Welfare Assessment

Improved nonhuman primate social housing using visual cues associated for an intensive research study

Lean management-based visual tools have been used to improve the quality of animal care associated with a complex research study involving immune-compromised cynomolgus monkeys (M. fascicularis) in various postsurgical recovery states. In order to effectively care for such research animals,...

Year Published: 2012Topics: Husbandry & Management, Social Housing & Companionship, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Baboon, Capuchin, Chimpanzee, Lemur, Macaque, Marmoset, Nonhuman Primate, Other Nonhuman Primate, Owl Monkey, Squirrel Monkey, Vervet (African Green Monkey)

Citation: Camacho, J. N., Boskovic, S., Moeller, E. 2012. Improved nonhuman primate social housing using visual cues associated for an intensive research study. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 636-637 (Abstract #PS35).

Objective assessment of self-injurious behavior in rhesus macaques and successful treatment with guanfacine

Self-injurious behavior (SIB) occurs sporadically in 5% to 15% of captive nonhuman primates, with over-representation among males and those animals housed in single caging prior to adulthood. Though SIB may manifest as a range of specific behaviors, the most clinically...

Year Published: 2012Topics: Abnormal/Problematic Behavior, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Macaque, Nonhuman Primate

Citation: Hutchinson, E. K., Freeman, Z., Rice, K. A. et al. 2012. Objective assessment of self-injurious behavior in rhesus macaques and successful treatment with guanfacine. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 647-648 (Abstract #PS78).

Nest building as an indicator of health and welfare

We demonstrate the utility of nest building behavior in laboratory mice as an indicator of welfare. Nest scoring is a sensitive technique that is altered by temperature, illness, and aggression. The time to integrate into nest test (TINT) is a...

Year Published: 2013Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Gaskill, B. N., Karas, A. Z., Garner. J. P. et al. 2013. Nest building as an indicator of health and welfare. JoVE (Journal of Visualized Experiments) 83, e51012.

Clinical Laboratory Animal Medicine: An Introduction (4th Ed)

Clinical Laboratory Animal Medicine: An Introduction, Fourth Edition offers a user-friendly guide to the unique anatomy and physiology, care, common diseases, and treatment of small mammals and nonhuman primates. Carefully designed for ease of use, the book includes tip boxes,...

Year Published: 2013Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Housing, Husbandry & Management, Regulations & Ethical Review, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Baboon, Capuchin, Chimpanzee, Chinchilla, Ferret, Gerbil, Guinea Pig, Hamster, Lemur, Macaque, Marmoset, Mouse, Nonhuman Primate, Other Nonhuman Primate, Owl Monkey, Rabbit, Rat, Rodent, Squirrel Monkey, Vervet (African Green Monkey)

Citation: Hrapkiewicz, K., Colby, L. A., Denison, P. 2013. Clinical Laboratory Animal Medicine: An Introduction (4th Ed). Wiley-Blackwell, Ames, IA.

Establishing ‘quality of life’ parameters using behavioural guidelines for humane euthanasia of captive non-human primates

Chronic pain and distress are universally accepted conditions that may adversely affect an animal's quality of life (QOL) and lead to the humane euthanasia of an animal. At most research institutions and zoological parks in the USA, a veterinarian, who...

Year Published: 2013Topics: Euthanasia, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Baboon, Capuchin, Chimpanzee, Lemur, Macaque, Marmoset, Nonhuman Primate, Other Nonhuman Primate, Owl Monkey, Squirrel Monkey, Vervet (African Green Monkey)

Citation: Lambeth, S. P., Schapiro, S. J., Bernacky, B. J. et al. 2013. Establishing 'quality of life' parameters using behavioural guidelines for humane euthanasia of captive non-human primates. Animal Welfare 22(4) 429-435.

Housing condition and nesting experience do not affect the time to integrate to nest test (TINT)

Managing and assessing well-being in laboratory mice (Mus musculus) is both challenging and necessary. Assessments intended to detect negative welfare states in mice are usually performed via observation of animals in the home cage, but a substantial amount of time...

Year Published: 2014Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Rock, M. L., Karas, A. Z., Gallo, M. S. et al. 2014. Housing condition and nesting experience do not affect the time to integrate to nest test (TINT). Animal Welfare 23(4), 381-385.

Alone or together: A risk assessment approach to group housing

The question of whether it is better to house animals in groups rather than alone deals with the unresolved issues at the heart of animal welfare. In particular, we need to be able to rank different classes of threats to...

Year Published: 2014Topics: Social Housing & Companionship, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: All/General, Cattle

Citation: Rushen, J., de Passillé, A. M., Appleby, M. C. et al. 2014. Alone or together: A risk assessment approach to group housing. In: Dilemmas in Animal Welfare. Appleby, M. C., Weary, D. M., Sandøe, P. (eds), 169-187. CAB International, Oxfordshire, UK.

The time-to-integrate-to-nest test as an indicator of wellbeing in laboratory mice

Minimizing and alleviating pain and distress in laboratory mice without compromising the methodologic integrity of research is a crucial goal. However, current methods for welfare assessment in mice are not well suited to cageside checks. In the present study, we...

Year Published: 2014Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Rock, M. L., Rodriguez, K., Karas, A. Z. et al. 2014. The time-to-integrate-to-nest test as an indicator of wellbeing in laboratory mice. JAALAS 53(1), 24-28.

Do singly housed male mice get lonely? Evidence of depressive states after short-term single housing of BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice

Through behavioral and preference studies we know that mice prefer company. Laboratory mice should thus never be housed alone, if a viable option exists. Yet single housing is a fairly common practice, in particular with male mice, because an experimental...

Year Published: 2014Topics: Social Housing & Companionship, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Kalliokoski, O., Teilmann, A. C., Jacoben, K. R. et al. 2014. Do singly housed male mice get lonely? Evidence of depressive states after short-term single housing of BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice. American Association for Laboratory Animal Science [AALAS] Meeting Official Program, 597. (Abstract #P184).

Assessing the emotions of laboratory rats

Rats are one of the most commonly used species in research, and decades of testing have yielded a large amount of information pertaining to their experience of emotion. The aim of this review is to bring together information on rat...

Year Published: 2013Topics: Emotion, Pain, & Sentience, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Rat, Rodent

Citation: Makowska, I. J., Weary, D. M. 2013. Assessing the emotions of laboratory rats. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 148, 1-12.