Rodent

The use of aspen blocks and tubes to enrich the cage environment of laboratory rats

Female and male outbred Wistar rats (n=48) were allocated into three groups at weaning; control, tube and block groups (n = 8 males and 8 females in each) Animals were conventionally housed for five weeks in groups of four per...

Year Published: 1999Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Eskola, S., Lauhikari, M., Voipio, H.-M. et al. 1999. The use of aspen blocks and tubes to enrich the cage environment of laboratory rats. Scandinavian Journal of Laboratory Animal Science 26(1), 1-10.

Rat cage modification: Improving welfare

Rat cages with grid floors are used extensively for safety assessment studies. ... In an attempt to compromise between the requirements of humans and animals, a nest box was added to the cages, solid inserts were designed to cover 50%...

Year Published: 1999Animal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Dickson, C., Wrightson, D. 1999. Rat cage modification: Improving welfare. Animal Technology 50, 43-44.

Diet self-selection and food hoarding after food deprivation by Siberian hamsters

Siberian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus) increase food hoarding, but not food intake, after a fast. Because the physiological mechanisms underlying these changes in food hoarding are virtually unknown, we sought insight into these mechanisms by allowing hamsters to self-select their diet...

Year Published: 1999Animal Type: Hamster, Rodent

Citation: Day, D., Mintz, E., Bartness, T. 1999. Diet self-selection and food hoarding after food deprivation by Siberian hamsters. Physiology & Behavior 68, 187-194.

Warning! Nearby construction can profoundly affect your experiments

This is meant to alert people to potentially major effects of construction projects on research results. Because we study the effects of stress on regulation of ACTH and corticosterone secretion and of serotonin receptors and stress on energy balance, we...

Year Published: 1999Animal Type: Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Dallman, M. F., Akana, S. F., Bell, M. E. et al. 1999. Warning! Nearby construction can profoundly affect your experiments. Endocrine 11, 111-113.

Rearing environmental enrichment in two inbred strains of mice: 1

Inanimate enrichment promoted body weight increase and reduced fear reactions.

Year Published: 1999Topics: Emotion, Pain, & Sentience, Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Chapillon, P., Mannechi, C., Belzung, C. et al. 1999. Rearing environmental enrichment in two inbred strains of mice: 1. Effects on emotional reactivity. Behavior Genetics 29, 41-46.

Effect of predatory stress on sucrose intake and behavior on the plus-maze in male mice

The authors accomodated mice in the same room as rats, and noticed that these mice left a higher number of fecal boli in the elevated plus-maze test and that they showed a higher level of anxiety than control rats. It...

Year Published: 1999Animal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Calvo-Torrent, A., Brain, P. F., Martinez, M. 1999. Effect of predatory stress on sucrose intake and behavior on the plus-maze in male mice. Physiology and Behavior 67, 189-196.

PVC elbow feeder for primates and squirrels

A feeding enrichment device is described.

Year Published: 1999Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Nonhuman Primate, Other Rodent, Rodent

Citation: Bollen, K. 1999. PVC elbow feeder for primates and squirrels. Animal Keepers' Forum 26(1), 27.

Behavioral indexes of poor welfare in laboratory rats

Fearfulness associated with single-housing was alleviated by pair-housing, and even further alleviated by group-housing in enriched cages. Problem solving ability was improved when rats were kept in groups in enriched cages rather than in barren single cages.

Year Published: 1999Animal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Patterson-Kane, E. G., Hunt, M., Harper, D. N. 1999. Behavioral indexes of poor welfare in laboratory rats. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 2, 97-110.

The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory Animals (7th ed): The Guinea Pig

General recommendations for the species-adequate housing of guinea-pigs.

Year Published: 1999Animal Type: Guinea Pig, Rodent

Citation: North, D. 1999. The guinea-pig. In: The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory Animals (7th ed). UFAW [Universities Federation for Animal Welfare] (edited by Poole, T. and English, P. ), 268-288. Blackwell Science, Oxford, UK.

Enriched environment increases neurogenesis in the adult rat dentate gyrusand improves spatial memory

The results suggest that environmental cues can enhance neurogenesis in the adult hippocampal region, which is associated with improved spatial memory.

Year Published: 1999Animal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Nilsson, M., Perfilieva, E., Johansson, U. et al. 1999. Enriched environment increases neurogenesis in the adult rat dentate gyrusand improves spatial memory. Journal of Neurobiology 39(4), 469-578.