Refinement Database

Database on Refinement of Housing, Husbandry, Care, and Use of Animals in Research

This database, created in 2000, is updated every four months with newly published scientific articles, books, and other publications related to improving or safeguarding the welfare of animals used in research.

Tips for using the database:

  • This landing page displays all of the publications in the database.
  • Use the drop-down menus to filter these publications by Animal Type, Setting, and/or Topic.
  • Clicking on a parent category (e.g., Rodent) will include publications relating to all the items in that category (e.g., Chinchilla, Gerbil, Guinea Pig, etc.).
  • You may also add a keyword to further narrow your search.
  • Please note that at this time, only publications dated 2010 or later (with some exceptions) can be filtered by Animal Type and Topic, and only publications dated 2020 or later (with some exceptions) can be filtered by Setting. Most publications older than 2010 can only be searched by keyword. 
Plaut, S. M., Ader, R., Friedman, S. B. et al. 1969. Social factors and resistance to malaria in the mouse: Effects of group vs. individual housing on resistance to Plasmodium berghei infection. Psychosomatic Medicine 31, 536-552.

Mortality rate of malaria-infected mice was related to number of animals per cage, population sizes ranging from 1 to 20. This was independent of age, sex, and number of animals per cage infected. Individually housed...

Phillips, J., Robinson, A., Davey, G. 1969. Food hoarding behaviour in the golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus): effects of body weight loss and hoard-size discrimination. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology [B] 41, 33-37.

Two experiments investigated some of the factors that influence food hoarding behaviour in the golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus). In Experiment 1, hamsters given limited access to food failed to increase the amount of food they...

Lynch, J. J., McCarthy, J. F. 1969. Social responding in dogs: heart rate changes to a person. Psychophysiology 5(4), 389-393.

This paper reports the variable conditional effects of a person on the heart rate of nine mongrel dogs. There were three experimental procedures: person present and playing a passive role, person present and playing an...

Latane, B. 1969. Gregariousness and fear in laboratory rats. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 5, 61-69.

In a novel open-field environment rats showed less signs of fear [number of fecal boluses excreted] when tested in pairs versus alone. The presence of a caged companion was less effective than a free-moving companion...

Jansen, P. E., Goodman, E. D., Jowaisas, D. et al. 1969. Paper as a positive reinforcer for acquisition of a barpress response by the golden hamster. Psychonomic Science 16, 113-114.

A hamster will readily work in order to get access to nesting material.

Falk, J. L. 1969. Conditions producing psychogenic polydipsia in animals. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 157, 569-593.

Psychogenic polydipsia is reported in rats.

Denenberg, V. H., Wehmer, F., Werboff, J. et al. 1969. Effects of postweaning enrichment and isolation upon emotionality and brain weight in the mouse. Physiology and Behavior 4, 403-406.

At weaning (21 days) 60 male C57BL/6J mice were placed into isolation cages while 60 others were grouped in enriched environments. Fifteen days later half of each group was shifted to the opposite housing condition...

Broom, D. M. 1969. Effects of visual complexity during rearing on chicks' reactions to environmental change. Animal Behaviour 17, 773-780.

Reaction to novel change was less in birds whose rearing conditions had been made more complex by the presence of a moving object or mirror.

Bennett, E. L., Rosenzweig, M. R., Diamond, M. C. 1969. Rat brain: Effects of environmental enrichment on wet and dry weights. Science 163, 825-826.

Wet weight of rat cerebral cortex was increased by exposure to an enriched environment [10 or 12 animals in large cage with toys], as compared with standard colony [2 or 3 animals in small cage]...

Bellairs, A. 1969. The Life of Reptiles (Volumes 1 & 2). Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London, UK.
Amoroso, D. M., Walters, R. H. 1969. Effects of anxiety and social mediated anxiety reduction on paired-associated learning. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 11, 388-396.
Ackerley, E. T., Stones, P. B. 1969. Safety procedures for handling monkeys. Laboratory Animal Handbooks 4, 207-211.

