How Zoos Are Improving the Health and Nutrition of Their Animals
As society has become more aware of the need for animal welfare, zoos have had to adapt their operations to ensure their animals are receiving the highest standard of care. One primary method zoos are using to improve the health and nutrition of their animals is through enriching their environments and diets.
Enriched Environments
A significant way zoos are improving animal health and wellness is through enriched environments. An enriched environment involves providing animals with a stimulating and challenging environment more akin to what elephants, tigers, and other animals would experience in the wild. This can include objects to play with, spaces to climb, water features, and much more.
Research shows animals that live in enriched environments are more active, curious, and exhibit natural behaviors more frequently. Enriching animal environments can aid in reducing animal antagonism, improving breeding success rates, and facilitating the animal’s ability to cope with new situations.
Additionally, various zoos are taking part in research to better understand what makes natural environments so enriching and are implementing ideas on their property appropriate to the species residing there. For instance, the Melbourne Zoo has built a play area for their otters that features interactions with running water, sand pits, and other stimulatory features that encourage natural behavior.
Improved Nutrition
Nutrition is another vital aspect of improving animal health and wellness. Zoos around the world are employing specialists to improve the diets provided to their animals. Researching natural diets, taking into account dietary requirements based on sex, growth stage, and individual needs can help to improve the health of the animals.
There have been examples of specific zoo animals experiencing significant enhancements in health following dietary reviews. For example, the Nashville Zoo analyzed the diet of their clouded leopards and subsequently added more vitamins like vitamin D and changed the calcium source of the diet. The resulting benefits included improved cardiovascular health as well as better bone growth and density.
Additionally, zoos and wildlife conservationists have set up partnerships with farms in their local communities to purchase local produce for the animals in their zoos. This can help guarantee appropriately diverse nutrition while providing economic support to nearby farmers.
Conclusion
The goal of all zoos is to provide animals with a secure environment that promotes behavior closest to what they would exhibit in the wild. To achieve this, zoos around the world are making significant changes in providing enriched environments and improving animal diets.
Enriched environments that fulfill the behavioral needs of the animals lead to happy, healthy creatures that are more likely to breed, engage in natural behaviors and have healthy immune responses. On the other hand, improved diets which can lead to better cardiovascular health, bone density, and muscle mass reductions – all leading to a reduction in total medical costs.
However, ensuring animals’ environments and diets are continuously enriched is a process that demands constant attention to both research and day-to-day operations. Zoos must consistently review and update internal practices to deliver the highest standards of care.
