Animal Enrichment
WILDLIFE CONSERVATION SOCIETY
LIVING INSTITUTIONS
ANIMAL ENRICHMENT PROGRAM
A History of Innovation
The Wildlife Conservation Society has a long history of innovative approaches to the care of the animals in its Living Institutions. It was the first to develop a true health center. We have outstanding programs in nutrition and our excellent work with emerging animal diseases was instrumental in the discovery of the West Nile Virus. Our innovative exhibits, such as the World of Birds, JungleWorld, World of Darkness and Congo Gorilla Forest, have shown the world that provocative and humane exhibits can be one in the same. These wondrous places inspire our guests to care about wildlife, even as they provide for the well being of individual animals.
Naturalistic exhibits, filled with opportunities to enrich the lives of animals, have replaced the once-popular, sterile concrete enclosures that were easy to clean, but offered the animals little to enjoy. The evolution of the naturalistic exhibit has been in parallel with exciting new developments in animal husbandry. Our veterinary scientists provide animal care equal to that available for humans, whether it be clinical or nutritional. Zoo and aquarium professionals, in spite of the dramatic changes they have created for the physical health of the animals, have only recently begun to truly address the animals' psychological needs. This emerging field of work has been collected under the descriptive umbrella of animal enrichment. It includes elements of training, animal behavior, exhibit design, nutrition, and ecology.
A Case for Animal Enrichment
Zoo and aquarium animals are less likely to encounter life-threatening disease or injury from predators and consorts. They do not need to go for long periods without food and water and certainly do not risk starvation. Although we would all agree that this is a good thing, we do not truly understand what, if anything, in an animal's life is wanting because it does not experience the challenges of hunting, encountering other hostile animals, etc. Our assumptions are that the absence of some challenges and opportunities for exploration may result in boredom, an increase in stereotypic behavior and may negatively impact an animal's mental health. This is why the animal enrichment program is so vital to our program and why it is essential that we get the best information and the best minds to create solutions and opportunities.
Enrichment is a process that provides opportunities for animals to make decisions for themselves. Training, behavioral studies, food rewards, and the development of things for the animals to do are all products of an enrichment process. As an example, studies of the behavior of some birds in zoos have shown that they prefer to work for their food, rather than have it presented in a bowl. As a result, our enrichment experts have devised a system of wrapping rats in paper and tying this package with string. The birds are delighted to pick at it much in a way they would in nature.
Although the transition from feeding birds in a bowl to making them unwrap food for themselves may seem trivial, it is not. The innate needs of the animal have been met through a science based enrichment program. The keys to any successful enrichment program are science based, strategic and ultimately quantifiable. Our program attempts not only to provide opportunities for Wildlife Conservation Society staff to address the mental requirements of our animals, but also to invite experts in other fields to contribute to the baseline of knowledge that is essential for any successful program.
The Animal Enrichment Program at WCS Living Institutions
The recently formalized Animal Enrichment Program combines the efforts of staff from all the Living Institutions. WCS has incorporated enrichment tools in our husbandry efforts for years, but the formation of this new program recognizes our concern for the mental health of our animals, as well as their physical health.
Curators, keepers, trainers, research scientists are all part of the program - even engineers, exhibit designers and media staff get involved. The exchange of ideas with individuals from academic institutions and experts from the field is an essential part of such a dynamic program. WCS is now in a position of leadership. The Animal Enrichment Program is designed to optimize communication between these groups and utilize their imagination and intelligence with the goal of expanding the knowledge and methods available to provide the richest possible environments and opportunities for our animals. Our results are also made available to all zoos, aquariums and places where live animals are kept.
When enrichment is integrated into basic husbandry practices it provides activities and environmental complexities that encourage animals to exercise their natural behaviors. It addresses their psychological and physiological needs, giving them choices and control in their lives. With the opening of Congo Gorilla Forest, WCS expanded the horizon for creating behaviorally rich animal exhibits. Congo has revolutionized how zoos can provide for large social groups in a manner that promotes natural behaviors and inspires conservation efforts. Presently we are taking the lessons learned from Congo and incorporating them into a new Siberian tiger exhibit. Enrichment has been a fundamental aspect throughout the design process of the new exhibit. Not only will we expand the tools available to contribute to a complex and stimulating environment for these magnificent big cats, but we will also bring zoo visitors into the enrichment effort and provide a strong educational message on the psychological and social intricacy of wildlife.
A naturalistic exhibit does not in itself create a program of enrichment. Enrichment opportunities should be provided for all species in our collections in a systematic, planned and documented program. In addition to new exhibit designs, the enrichment program incorporates other habitat enrichment techniques, social enrichment, foraging enrichment, novel object enrichment, occupational enrichment, adjustment of time budgets, husbandry training as enrichment, and sensory stimulation. One of the notable advances is the design and creation of novel objects, or toys, for animals. These objects promote problem solving, provide new foraging opportunities, and allow the animal to have additional control over its environment.
