Georgia Mason

I’m a behavioural biologist who specialises in animal welfare. My lifelong research interests are in what makes for a good, happy life for animals, and how to assess that objectively.

My particular focus is captive housing. Every year, humans keep 10s of billions of animals in captive conditions. Often these conditions meet their physiological needs, but are too small or monotonous to allow natural behaviour. Does this matter? Does it cause stress, and if so, how and why? My lab tackles these questions using a range of techniques, from using Phylogenetic Comparative Methods to identify ‘behavioural needs’ that act as species-level risk factors, through to investigating how different types of captive housing affect animals’ brains. I’m also interested in emotions and moods (affective states). Why did they evolve? How can we assess them in animals, without being anthropomorphic? Our work on this includes developing methods to assess animal boredom, investigating stereotypic behaviour (abnormal, repetitive behaviours common in captive animals) as markers of cumulative stress, and, last but definitely not least, thinking hard about the mystery of sentience. Our research has won several awards. Recently I was also a finalist for a federal graduate advising award, and I’m passionate about effective graduate mentoring, and equity, diversity and inclusion issues in STEM. To find out more about life in my lab, see my blog: https://masonabwlab.wordpress.com/

I am also Director of the Campbell Centre for the Study of Animal Welfare and the Col. K. L. Campbell University Chair in Animal Welfare.

B.A (Hons), Zoology – Cambridge University 1987

Ph.D – Cambridge University 1992

Currently, most of the lab’s work is based in Guelph’s excellent Central Animal Facility, and focusses on mice. We are exploring whether conventional housing conditions induce depression, and why some mice spend hours a day jumping up and down or running in circles: are their brains neurologically altered, perhaps like those of people with OCD or autism? In the future, we will be validating new ways to assess these animals’ emotions; investigating why mice in conventional cages live shorter lives than those in larger cages “enriched” with complexity and opportunities for natural behaviour; and digging into the social implications (for example are males from conventional cages less attractive as mates, and poorer singers – yes, mice sing courtship songs – than those raised in better conditions?). I usually have at least one multi-species data analysis project on the go, too. The current one, being run by a postdoc in the UK (see ‘Research group’), is using Phylogenetic Comparative Methods to ask: do birds need to fly? If this intrigues you, and you’re interested in potentially joining the lab, I’m looking for smart, creative, critical thinkers who love hard work. Please send me a CV, unofficial transcript and tell me what research interests you.

• UNIV*6120 - Communications and Outreach in Biology (Winter 2025)
• BIOL*6170 - Stress and Resilience in the Anthropocene (Winter 2025)

