio in the animal facility?

In the animal facility, a range of different sounds are present. On the one hand, rats and humans will regard sound and noise differently even within the audible range, but on the other hand mice and rats being very adaptable...

Year Published: 2011Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Krohn, T. C., Salling, B., Kornerup Hansen, A. 2011. How do rats respond to playing radio in the animal facility? Laboratory Animals 45(3), 141-144.