Refining food and fluid control in macaques

Guidelines on the use of food and fluid control in behavioural neuroscience experiments with macaque monkeys [1] which have refined the procedures used in laboratories nationally and internationally.

Key recommendations include:

• Not all behavioural neuroscience experiments with macaques require the use of food or fluid control. Wherever possible, alternative means of motivation with less risk to animal welfare should be used.
• Where food or fluid control is used, the protocol should be tailored to the individual monkey, including identifying the animal’s preferred food or fluid rewards. Individual baseline daily food and/or fluid intake should be established (and periodically re-established) for each monkey.
• Generally, stable performance without weight loss can be achieved by allowing the monkey to obtain its entire daily food/fluid requirement but with controlled or scheduled access to food/fluid – rather than restricting or reducing the amount of daily food/fluid provided.
• Introduce (and remove) food/fluid control gradually (over days to weeks) so that the monkey has time to recognise and anticipate the limited availability of food/fluid and adapt its patterns of intake to maintain health.
• If the monkey fails to achieve its daily requirement in the experimental session, a supplement should be given afterwards. Supplements should be the maximum amount consistent with reliable performance and should be regularly reviewed.
• To ensure adequate intake, monitor daily body weight and perform a daily health check via a scheme agreed with the veterinarian and animal welfare officer. Stability of body weight (fully-grown monkeys) or body weight gain (young monkeys) is a key observation.

Read more about the project: Refining food and fluid control in behavioural neuroscience with macaques, including the membership of the expert working group.