• Cait, J., Cait, A., Scott, R. W., Winder, C., & Mason, G. (subm. 2021). Conventional laboratory housing increases morbidity and mortality in research rodents: results of a meta-analysis. Under review, BMC Biology. BMCB-D-21-00744
• Mellor. E.L., McDonald Kinkaid, H. K., Mendl, M. T., Cuthill, I. C., van Zeeland, Y. R. A. & Mason G. J. (2021). Nature calls: Intelligence and natural foraging style predict poor welfare in captive parrots. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 283: 20150738 (https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2021.1952)
• Ross, M., Rausch, Q., Vandenberg, B. & Mason, G., 2020. Hens with benefits: Can environmental enrichment make chickens more resilient to stress? Physiology & Behavior, 226: 113077.
• Adcock, A., Choleris, E., Denommé, M., Khan, H., Levison, L., MacLellan, A., Nazal, B., Niel, L., Nip, E. & Mason, G., 2021. Where are you from? Female mice raised in enriched or conventional cages differ socially, and can be discriminated by other mice. Behavioural Brain Research, 400: 113025.
• Díez-León, M., Kitchenham, L., Duprey, R., Bailey, C.D.C., Choleris, E., Lewis, M., & Mason, G. (2019). Neurophysiological correlates of stereotypic behaviour in a model carnivore species. Behavioural Brain Research 373: 112056.
• Mason G & Wuerbel H. (2016). What can be learnt from wheel-running by wild mice, and how can we identify when wheel-running is pathological? Proceedings of the Royal Society B 283: 20150738
• Phillips, D., Reynolds, K., Ervin, K., Fureix, C., Niel, L., Choleris, E. & Mason, G. J. (2016). Cage-induced stereotypic behaviour in laboratory mice covaries with nucleus accumbens delta fosB expression. Behavioural Brain Research 301: 238-242.
• R. K. Meagher, J. Ahloy Dallaire, D. L.M. Campbell, M. Ross, S. W. Hansen, M. Díez-León, R. Palme, G. J. Mason (2014). Benefits of a ball and chain: Simple environmental enrichments improve welfare and reproductive success in farmed American mink (Neovison vison). PLoS One 9(11):e110589. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0110589.
• M. Díez-León, J. Bowman, S. Bursian, H. Filion, D. Galicia, J. Kanefsky, A. Napolitano, R. Palme, A. Schulte-Hostedde, K. Scribner & G. Mason (2013). Environmentally enriched male mink gain more copulations than stereotypic, barren- reared competitors. PLOS One 8(11): e80494.
• R. K. Meagher & G. J. Mason (2012). Environmental enrichment reduces signs of boredom in caged mink. PLOS One 7(11): e49180.
• G. J. Mason (2010). Species differences in responses to captivity: Stress, welfare and the comparative method. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 25: 713-721.
• R. Clubb, M. Rowcliffe, K. U. Mar, P. Lee, C Moss & G. J. Mason (2008). Compromised survivorship in zoo elephants. Science 322: 1649
• G. Mason & J. Rushen (eds.) (2006). Stereotypic Behaviour in Captive Animals: Fundamentals and Applications to Welfare (second edition). CAB International, Wallingford, UK.
• R. Clubb & G. Mason (2003). Captivity effects on wide-ranging carnivores. Nature 425: 473 – 474.
• G. Mason, J. Cooper & C. Clarebrough (2001). Frustrations of fur-farmed mink. Nature 410: 35 – 36.

2021 - Present: Prathipa Anandarajan

PhD: How does environmental ‘enrichment’ improve maternal care in mice?

(Funding: Graduate Tuition Scholarship)

2020 - Present: Jessica Cait

PhD: Immune effects of housing stress in mice

(Funding: NSERC doctoral award)

2021 - Present: Lindsey Kitchenham

The neurological bases of stereotypic behaviour

(Funding: NSERC doctoral award)

2017 - Present : Michelle Lavery

How do preferred housing condition affect welfare and cognition in zebra fish?

(Funding: NSERC doctoral award, OGS)

2019 - Present: Aileen MacLellan

Do conventional cages for mice induce depression?

(Funding: NSERC doctoral award, OGS)

2021 - Present: Natalie Pallandi

Masters by coursework: Do conventional cages make mice arthritic?

2017 - Present: Andrea Polanco

Ph.D. Stereotypic behaviours as cumulative stress indicators in the rhesus macaque

(Funding: UFAW; NSERC doctoral award)

2021- Present: Lauren Young

Masters by coursework: How do neurological changes cause stereotypic behaviour?

To find out more about life in my lab, see my blog: https://masonabwlab.wordpress.com/. If you’re interested in potentially joining the lab, I’m looking for smart, creative, critical thinkers who love hard work. Please send me a CV, unofficial transcript and tell me what research interests you. If you’re in an equity-seeking group, let me know that too (see here and here for what that jargon means!). Typically I recruit about 10 months ahead, partly because of key scholarship deadlines are NSERC (PhD: October; MSc: December) and Ontario Graduate Scholarships (Jan).

2020 – Present: Dr. Emma Mellor (Bristol Uni.) co-advised with Profs. Mike Mendl and Innes Cuthill.

Post doc: Do birds need to fly? A comparative approach

(Funding: UFAW)

To find out more about life in my lab, see my blog: https://masonabwlab.wordpress.com/. If you’re interested in potentially joining the lab, I’m looking for smart, creative, critical thinkers who love hard work. Please send me a CV, unofficial transcript and tell me what research interests you. If you’re in an equity-seeking group, let me know that too (see here and here for what that jargon means!). Typically I recruit about 10 months ahead, partly because of key scholarship deadlines are NSERC (PhD: October; MSc: December) and Ontario Graduate Scholarships (Jan).