Husbandry & Management

Efficacy of supplemental diet gels for preventing postoperative weight loss in mice (Mus musculus)

This study investigated whether the use of commercially available diet gels prevented the postoperative weight loss associated with major survival surgery in mice. C57BL/6 mice were divided into 3 groups (n = 9 per group) that received moistened chow pellets...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Husbandry & Management, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Gates, K. V., Alamaw, E., Jampachaisri, K. et al. 2023. Efficacy of supplemental diet gels for preventing postoperative weight loss in mice (Mus musculus). JAALAS 62(1), 87–91.

Evaluation and refinement of a spot-change–only cage management system for mice

Maximizing operational efficiency while maintaining appropriate animal housing conditions is a continuous focus of research animal care programs. Our institution's longstanding approach to cage-change management included scheduled cage changes every 2 wk, with spot changes if cages met established visual...

Year Published: 2022Topics: Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Jones, T., Thaweethai, T., Molk, D. et al. 2022. Evaluation and refinement of a spot-change–only cage management system for mice. JAALAS 61(6), 650–659.

Evaluation of ambient sound, vibration, and light in rodent housing rooms

Excessive sound, vibration, and light are detrimental to rodent welfare, yet these parameters are rarely recorded in vivaria. Whether housing environments exceed the suggested thresholds and which specific factors may alter these parameters is generally unknown. The goal of this...

Year Published: 2022Topics: Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Barabas, A. J., Darbyshire, A. K., Schlegel, S. L. et al. 2022. Evaluation of ambient sound, vibration, and light in rodent housing rooms. JAALAS 61(6), 660–671.

Effects of housing density on reproductive performance, intracage ammonia, and welfare of mice continuously housed as breeders in standard mouse and rat caging

Maintaining compliance with cage density recommendations in The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals precludes continuous trio breeding in standard-sized mouse cages. This study evaluated and compared several parameters of reproductive performance, intracage ammonia concentration, and fecal...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Husbandry & Management, Reproduction, Stocking DensityAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Cho, E., Walsh, C. A., D'Angelo-Gavrish, N. M. et al. 2023. Effects of housing density on reproductive performance, intracage ammonia, and welfare of mice continuously housed as breeders in standard mouse and rat caging. JAALAS 62(2), 116–122.

Laboratory-based measures of temperature preference and metabolic thermal sensitivity provide insight into the habitat utilisation of juvenile California horn shark (Heterodontus francisci) and leopard shark (Triakis semifasciata)

Laboratory-based studies examining fish physiological and behavioural responses to temperature can provide important insight into species-specific habitat preferences and utilisation, and are especially useful in examining vulnerable life stages that are difficult to study in the wild. This study couples...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Fish, Shark & Ray

Citation: Skelton, Z. R., Prinzing, T. S., Hastings, P. A. et al. 2023. Laboratory-based measures of temperature preference and metabolic thermal sensitivity provide insight into the habitat utilisation of juvenile California horn shark (Heterodontus francisci) and leopard shark (Triakis semifasciata). Journal of Fish Biology 102(4), 829–843.

Social structure and habitat design affect the impact of a novel feeding enrichment for alligators

Providing enrichment that expands the range of behavioral opportunities associated with food acquisition and environmental exploration is an important contributing factor to the well-being of zoo animals. These behaviors can be difficult to promote in carnivores, given their foraging strategies...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Crocodile & Alligator, Reptile

Citation: Spain, M., Pearson, C., Rosenblatt, A. E. 2023. Social structure and habitat design affect the impact of a novel feeding enrichment for alligators. Zoo Biology 42(3), 383–389.

Background color preference of amphibian Rana dybowskii

Background color may affect the welfare of the brown frog Rana dybowskii in captivity. To evaluate the perching platform color and feeding platform color preferences of brown frogs at day and night, a total of 1200 brown frogs kept in...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Housing, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Amphibian, Frog & Toad

Citation: Wei, H., Geng, L., Shang, X. et al. 2023. Background color preference of amphibian Rana dybowskii. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 268, 106079.

Food-related substrate preference in juveniles seastar Echinaster (Othilia) brasiliensis (Müller & Troschel,1842) in captivity

There are only a few studies that describe the larval development of Echinaster or aspects on culture systems for the genus. For starfishes, the choice of suitable substrates has received special attention since it could influence the acid–base balance of...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Invertebrate, Other Invertebrate

Citation: Maganhe, B. L., Andrade, L. S., Camilo, L. de O. et al. 2023. Food-related substrate preference in juveniles seastar Echinaster (Othilia) brasiliensis (Müller & Troschel,1842) in captivity. Zoo Biology 42(5), 675–682.

Impact of visual barrier removal on the behavior of shelter-housed dogs

With millions of dogs housed in shelters each year, it is important to consider how the shelter environment impacts welfare. Social isolation and a lack of control over the environment can negatively impact wellbeing. However, providing social opportunities requires costly...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Housing, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Dog

Citation: Martin, A. L., Walthers, C. M., Pattillo, M. J. et al. 2023. Impact of visual barrier removal on the behavior of shelter-housed dogs. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 26(4), 596–606.

A mapping review of refinements to laboratory rat housing and husbandry

Refining the housing and husbandry of laboratory rats is an important goal, both for ethical reasons and to allow better quality research. We conducted a mapping review of 1,017 studies investigating potential refinements of housing and husbandry of the laboratory...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Housing, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Neville, V., Lind, J., Mendl, E. et al. 2023. A mapping review of refinements to laboratory rat housing and husbandry. Lab Animal 52(3), 63–74.