In pursuit of peak animal welfare; the need to prioritize the meaningful over the measurable

Life in a fishbowl: Space and environmental enrichment affect behaviour of Betta splendens

The public has expressed growing concern for the well-being of fishes, including popular pet species such as the Siamese fighting fish (Betta splendens). In captivity, male Bettas behave aggressively, often causing injuries and death if housed together. As a result, they are typically isolated in small fishbowls, which has been widely criticised as cruel. To investigate the impact of keeping Bettas in these conditions, we recorded the behaviour of individual males in containers of different sizes that were either bare or enriched with gravel, large rocks, and live plants. When male Bettas were housed individually in small bowls (0.5 L) they spent less time swimming than they did when they were kept in larger aquaria (10, 38, and 208 L). Fish that were kept in enriched containers exhibited more instances of swimming. To determine if two male Bettas housed together might coexist peacefully if given enough space and cover from plants and large rocks, we quantified the behaviour of pairs of male Bettas in bare or enriched aquaria of different sizes (10, 38, 208, 378 L). Fish performed fewer approaches and aggressive displays, but not attacks, and more bouts of foraging, when in larger aquaria. This study shows that the small fishbowls typically used in pet stores suppress swimming behaviour in male Bettas and at least a 10-L aquarium is required to ensure full expression of swimming behaviour. Furthermore, even the use of very large aquaria cannot guarantee peaceful cohabitation between two males.

A perspective on ungulate management and welfare assessment across the traditional zoo to large landscape spectrum

Wild ungulates are managed in human care in a range of settings from traditional zoos to large ranches. These varied settings present different portfolios of risks for good or poor welfare, which leads some to question whether a particular setting is "good for welfare" and have frustrated others interested in comparing the welfare of ungulates across these settings. Differing housing and management scenarios present different challenges and opportunities in terms of welfare but this commentary posits that good welfare is possible in all of these settings. In this commentary, we also consider natural behaviors that may, at face value, compromise welfare and discuss how taking a long view on welfare addresses concerns about these behaviors, in part using arguments related to normal behavioral development that likely improves welfare at other life stages. We also highlight the role of motivation in seemingly welfare-compromising behaviors. Finally, some indicators of welfare that we believe transcend management scenarios, and are thus able to be compared across scenarios, are suggested.

Wing condition does not negatively impact time budget, enclosure usage, or social bonds in a flock of both full-winged and flight-restrained greater flamingos

Zoo management techniques for captive birds, such as flight restraint and enclosure type, may affect behavioral performance and are consequently worthy of investigation. Flamingos are amongst the most popular of zoo-housed birds and, as such, research into their captive management and associated behavioral responses are widely applicable to many thousands of individuals. As a highly social species, understanding social bonds and behavior of the individual bird and the flock overall can help inform decisions that support husbandry and population management. In this project, 41 greater flamingos at Bristol Zoo Gardens were observed for 49 days across spring and summer 2013 to assess the following: (i) social associations within the flock, (ii) overall activity patterns, and (iii) distribution of time within specific enclosure zones for both full-winged and flight-restrained birds living in the same enclosure. Results showed that pinioning interacted with age in regard to flamingo time-activity patterns, but wing condition did not significantly influence association patterns, performance of social interactions, or performance of breeding behavior. Social network analysis revealed that associations were nonrandom and flamingos, of either wing condition, displayed different roles within the network. Birds of similar age formed the strongest bonds. Enclosure usage was not even, suggesting that the flamingos favored specific areas of the enclosure during the observation period. This study showed that wing condition does not affect flamingo behavior, social bonds, or space use, and that age and sex have more of an overall influence on what flamingos do, and with whom they chose to do it. Further research should extend this study into other, larger captive flocks to further refine behavioral measures of welfare for these popular zoo birds.

