Surgery & Post-Op

Effects of attention and rewarded activity on immune parameters and wound healing in pigs

Challenging animals with a demanding situation they are able to cope with and where they are rewarded may be a source of positive emotions and possibly of increased welfare. In order to test if this results in changes of immunological...

Year Published: 2006Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Ernst K, Tuchschere M, Kanitz E, et al. 2006. Effects of attention and rewarded activity on immune parameters and wound healing in pigs. Physiol and Behav. 89;448-456.

Postsurgical pairing: a discussion by the Refinement & Enrichment Forum

Our experience-based discussion suggests that social animals benefit from compatible companionship during post-operative recovery. The traditional practice of keeping animals alone in an unfamiliar environment after surgery increases the subjects surgery-associated stress. Providing a familiar, compatible companion is likely to...

Year Published: 2006Topics: Social Housing & Companionship, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: All/General

Citation: Van Loo, P. L. P., Skoumbourdis, E., Reinhardt, V. 2006. Postsurgical pairing: a discussion by the Refinement & Enrichment Forum. Animal Technology and Welfare 5, 17-19.

Making use of the stress buffering influence of a companion: Post-operative care

We have mice who are recovering from telemetry-implantation while being housed either alone or in pairs. With several years of experience with this surgery, we now are pretty sure that socially housed mice feel better than individually housed mice.I can...

Year Published: 2007Topics: Social Housing & Companionship, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: LAREF [Laboratory Animal Refinement and Enrichment Forum] 2007. Making use of the stress buffering influence of a companion: Post-operative care. In: Making Lives Easier for Animals in Research Labs: Discussions by the Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum. Baumans, V., Coke, C., Green, J., Moreau, E., Morton, D., Patterson-Kane, E., Reinhardt, A., Reinhardt, V., Van Loo, P. (eds), 101. Animal Welfare Institute, Washington, DC.

Impact of ‘living apart together’ on postoperative recovery of mice compared with social and individual housing

We investigated whether housing two female mice in a cage, separated by a grid partition ('living apart together') counters the adverse effects of individual housing on postoperative recovery. Results indicated that socially housed mice appear to be less affected by...

Year Published: 2007Topics: Social Housing & Companionship, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Van Loo, P. L. P., Kuin, N., Sommer, R. et al. 2007. Impact of 'living apart together' on postoperative recovery of mice compared with social and individual housing. Laboratory Animals 41(4), 441-455.

Chapter 5.3.1. Post-Operative Care

It is my experience with rhesus macaques that it is advisable to pair-house an animal after surgery as soon as possible with his or her compatible companion. We do this especially with pairs, after one of them had cranial implant...

Year Published: 2007Topics: Social Housing & Companionship, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Macaque, Nonhuman Primate

Citation: LAREF [Laboratory Animal Refinement and Enrichment Forum] 2007. Chapter 5.3.1. Post-Operative Care. In: Making Lives Easier for Animals in Research Labs: Discussions by the Laboratory Animal Refinement & Enrichment Forum. Baumans, V., Coke, C., Green, J., Moreau, E., Morton, D., Patterson-Kane, E., Reinhardt, A., Reinhardt, V., Van Loo, P. (eds), 101-103. Animal Welfare Institute, Washington, DC.

The COST Manual of Laboratory Animal Care and Use: Refinement, Reduction, and Research (1st Ed)

COST Action B-24 established four working groups to research and discuss issues relevant to laboratory animal science. These included the housing of animals, environmental needs, refinement of procedures, genetically modified animals, and cost-benefit analysis. Based on the groups' findings, The...

Year Published: 2010Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Euthanasia, Handling, Housing, Regulations & Ethical Review, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Mouse, Rabbit, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Howard, B., Nevalainen, T., Perretta, G. (ed). 2010. The COST Manual of Laboratory Animal Care and Use: Refinement, Reduction, and Research (1st Ed). CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.

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.

Housing of female mice in a new environment and its influence on post-surgical behaviour and recovery

The transportation of mice into a new clean cage after surgery is a standard procedure but might have detrimental effects during the critical post-surgical recovery phase. To analyse the effect of post-surgical housing, female C57BL/6J mice housed in their familiar...

Year Published: 2013Topics: Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Jirkof, P., Cesarovic, N., Rettich, A. et al. 2013. Housing of female mice in a new environment and its influence on post-surgical behaviour and recovery. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 48, 209-217.

Effects of experimental housing conditions on recovery of laboratory mice

The beneficial effects of environment and social support during disease recovery in humans are widely accepted. Because laboratory mice are social animals and are highly motivated to interact with each other and with their environment, it is very likely that...

Year Published: 2015Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Social Housing & Companionship, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Jirkof, P. 2015. Effects of experimental housing conditions on recovery of laboratory mice. Lab Animal 44(2), 65-70.

Impact of inhalation anaesthesia, surgery and analgesic treatment on home cage behaviour in laboratory mice

Anaesthesia and analgesia are used frequently in laboratory routine to ensure animal welfare and good scientific outcomes in experiments that may elicit pain or require immobilisation of the animal. However, there is concern regarding the effect of these procedures on...

Year Published: 2014Topics: Analgesia, Anesthesia & Sedation, Surgery & Post-OpAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Cesarovic, N., Arras, M., Jirkof, P. 2014. Impact of inhalation anaesthesia, surgery and analgesic treatment on home cage behaviour in laboratory mice. Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 157, 137-145.