What follows are some case studies in which solid but transparent barriers have been used successfully to provide a sense of security to three different mammal taxa (three-banded armadillo; Kirk’s dikdik; black rat) to reduce...
Designed to improve their welfare by reducing the need for restraint and/or general anesthetic where possible. We have been working to improve the husbandry management of our 1.1 Linne’s two-toed (or fingered) sloths (Choloepus didactylus)...
The zoo-housed southern white rhinoceros (SWR) population is of special concern due to their lack of consistent breeding success. An enhanced understanding of SWR social preferences could better inform management planning by promoting natural social...
Kolmården djurpark keeps one of the most northern living giraffe Giraffa camelopardalis groups in the world, and this comes with its challenges. For a long part of the year, the outside temperature is too cold...
Holistic approaches have been implemented to minimise stress expressed as stereotypies associated with low welfare conditions, which can arise from a range of factors such as frustration, adaptation attempts and neurological problems. Such behaviour was...
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...
To improve animal welfare based on suitable social housing conditions, it is important to understand the factors that trigger high-stress responses. Wild giraffes live in a fission–fusion society and males and females are rarely in...
Although there has been an increase in research studying the impact of housing on zoo animal welfare, there is still a lack of literature regarding the impact of seasonal housing differences on animal welfare. In...
Browsing enrichment may aid in developing species-specific behaviors for giraffes managed in zoos as a means of improving animal welfare. By nature, giraffes are tree-feeding animals, including tree bark, but the extent of food other...
Grant’s zebra Equus quagga boehmi is an equine species commonly bred in zoos under human care. Male zebras are often castrated to prevent a surplus captive zebra population. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) vaccination may pose an...