Photographic demonstration of the traditional enforced injection method. All monkeys are dangerous [p. 207]. ... Monkeys should not be handled in the fully-conscious state [p. 211].

Washburn, S. L. , Hamburg, D. A. 1968. Aggressive behavior in Old World monkeys and apes. In: Primates - Studies in Adaptation and Variability. Jay, P. C. (ed), 458-478. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, NY.

Photo showing lioness threatening baboons who have escaped into a tree.

Vaughhan, E. D. Jr., Sawyers, J. L., Scott, H. W. Jr. 1968. The Rapunzel syndrome. An unusal complication of intestinal bezoar. Surgery 63, 339-343.

Some patients with trichotillomania ingest whole hairs or parts of hairs [trichophagia], leading in some cases to the development of trichobezoars. Surgical intervention is indicated.

Van Lawick-Goodall, J. 1968. A preliminary report on expressive movements and communication in the Gombe Stream chimpanzee. In: Primates - Studies in Adaptation and Variability. Jay, P. C. (ed), 313-374. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, NY.

Excellent overview of the species-typical behavior of wild chimpanzees.

Nahon, N. S. 1968. A device and techniques for the atraumatic handling of the sub-human primate. Laboratory Animal Care [Laboratory Animal Science] 18, 486-487.

Previously, the animals were netted or were restrained by a collar and chain. ... Both of these widely used system, through conditioning response and association, teach the primate fear. At the sight of a net...

Mason, J. W., Wool, M. S., Wherry, F. E. et al. 1968. Plasma growth hormone response to avoidance in the monkey. Psychosomatic Medicine 30, 760-773.

Several lines of evidence are presented which suggest that psychological response to the venipuncture procedure ['forcibly restrained on rubber mattress in order to perform venipuncture'] may be a major determinant of 'baseline' variability in growth...

Lynch, J. J., Gantt, W. H. 1968. The heart rate component of the social reflex in dogs: the conditional effects of petting and person. Conditional Reflex 3, 69-80.
Kummer, H. 1968. Social Organization of Hamdryas Baboons. Karger, Switzerland, Basel.

Excellent overview of the species-typical behavior of wild baboons.

Hall, K. R. 1968. Behaviour and ecology of the wild patas monkey, Erythrocebus patas, in Uganda. In: Primates - Studies in Adaptation and Variability. Jay, P. C. (ed), 32-119. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, NY.

Excellent overview of the natural behavior of wild patas monkeys.

Manosevitz, M., Campenot, R. B., Swencionis, C. F. 1968. Effects of enriched environment upon hoarding. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology 66, 319-324.

95 mice from 2 inbred strains were exposed to a postweaning enriched environment or to a standard environment. The design allowed assessment of effects due to environment, genotype, and genotype * environment interactions. Environment enrichment...

Magalhaes, H. 1968. Housing, care, and breeding . In: The Golden Hamster - Its Biology and Use in Medical Research. Hoffman, R. A., Robinson, P. F., Magalhaes, H. (eds), 15-23. Iowa State University Press, Ames, Iowa.

Species-appropriate handling procedures are described/demonstrated.

Latane, B., Glass, D. 1968. Social and nonsocial attraction in rats. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 9, 142-146.

Single rats show a reduction of fear in a strange environment when another - though anesthetized - rat is present.

La Torre, J. C. 1968. Effect of differential environmental enrichment on brain weight and on acetylcholinesterase and cholinesterase activities in mice. Experimental Neurology 22, 493-503.

Two inbred strains of mice were used in a replication of the Berkeley rat studies on the cerebral effects of differential environmental enrichment. Those raised in a complex environment and given extensive maze training showed...

Kavanau, J. L., Rischer, C. E. 1968. Program clocks in small mammals. Science 161, 1256-1259.

Given access to an activity wheel, small mammals spend almost all their active time running it. ... If the instantaneous speed and direction of running are recorded every seconds on a moving chart, the activity...