Mice and rats are by far the most commonly used research animals globally, yet their welfare receives less systematic attention than larger, more charismatic species.
The welfare of laboratory rodents receives less public attention than that of primates or dogs despite representing the vast majority of research animal suffering by individual count. Standard housing conditions — small cages without enrichment, isolation from conspecifics in some protocols, inadequate pain management — create chronic welfare deficits that are well-documented but inconsistently addressed. Improved welfare in rodent research is also a scientific benefit: stressed animals with compromised welfare produce variable data that reduces reproducibility.