Environmental Enrichment

Includes structural, behavioral, food, and auditory enrichment.

Smith, K. C., Pierdon, M. K. 2024. Utilization of enrichment objects by growing pigs in a commercial facility and the impact on behavior and skin lesions. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 272, 106181.

Environmental enrichment is a way to provide growing pigs with a complex environment to explore and occupy themselves as they grow. Single point enrichment can provide some complexity to the environment while not having the...

Russell, A. L., Randall, L. V., Kaler, J. et al. 2024. Housed dairy cows utilise varied environmental enrichments and show diverse inter-individual variation in habituation. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 274, 106241.

There is currently a focus on the importance of providing positive experiences to farm animals, which can be facilitated through the provision of environmental enrichment. Brushes are an established enrichment resource for dairy cows, however...

Nakhwa, A. A., Breakell, V., Chambers, L. et al. 2024. Implications of tactile enrichment on the behaviour and whisker movements of four species of carnivorans. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 274, 106261.

Caniformia include a range of aquatic, semi-aquatic and terrestrial species, which reveal diversity in their whisker arrangements and shape. Whisker movements play a crucial role in the perception of tactile information, allowing whiskered mammals to...

Gatto, E., Lucon-Xiccato, T., Bertolucci, C. 2024. Environmental conditions shape learning in larval zebrafish. Behavioural Processes 218, 105045.

Growing evidence reveals notable phenotypic plasticity in cognition among teleost fishes. One compelling example is the positive impact of enriched environments on learning performance. Most studies on this effect have focused on juvenile or later...

DePaoli, E., Korver, D., Bench, C. 2024. Effect of pullet rearing environment, strain and perch shape on perching behaviour, perching biomechanics, and keel bone damage in enriched-housed laying hens. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 272, 106187.

Housing, including pullet rearing environment and enrichments, impacts the welfare of laying hens throughout their life. As the egg industry shifts towards alternative housing systems (furnished cages, aviary, free-run, and free range), an increase in...

Bigiani, S., Pilenga, C. 2024. Benefit of cognitive environmental enrichments on social tolerance and play behavior in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science 27(2), 355–372.

Social tolerance is an essential feature of social life that can determine the good functioning of a group of animals. Play behaviors, like social play and playing with objects, are frequently associated with positive emotional...

Newton, R. 2023. An overview of black tree monitor (Varanus beccarii) husbandry. RATEL (Journal of the Association of British and Irish Wild Animal Keepers) 50(3-4), 24-25.

This article describes the enclosure, environmental parameters, feeding, enclosure dynamics, breeding, handling, identification, and enrichment for zoo-housed black tree monitors.

Trowbridge, F. 2023. The perfect playground: Designing a goat enclosure for pygmy and Anglo-Nubian goats. RATEL (Journal of the Association of British and Irish Wild Animal Keepers) 50(3-4), 18-20.

Goats are known for their lively and curious nature and our pygmy and Nubian goats are no exception. Providing them with a stimulating environment is essential for their physical and mental well-being and one way...

Trelfa-Stewart, E., Cox, L. 2023. Battle of the enrichments: Comparing the impact of nutritional and sensory enrichment on the behaviour of captive lowland tapirs Tapirus terrestris. Journal of Zoo and Aquarium Research 11(3), 336–344.

Environmental enrichment is used to improve the welfare of captive animals by providing increased environmental variety, the provision of choice, and the opportunity to develop competency. The efficacy of a range of environmental enrichment should...

Taylor, P. S., Schrobback, P., Verdon, M. et al. 2023. An effective environmental enrichment framework for the continual improvement of production animal welfare. Animal Welfare 32, e14.

Substrates and objects are provided to farm animals on the assumption that they improve animal welfare by enriching the environment, but these often fail to consider the extent to which an environmental enrichment (EE) improves...

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