Publications

Green clay: Not just for a pretty face

Mice can be prone to skin lesions for various reasons. Green clay is a non-invvasive method to treat such skin lesions, and does not require veterinary approval or have properties that may interfere with an experiment. Green clay is ost...

Year Published: 2022Topics: Abnormal/Problematic Behavior, Analgesia, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Bissmire, H. 2022. Green clay: Not just for a pretty face. Animal Technology and Welfare 21(3), 242–243.

Morphometrics of Xenopus laevis kept as laboratory animals

Morphometric data that provide information on body conditions can be used to monitor the health and well-being of animals. In laboratory animals, they can help to evaluate the stress due to experiments or treatments, following the 3R principles. The aim...

Year Published: 2022Topics: Biological Sampling & Physiological Measurement, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Amphibian, Frog & Toad

Citation: Böswald, L. F., Matzek, D., Mohr, H. et al. 2022. Morphometrics of Xenopus laevis kept as laboratory animals. Animals 12(21), 2986.

The effect of stabling routines on potential behaviour indicators of affective state in horses and their use in assessing quality of life

Increasing interest in equine welfare has emphasised the need for objective and reliable behavioural indicators of horses' affective state. However, research has yielded mixed results regarding behaviours suited for industry use largely because they are subject to anthropomorphic interpretation. Stabling...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Husbandry & Management, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Equine

Citation: Bradshaw-Wiley, E., Randle, H. 2023. The effect of stabling routines on potential behaviour indicators of affective state in horses and their use in assessing quality of life. Animals 13(6), 1065.

Promoting good nonhuman primate welfare outside regular working hours

Promoting good primate welfare outside of daylight hours is an important task. The responsibility to provide a complex environment and environmental enrichment is an essential element of primate wellbeing programs that should be approached from a 24-h perspective and planned...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Baboon, Capuchin, Chimpanzee, Lemur, Macaque, Marmoset, Nonhuman Primate, Other Nonhuman Primate, Owl Monkey, Squirrel Monkey, Vervet (African Green Monkey)

Citation: Brando, S., Vitale, A., Bacon, M. 2023. Promoting good nonhuman primate welfare outside regular working hours. Animals 13(8), 1423.

Camera-based respiration monitoring of unconstrained rodents

Animal research has always been crucial for various medical and scientific breakthroughs, providing information on disease mechanisms, genetic predisposition to diseases, and pharmacological treatment. However, the use of animals in medical research is a source of great controversy and ongoing...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Biological Sampling & Physiological MeasurementAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Breuer, L., Mösch, L., Kunczik, J. et al. 2023. Camera-based respiration monitoring of unconstrained rodents. Animals 13(12), 1901.

Cannabidiol improves Nile tilapia cichlid fish welfare

Cannabidiol (CBD) is a substance derived from Cannabis sativa, widely studied in medicine for controlling neural diseases in humans. Besides the positive effects on humans, it also presents anxiolytic proprieties and decreases aggressiveness and stress in mammals. Therefore, CBD has...

Year Published: 2022Topics: Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Fish, Tilapia

Citation: Camargo-Dos-Santos, B., Bellot, M. S., Guermandi, I. I. et al. 2022. Cannabidiol improves Nile tilapia cichlid fish welfare. Scientific Reports 12(1), 17650.

Effects of environmental enrichment on the behavior of Octopus vulgaris in a recirculating aquaculture system

Octopus vulgaris is a commercially valuable species. It is overexploited in the natural environment and is considered to be an innovative species for aquaculture. However, large-scale farming is generally designed only based on economic requirements, disregarding any form of enrichment...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Cephalopod, Invertebrate

Citation: Casalini, A., Gentile, L., Emmanuele, P. et al. 2023. Effects of environmental enrichment on the behavior of Octopus vulgaris in a recirculating aquaculture system. Animals 13(11), 1862.

Enriching zoo-housed ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta): Assessing the influence of three types of environmental enrichment on behavior

Environmental enrichment is a management tool used to promote positive animal welfare by stimulating species-specific behaviors and providing animals with opportunities to exert choice and control over the environment. Our study aimed to evaluate the combined effect of three enrichment...

Year Published: 2022Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Lemur, Nonhuman Primate

Citation: Caselli, M., Messeri, P., Dessì-Fulgheri, F. et al. 2022. Enriching zoo-housed ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta): Assessing the influence of three types of environmental enrichment on behavior. Animals 12(20), 2836.

Social behaviors as welfare indicators in teleost fish

Animal welfare is a key issue not only for aquaculture industry and food production, but also for daily husbandry practices in research topics related to physiology in wild and farmed animals. In this context, teleost fish constitute interesting models to...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Fish, Other Fish

Citation: Cavallino, L., Rincón, L., Scaia, M. F. 2023. Social behaviors as welfare indicators in teleost fish. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 10, 1050510.

Browse or browsing: Investigating goat preferences for feeding posture, feeding height and feed type

Goats naturally browse different forages in various postures; this differs from typical farm practice, thus there are opportunities to improve goat welfare by understanding what and how they like to eat. We investigated if feeding preference was related to posture,...

Year Published: 2022Topics: Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Goat

Citation: Cellier, M., Nielsen, B. L., Duvaux-Ponter, C. et al. 2022. Browse or browsing: Investigating goat preferences for feeding posture, feeding height and feed type. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 9, 1032631.