Environmental Enrichment
Enrichment is potentially one of the caretaker’s most powerful tools to improve welfare for an individual. Enrichment is covered in virtually all husbandry plans issued by regional and national associations, so managers and keepers are aware of the option
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Environmental Enrichment
We can, as keepers of the captive biota, give the pleasure of intelligent, appropriate companionship to sentient beings, captive or otherwise, raising life to higher levels of appreciation for both parties. We can develop such bonds knowingly, with purpose, and use such in management or reintroductions. Ethological studies teach us that life in captivity must not be a prison sentence for wildlife. Valerius Geist
Enrichment is potentially one of the most powerful tools an animal caretaker has to improve welfare for an individual. Environmental enrichment has been conceptualized in various ways, but the definitions generally relate to adding sensory stimuli or providing choices in the environment (de Azevedo et al. 2007) in an effort to increase behavioral opportunities to benefit the inhabitants. Viktor and Annie Reinhardt (1998) defined environmental enrichment as “the provision of stimuli which promote the expression of species-appropriate behavioral and mental activities in an understimulating environment.” Young (2003) offers the approach of defining the goals of environmental enrichment rather than the concept itself. He modifies the descriptions of Shepherdson (1989) and Chamove and Moodie (1990) to propose the following goals for enrichment: “(1) Increase behavioral diversity; (2) Reduce the frequencies of abnormal behavior; (3) Increase the range of normal (i.e., wild) behavior patterns; (4) Increase positive utilization of the environment; (5) Increase the ability to cope with challenges in a more normal way (p. 2). By focusing on these goals, we can develop effective and efficient management practices for zoo animals. In many cases, enrichment has been used in a posthoc effort to reduce stereotypic behavior or correct other deficiencies, such as inadequate exhibit design, but it is being used increasingly more often in zoos in a proactive manner to create a rich, stimulating environment. Enrichment is covered in virtually all husbandry plans issued by regional and national associations, so managers and keepers are aware of the options. However, enrichment is not always successful (Mason et al. 2007) and there is a need for critical assessment of what types of T.L. Maple and B.M. Perdue, Zoo Animal Welfare, Animal Welfare, DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-35955-2_6, # Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013
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6 Environmental Enrichment
Fig. 6.1 Gorilla enjoying cover in artificial tree at Zoo Atlanta (A. Clay)
enrichment work, with what species, in what contexts, and how to implement these practices in an effective and cost-effective manner. This chapter will outline some of the existing frameworks for defining types of enrichment and then touch on the critical issues that should be considered as the use of enrichment grows (Fig. 6.1). Enrichment in the United States became a priority after the passage of the 1985 Animal Welfare Act introducing the concept of “psychological well-being” (Adams 2007). The legislation was particularly pertinent to non-human primates and dogs managed in
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