Environmental factors in the home cage play an important role in the health of these animals. Laboratory mice spend most of their lives in home cages before being used in experimental procedures. To successfully transfer the results obtained in mice to human studies, it is necessary to determine appropriate treatment and handling methods for experimental mice since handling of normal mice may affect the obtained experimental results. Mice have been the most widely used laboratory animals for disease, behaviour, and pharmacology studies over the past century 1.
Our findings demonstrated that mice repeatedly handled by the experimenter before behavioural tests showed reduced anxiety about high altitudes and improved spatial cognition, suggesting that repeated contact can affect the results of some behavioural tests. Grip strength, rotarod, sociability, tail suspension, Porsolt forced swim, and passive avoidance tests revealed no significant differences between repeatedly handled and control mice. However, there was no change in anxiety-like behaviour in the light/dark transition test or open-field test. In behavioural tests, repeatedly handled mice showed improved spatial cognition in the Y-maze test and reduced anxiety-like behaviour in the elevated plus-maze test. Repeatedly handled mice gained slightly more weight than control mice. To investigate these effects, we used a behavioural test battery to assess differences between mice accustomed to the experimenter’s handling versus control mice.
To minimise mice stress, methods of moving mice using transparent tunnels or cups have been recommended but are impractical in behavioural tests. However, the effects of repeated handling on mice behaviour remains unclear. During behavioural experiments, mice frequently experience human contact. Behavioural experiment battery aids in evaluating abnormal behaviour in mice. Mice are the most commonly used laboratory animals for studying diseases, behaviour, and pharmacology.
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