Housing and welfare in laboratory rats: effects of cage stocking density and behavioural predictors of welfare

Hurst, Jane L.; Barnard, C. J.; Tolladay, Ursula; Nevision, C.M.; West, Charles D.

doi:10.1006/anbe.1999.1165

Cited by 102 publications

(59 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…subordination) also appears to reduce sleep quantity. 25 This high level of sleep displayed by rats in the EC could be due to the increased level of their movement and exploration but also due to the increased activity directed towards the enrichment objects. It could also be due to the ability of rats in the EC to control their environment by avoiding the disruptive effect of the white light.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Research has shown that chronic stress decreases general activity levels and locomotor behaviour 51 -53 and exploration. 25,54 These higher levels of movement and exploration by the enriched-housed rats could be due to the increased complexity of their environment. It has been illustrated that, when given the choice, rats prefer high complexity in their environment and that they spend more time active (moving and exploring) in the complex environment.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The effects of enriching laboratory cages using various physical structures on multiple measures of welfare in singly-housed rats

Abou-Ismail

Mahboub

2011

Lab Anim

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The single housing of laboratory rats may be recommended in some situations such as hypothesis-driven or test-specific studies, during electroencephalogram recording of phases of sleep and after surgical procedures. However, as single housing of laboratory rats has been shown to be stressful, modification of the housing environment is needed to improve the welfare of these animals. This experiment was carried out to investigate the long-term effects of environmental enrichment on some behavioural, physiological, pathological and psychological measures of welfare. With two batches of animals, 24 rats were housed singly in either enriched cages (EC) (n ¼ 12 cages) or unenriched cages (UC) (n ¼ 12 cages). Behaviour was sampled every week and so was body weight and weight gain over a six-week observation period. Behaviours of the rats in the elevated plus-maze were recorded on the seventh week, whereas organ weights were recorded postmortem. The results revealed that long-term single housing of rats in super-enriched cages increased levels of indicators of good welfare including sleep, exploration, movement and feeding behaviour, body weights, weight gains and the relative weights of the thymus gland and spleen, and decreased levels of indicators of poor welfare such as stationary behaviour and the relative weight of adrenal glands. Thus, enrichment of conventional cages of newly weaned singly-housed laboratory rats with multiple physical structures appeared to improve their ability to control the environment and to promote their species-specific behaviour; changes that can ultimately result in good welfare.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of enriching laboratory cages using various physical structures on multiple measures of welfare in singly-housed rats

Abou-Ismail

Mahboub

2011

Lab Anim

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“…Since concerns for animal welfare are generally based on the assumption that animals can subjectively experience pain or suffering, research focuses on the development of objective methods for the assessment of affective states in animals. Typically, emotional state has been inferred from a variety of different physiological and/or behavioral measures (e.g., Abou-Ismail, Burman, Nicol, & Mendl, 2007;Burman, Ilyat, Jones, & Mendl, 2007;Hurst, Barnard, Tolladay, Nevision, & West, 1999;Mason, Cooper, & Clarebrough, 2001). Because the relation between affective states and physiological or behavioral measures is nontransitive, the interpretation of such parameters is not always straightforward, and their use as indices of emotional state is limited (Paul, Harding, & Mendl, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A glass full of optimism: Enrichment effects on cognitive bias in a rat model of depression

Richter

Schick

Hoyer

et al. 2012

Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci

113

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Investigations of cognitive biases in animals are conceptually and translationally valuable because they contribute to animal welfare research and help to extend and refine our understanding of human emotional disorders, where biased information processing is a critical causal and maintenance factor. We employed the "learned helplessness" genetic rat model of depression in studying cognitive bias and its modification by environmental manipulations. Using a spatial judgment task, responses to ambiguous spatial cues were assessed before and after environmental enrichment to test whether this manipulation would cause an optimistic shift in emotional state. Twenty-four congenitally helpless and nonhelpless male rats were trained to discriminate two different locations, "rewarded" versus "aversive." After successful acquisition of this spatial discrimination, cognitive bias was probed by measuring responses to three ambiguous locations. Latencies to "reach" and to actively "choose" a goal pot were recorded alongside exploratory behaviors. An overall strain difference was observed, with helpless rats displaying longer "reach" latencies than nonhelpless rats. This implies a "pessimistic" response bias in helpless rats, underscoring their depressive-like phenotype. No strain differences were observed regarding other behavioral measures. Half of the animals were then transferred to enriched cages and retested. Environmental enrichment resulted in reduced "choose" latencies in both rat strains, associating enrichment with more optimistic interpretations of ambiguous cues. Our results emphasize the suitability of cognitive bias measurement for animal emotion assessment. They extend the methodological repertoire for characterizing complex phenotypes and bear implications for animal welfare research and for the use of animal models in preclinical research.

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“…The isolated rats were furthermore less mobile 351 during both dark and light periods (Hurst et al, 1999). Females showed a similar 352 reaction pattern, although less pronounced (Hurst et al, 1998).…”

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confidence: 98%

More than numbers matter: The effect of social factors on behaviour and welfare of laboratory rodents and non-human primates

Olsson

Westlund

2007

Applied Animal Behaviour Science

140

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With the development of laboratory animal science, increasing attention has been given 14 to the possible influence of housing and husbandry on the behaviour and welfare of 15 laboratory animals as well as on the scientific integrity. With the present paper, we aim 16 to contribute to this knowledge by reviewing existing literature on how social factors 17 influence laboratory rodents and non-human primates. We use social ecology in the 18 wild as a starting point to understand experimental studies of these social species. 19Laboratory studies show that preweaning social experiences, and lack thereof, affect the 20 development of social skills and capacity to cope with stressful situations in both 21 primates and rodents. Studies of deprivation, of preference and of demand indicate that 22 both rodents and primates are highly motivated to interact with conspecifics. When 23 housed alone, rodents and primates typically show a more 'anxious' reaction in 24 behaviour tests, and are more profoundly affected by certain stressors, although there 25 seem to be some differences in how rodent males and females react to different social 26 situations. However, for social housing to be beneficial for the animals, compatible and 27 stable groups are crucial. When forming groups of monkeys in captivity, the age and 28 sex of individuals and their relative age difference, the taxonomic membership of the 29 animals as well as the introductory technique are factors of importance for success. 30Kinship is also of importance for the compatibility of both rodent and primate groups. 31Published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science 103, 229-254, 2007 Final manuscript version 2 Social instability through changes of group composition is apparently stressful, resulting 32 in behavioural and physiological alterations in both rodents and primates. The effects of 33 social conditions around testing have been given much less attention, but several studies 34show that animals react differently in behaviour tests when tested in group than when 35 tested individually. Altogether, the most commonly used laboratory rodents and 36 primates belong to social species, and their behaviour and welfare are strongly affected 37 by previous and present social environment. Factors such as group composition and 38 stability, rank and previous social experience therefore need to be taken into account 39 both when designing housing systems and when planning experiments and interpreting 40 results. 41 42

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Housing and welfare in laboratory rats: effects of cage stocking density and behavioural predictors of welfare

Cited by 102 publications

References 25 publications

The effects of enriching laboratory cages using various physical structures on multiple measures of welfare in singly-housed rats

The effects of enriching laboratory cages using various physical structures on multiple measures of welfare in singly-housed rats

A glass full of optimism: Enrichment effects on cognitive bias in a rat model of depression

More than numbers matter: The effect of social factors on behaviour and welfare of laboratory rodents and non-human primates

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