Modern technology makes it easier to monitor animal behaviour continuously and automatically, which is vital for enhancing the quality of experiments. Automated measurements provide valuable insights into how treatments affect animal functioning, helping scientists make better decisions for both scientific and humane endpoints. While many sensor technologies are available, they typically focus on rodents or commercial livestock, which are not ideal for experimental settings. To tackle this, researchers have created a flexible tool designed for various non-rodent animal experiments.
Originally aimed at infectious disease studies at Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, this tool can monitor individual animal behaviour in group housing for up to eight weeks continuously, without any interventions. After testing ultra-wideband (UWB), computer vision (CV), and accelerometers, researchers found accelerometers to be the most effective. The selected MoveSense HR2 sensor calculates vectorial dynamic body acceleration (VeDBA) for detailed activity monitoring. This tailored approach, suitable for species like chickens, sheep, and pigs, allows real-time activity tracking with minimal data output, offering a robust and sustainable solution for a wide range of animal studies.
Scientific output
Doekes, H.P., R. Petie., R. de Jong, I. Adriaens, H.J. Wisselink, N. Stockhofe-Zurwieden. 2024. Added value of sensor-based behavioural monitoring in an infectious disease study with sheep infected with Toxoplasma gondii. Animals 14, 1908. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14131908
Doekes et al. 2024. An accelerometery-based tool for automated, real-time, and long-term activity monitoring in animal experiments. In preparation.
Doekes et al. 2024. Effect of sampling frequency and attachment position on accelerometery-based activity monitoring in various animal species in an experimental setting. In preparation.
Presentations
Doekes et al. 2024. Automated real-time activity monitoring in animal experiments with various livestock species. Submitted for the 75th EAAP Annual Meeting, September 2024, Florence, Italy.
Doekes, H.P., R. Petie, R. de Jong, I. Adriaens, H.J., Wisselink, N. Stockhofe-Zurwieden. 2023. Automated monitoring of animal behaviour in infectious disease studies: a case study with sheep infected with Toxoplasma gondii. 56th Congress of the International Society for Applied Ethology, august 2023, Tallinn, Estonia
Doekes, H.P., R. Petie, R. de Jong, I Adriaens, H.J. Wisselink, N.M. Gerhards, N. Stockhofe-Zurwieden. 2023. Monitoring animal behaviour in infectious disease studies with accelerometers and video. 12th World Congress on Alternatives and Animal Use in the Life Sciences, august 2023, Niagra Falls, Canada.
