Rodent

Ethological constraints and welfare-related bias in laboratory mice: Implications of housing, lighting, and social environment

Laboratory mice are the most widely used model organisms in biomedical and behavioral research, yet growing concerns regarding reproducibility and translational validity have highlighted the substantial influence of housing and husbandry conditions on experimental outcomes. Although domestication is often assumed...

Year Published: 2026Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Housing, Husbandry & Management, Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Török, H. K., Bárdos, B. 2026. Ethological constraints and welfare-related bias in laboratory mice: Implications of housing, lighting, and social environment. Animals 16(2).

Report of the 2024 RSPCA/UFAW rodent welfare group meeting

The RSPCA/UFAW Rodent Welfare Group has held a one-day meeting every autumn for the last 31 years. These meetings provide an opportunity for members to discuss current welfare research, exchange views on welfare issues and share their experiences of the...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Animal Training, Drug/Substance Administration, Environmental Enrichment, Handling, Housing, Husbandry & Management, Imaging & Electrophysiological RecordingAnimal Type: Mouse, Rabbit, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Stevens, C., Robinson, E., Jackson, M. et al. 2025. Report of the 2024 RSPCA/UFAW rodent welfare group meeting. Animal Welfare and Technology 4(3), 219–226.

Assessment of behavioral, clinical, and histological outcomes in Sprague-Dawley rats housed in enriched colony cages versus conventional pair housing over 28 days

The standardization of husbandry in animal studies for drug development aims to minimize variability and enhance inter-laboratory comparability. Rats are a commonly used species in such studies. This standardization yields housing conditions that do not reflect the natural environment of...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Environmental Enrichment, HousingAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Shamsi, A., Niebl, P., Kalina, A. et al. 2025. Assessment of behavioral, clinical, and histological outcomes in Sprague-Dawley rats housed in enriched colony cages versus conventional pair housing over 28 days. Animals 15(24).

Small changes, big differences: Collaborative refinements in animal research

Our unit opened in 2017, during the procurement of new equipment we had the opportunity to purchase a digital ventilated rack system from Tecniplast UK. The cages are referred to as the Digitally Ventilated Cage or DVC. This system uses...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Drug/Substance Administration, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Mouse, Rabbit, Rodent

Citation: Onions, L., WIlkinson, G. 2025. Small changes, big differences: Collaborative refinements in animal research. Animal Technology and Welfare 24(3), 239–240.

The impact of light-dark cycles and caging-systems on behavior and corticosterone excretion in the naked mole rat.

The naked mole rat (Heterocephalus glaber) (NMR) is increasingly becoming an important animal model in biomedical research. Housing NMR optimally in captivity is therefore important. The present study was designed to establish the effects of varying photoperiods and cage designs...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Housing, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Mole Rat, Rodent

Citation: Mwobobia, R., Kanui, T., Abelson, K. 2025. The impact of light-dark cycles and caging-systems on behavior and corticosterone excretion in the naked mole rat. Scandinavian Journal of Laboratory Animal Science 51, 38–50.

Video based heart rate detection in unrestrained laboratory rats: A feasibility analysis

Continuous monitoring of vital signs in laboratory animals is often essential for reliable scientific results and severity assessment. It still depends on invasive approaches such as transponder implementation, which affect the animals well-being. To minimize this impact, a camera-based method...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Biological Sampling & Physiological MeasurementAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Monissen, J., Mösch, L., Monissen, M. et al. 2025. Video based heart rate detection in unrestrained laboratory rats: A feasibility analysis. Scientific Reports 15(1), 37935.

Prevalence and management practices of ophthalmic lesions in laboratory mice

The regular inspection of the eye health is an essential part of the veterinary care task in an animal facility in order to achieve robust results during experimentation. The aim of the study was to find out, when and how...

Year Published: 2026Topics: Husbandry & Management, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Matzek, D., Rumpel, S., Kassumeh, S. et al. 2026. Prevalence and management practices of ophthalmic lesions in laboratory mice. Scientific Reports 16(1), 8732.

The edge of lesion

At AstraZeneca we utilise a wide variety of flank tumour models in rodents to gather data on the effectiveness of our Oncology drugs. During these studies tumour condition is closely monitored for appearance of lesions; typically a change of shape...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Humane EndpointAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Little, E., Baker, T., Peverill, J. et al. 2025. The edge of lesion. Animal Technology and Welfare 24(3), 268–269.

Refinements in diabetic research – a technician led initiative

A genetically altered diabetic mouse model (Ins2akita) was introduced to the facility two years ago. From information available, it was expected that heterozygous animals would develop hyperglycaemia, hyperinsulinemia, polydipsia and polyuria by 3 to 4 weeks old with males exhibiting...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Disease/Experimental ModelAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Hill, C., Lyons, C. 2025. Refinements in diabetic research – a technician led initiative. Animal Welfare and Technology 24(3), 254–256.

Environmental exposure to the common trunk of mammalian appeasing pheromone modulates social behavior and reduces fight wounds in male mice

Aggression among group-housed male laboratory mice poses significant challenges for animal welfare and scientific outcomes. Semiochemicals, such as mammalian appeasing pheromones, have shown potential in modulating social behaviors in various species. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Abnormal/Problematic Behavior, Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Fuochi, S., Bienboire-Frosini, C., Descout, E. et al. 2025. Environmental exposure to the common trunk of mammalian appeasing pheromone modulates social behavior and reduces fight wounds in male mice. Animals 15(22).