The cage preferences of laboratory rats

Patterson-Kane, Emily; Harper, David N.; Hunt, Maree

doi:10.1258/0023677011911390

Cited by 53 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…As the dam could possibly avoid the enriched compartment, one could find evidence for adverse effects of environmental enrichment. It has been suggested that rats prefer, when given a choice, nesting material and nesting boxes, but less so other enrichment objects, over living in a standard cage (Patterson-Kane et al 2001).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of early postnatal environmental enrichment on maternal care and offspring behaviour following weaning

Lund

Voigt

2016

Behavioural Processes

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of early postnatal environmental enrichment on maternal care and offspring behaviour following weaning

Lund

Voigt

2016

Behavioural Processes

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“…Nesting is widely acknowledged to be an important behaviour for female and male rats (Patterson-Kane et al 2001). Twelve inbred Hooded Norway rats (6 males, 6 females) housed in standard cages in groups of four preferred a cage with nesting material to a cage without (Patterson-Kane et al 2001).…”

Section: B Environmental Complexitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Twelve inbred Hooded Norway rats (6 males, 6 females) housed in standard cages in groups of four preferred a cage with nesting material to a cage without (Patterson-Kane et al 2001). Five female Wistar rats housed in a group always showed a significant preference for a cage containing a nest-box regardless of nest-box design (Patterson-Kane 2002a).…”

Section: B Environmental Complexitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Laboratory environments and rodents' behavioural needs: a review

Balcombe

2006

Lab Anim

148

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SummaryLaboratory housing conditions have significant physiological and psychological effects on rodents, raising both scientific and humane concerns. Published studies of rats, mice and other rodents were reviewed to document behavioural and psychological problems attributable to predominant laboratory housing conditions. Studies indicate that rats and mice value opportunities to take cover, build nests, explore, gain social contact, and exercise some control over their social milieu, and that the inability to satisfy these needs is physically and psychologically detrimental, leading to impaired brain development and behavioural anomalies (e.g. stereotypies). To the extent that space is a means to gain access to such resources, spatial confinement likely exacerbates these deficits. Adding environmental 'enrichments' to small cages reduces but does not eliminate these problems, and I argue that substantial changes in housing and husbandry conditions would be needed to further reduce them.

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“…from white light and conspecifics: Townsend, 1997;Manser et al, 1998;Eskola et al, 1999), enhance the options for expressing thigmotactic behaviour, and also increase willingness to utilize the open part of the cage (Anzaldo et al, 1994(Anzaldo et al, , 1995Lawlor, 2002;Abou-Ismail et al, 2010). Consistent with this, laboratory rats show a strong preference for objects that provide enclosed spaces within the cage such as retreats, nest boxes and polypropylene standard mouse (M2 type) cages (Bradshaw and Poling, 1991;Chmiel and Noonan, 1996;Townsend, 1997;Manser et al, 1998;Patterson-Kane et al, 2001). The types of enrichment item and the way in which they are provided should thus be carefully considered when designing an environmental enrichment protocol for captive animals such as laboratory rodents.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

The effects of enrichment novelty versus complexity in cages of group-housed rats (Rattus norvegicus)

Abou-Ismail

Mendl

2016

Applied Animal Behaviour Science

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). Tel. 002 (0)162557996Fax. 002 (0)502379952 Highlights  The study examined whether effects of environmental enrichment are due to novelty or complexity.  Behavioural, performance and pathological indicators of welfare were used.  The effects of enrichment are mainly due to complexity of the cages by multiple items.  The type of environmental enrichment protocol affects welfare of laboratory rats. AbstractAlthough experimental work on environmental enrichment has answered many important questions, it is not yet known whether beneficial effects of enrichment are more strongly influenced by regular provision of novel objects, or by the diversity of objects present at any one time. In a five-replicate study, 80 newly weaned male Wistar rats were housed in groups of four in: a 'novelty' condition (NC) in which five copies of the same object were provided in the home cage during the first week of the study followed by five copies of a different, novel, object over each of the next 4 weeks; a 'complexity' condition (CC) in which one example of each of the five objects used in NC was always present in the cage across the 5-week study period. Behaviour was collected in two 2-hrs sessions every week, once during the light phase of the light/dark cycle and once during the dark phase. Body weight and weight gain were measured over the five weeks and organ weights were recorded postmortem. Rats in the CC displayed elevated levels of measures suggestive of improved welfare such as sleep, enrichment-directed behaviour, enrichment contact, weight gain and relative thymus weight, and decreased levels of indicators denoting poor welfare including aggression, awake-non active and audible vocalizations. It appears that CC may have the potential to increase the frequency and diversity of behaviours, to express different types of behaviour when desired, and to augment the ability of the animals to exert some control over their environment, findings that may improve their welfare. Provision of novelty per se in the absence of diversity of objects at any one time seems to be less beneficial. Order (replicate) effects in the NC group indicated that responses of the animals towards the enrichment regimen appeared to depend on the type of object supplied, thus drawing attention to the importance of object characteristics when designing enrichment protocols for laboratory animals.

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The cage preferences of laboratory rats

Cited by 53 publications

References 7 publications

The impact of early postnatal environmental enrichment on maternal care and offspring behaviour following weaning

The impact of early postnatal environmental enrichment on maternal care and offspring behaviour following weaning

Laboratory environments and rodents' behavioural needs: a review

The effects of enrichment novelty versus complexity in cages of group-housed rats (Rattus norvegicus)

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