Title
How to improve housing conditions of laboratory animals: The possibilities of environmental refinement
Author
Baumans, V.
van Loo, P.L.P.
Publication year
2013
Abstract
Housing systems for captive animals have often been designed on the basis of economic and ergonomic considerations, such as equipment, costs, space, workload, ability to observe the animals and to maintain a certain degree of hygiene, with little or no consideration for animal welfare. Environmental refinement can be defined as any modification in the environment of captive animals that seeks to enhance the physical and psychological well-being of the animals by providing stimuli which meet the animals' species-specific needs. This article provides an overview of environmental factors that influence the well-being of captive animals with specific reference to the needs of the most common laboratory species.It is important to evaluate environmental refinement in terms of the benefit to the animal, by assessing the use of and preference for certain enrichment, the effect on behaviour, and the performance of species-typical behaviour on physiological parameters. It is also necessary to evaluate the impact of refinement on scientific outcome, including whether and how statistical power is affected. Communication and team work between animal welfare scientists, animal research scientists, institutional animal welfare officers, veterinarians and animal ethics committees, animal facility management and personnel, are essential for success. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.
Subject
Life
QS - Quality & Safety
EELS - Earth, Environmental and Life Sciences
Biomedical Innovation
Research
Healthy Living
Animal welfare
Environmental refinement
Housing conditions
Laboratory animals
Standardisation
To reference this document use:
http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:3915e355-50e1-427c-adfa-b1da7fb45367
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tvjl.2012.09.023
TNO identifier
466851
ISSN
1090-0233
Source
Veterinary Journal, 195 (1), 24-32
Document type
article