Welfare Assessment

Opportunistically using a Chronic Unpredictable Stress study to investigate ‘inactive-but-awake’ behaviour as a potential welfare indicator in laboratory rats

Being awake but motionless, inactive-but-awake (IBA), has been suggested to reflect low arousal negative affect in several species. This preliminary study investigated IBA in rats exposed to Chronic Unpredictable Stress (CUS), opportunistically (to comply with the 3Rs) during biomedical research...

Year Published: 2024Topics: Emotion, Pain, & Sentience, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Young, L., McCallum, R., Perreault, M. et al. 2024. Opportunistically using a Chronic Unpredictable Stress study to investigate ‘inactive-but-awake' behaviour as a potential welfare indicator in laboratory rats. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 274, 106249.

Dolphin-WET—Development of a Welfare Evaluation Tool for bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) under human care

Ensuring high standards of animal welfare is not only an ethical duty for zoos and aquariums, but it is also essential to achieve their conservation, education, and research goals. While for some species, animal welfare assessment frameworks are already in...

Year Published: 2024Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Marine Mammal

Citation: Baumgartner, K., Hüttner, T., Clegg, I. L. K. et al. 2024. Dolphin-WET—Development of a Welfare Evaluation Tool for bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) under human care. Animals 14(5), 701.

Development of an animal welfare tool for zoo-housed primates, considering intra- and inter-rater reliability

Over the past few decades, the concept of animal welfare has become increasingly prominent in Western societies. Faced with this collective awareness, various organisations are now making it a point of honour to consider the welfare of their animals. This...

Year Published: 2024Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Baboon, Capuchin, Chimpanzee, Lemur, Macaque, Marmoset, Nonhuman Primate, Other Nonhuman Primate, Owl Monkey, Squirrel Monkey, Vervet (African Green Monkey)

Citation: Dazord, A., Primault, M. 2024. Development of an animal welfare tool for zoo-housed primates, considering intra- and inter-rater reliability. Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research 12(2), 69–78.

Evaluation of indicators of acute emotional states in dogs

A complete assessment of animal welfare requires not just an understanding of negative emotional states, such as fear and anxiety, but also of positive states, such as calmness and happiness. However, few studies have identified accurate and reliable indicators of...

Year Published: 2024Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Dog

Citation: Flint, H. E., Weller, J. E., Parry-Howells, N. et al. 2024. Evaluation of indicators of acute emotional states in dogs. Scientific Reports 14(1), 6406.

The zebrafish health and welfare database, where we are now

In 2019 the first Zebrafish health and welfare terms database was created. Working in collaboration with Zebrafish specialists and veterinarians we defined severity scores, welfare indicators, definitions and images to form a resource for the Zebrafish community. Since then the...

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

Citation: Goodwin, N., Keeble, R., Price, M. 2023. The zebrafish health and welfare database, where we are now. Animal Technology and Welfare 22(3), 231–232.

Rethinking the utility of the Five Domains model

The Five Domains model is influential in contemporary studies of animal welfare. It was originally presented as a conceptual model to understand the types of impact that procedures may impose on experimental animals. Its application has since broadened to cover...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: All/General

Citation: Hampton, J. O., Hemsworth, L. M., Hemsworth, P. H. et al. 2023. Rethinking the utility of the Five Domains model. Animal Welfare 32, e62.

Cats just want to have fun: Associations between play and welfare in domestic cats

Play is often considered an indicator and promotor of animal welfare and may facilitate closer cat-human relationships. However, few studies have empirically investigated these associations. The current study aimed to investigate play-related factors associated with four welfare outcome measures in...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Natural Behavior, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Cat

Citation: Henning, J., Nielsen, T., Fernandez, E. et al. 2023. Cats just want to have fun: Associations between play and welfare in domestic cats. Animal Welfare 32, e9.

Evaluation of score parameters for severity assessment of surgery and liver cirrhosis in rats

Severity assessment in animals is an ongoing field of research. In particular, the question of objectifiable and meaningful parameters of score-sheets, as well as their best combination, arise. This retrospective analysis investigates the suitability of a score-sheet for assessing severity...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Krueger, J. C., Habigt, M. A., Helmedag, M. J. et al. 2023. Evaluation of score parameters for severity assessment of surgery and liver cirrhosis in rats. Animal Welfare 32, e29.

Non-invasive assessment of positive affective state using infra-red thermography in rats

With recent increased focus on positive welfare in animal welfare science, there is demand for objective positive welfare indicators. It is unclear whether changes in body surface temperature can be used to non-invasively identify and quantify positive states in mammals....

Year Published: 2023Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Wongsaengchan, C., McCafferty, D. J., Lennox, K. et al. 2023. Non-invasive assessment of positive affective state using infra-red thermography in rats. Animal Welfare 32, e66.

Effects of human observer presence on pain assessment using facial expressions in rabbits

The goal of this study was to evaluate the effect of a human observer on Rabbit Grimace Scale (RbtGS) scores. The study scored video footage taken of 28 rabbits before and after orthopedic surgery, as follows: 24 h before surgery...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Rabbit

Citation: Pinho, R. H., Justo, A. A., Cima, D. S. et al. 2023. Effects of human observer presence on pain assessment using facial expressions in rabbits. JAALAS 62(1), 81–86.