Choice, control, and animal welfare: definitions and essential inquiries to advance animal welfare science

The ways in which humans can support good welfare for animals in their care is an ongoing subject of debate: some place emphasis on the animals' physical health; others, on animals' ability to live "natural lives"; and others on animals' affective states or psychological wellbeing. Recently, there has been an increase in interest in how an animal's ability to exercise control over its environment could impact their welfare. In this article, we take the stance that the relevant aspects of the first two concepts of animal welfare (physical health, natural lives) are largely addressed when an animal's psychological wellbeing is prioritized. Through that lens, we review the current state of the literature regarding the psychology of control, and the intersection between choice, control, and welfare. We clarify terms to support future work, and propose future directions that could lead to a better understanding of the psychological benefits of choice and control and ultimately inform animal care decisions.

Review: Towards an integrated concept of animal welfare

Animal welfare is an important field of study due to animal sentience, yet there is to date no consensus on the definition of animal welfare. There have been four key developments in the field of animal welfare science since its birth: the theoretical and empirical study of affective states, and hence our understanding thereof, has increased; there has been a shift from a primary focus on unpleasant experiences towards an inclusion of pleasant experiences; there has been an increasing mention and investigation of the notion of cumulation of experiences in time, and with this, the importance of the time component of both affective states and animal welfare has come forward. Following others, we define welfare as a balance or cumulation of pleasant and unpleasant experiences over time. The time period of welfare depends on when welfare considerations are necessary, and may range from the duration of single and relatively short-term experiences to the entire life of an animal. We further propose that animal welfare conceptualised in this way can be assessed at three levels: level 1 represents the assessment of the environment and 'internal factors' such as health and personality, which interact in their impact on the affective experiences of animals; level 2 represents the assessment of affective states; and level 3 represents the assessment of the balance or cumulation of these affective states in time. The advancement of research necessitates studies to be more or less comparable, and this would be facilitated by researchers mentioning which concept of animal welfare they are basing their work on, at which level of assessment they are working, which assumptions they might be drawing from to infer welfare and which time period of interest they are focusing on, even if this is not mirrored by the timing of the assessment in practice. Assessment at levels 2 and 3 still needs much study, at both the theoretical and empirical levels, including agreements on validation tools.

Handling and Training of Wild Animals: Evidence and Ethics-Based Approaches and Best Practices in the Modern Zoo

There is an ethical responsibility to provide all animals living in human care with optimal and positive well-being. As animals living in zoos and aquariums frequently interact with their human caregivers as part of their daily care routines, it is both relevant and essential to consider the impact of these interactions on animal well-being. Allowing animals to have choice and control in multiple areas of their lives, such as by providing opportunities for them to voluntarily participate in their own care through, for example, positive reinforcement training, is an essential component of good animal well-being programs. This review aims to describe evidence-based approaches, ethics, and best practices in the handling and training of the many taxa held in zoos and aquariums worldwide, drawing from work in related animal care fields such as laboratories, farms, rescue, and sanctuaries. The importance of ongoing animal well-being assessments is discussed, with a particular focus on the need for continued review and refinement of processes and procedures pertaining to animal training and handling specifically. Review, enquiry, assessment, evaluation, and refinement will aim to dynamically support positive well-being for all animals.

Don't use it? Don't lose it! Why active use is not required for stimuli, resources or "enrichments" to have welfare value

Current frameworks for designing and evaluating good enclosures and "enrichments" typically focus on animals' active interactions with these features. This has undoubtedly improved the welfare of zoo-housed animals over the last 30 years or more. However, literature reviews from this same period identify persistent gaps in how such frameworks are applied: experiences and behaviors that do not rely on active interaction with stimuli or resources are largely ignored, when evaluating the welfare value of enclosures and enrichments within them. Here, we review research evidence demonstrating that active interaction is not always a reliable measure of welfare value, showing that items that elicit little or no interaction can nevertheless still reduce stress and improve well-being. This evidence largely comes from research on humans, lab animals and farm animals, but also from some zoo studies too. We then investigate why. We review psychology and ethology literatures to show that such welfare benefits can arise from five, non-mutually exclusive, processes or mechanisms that are well-understood in humans and domestic animals: (1) some motivations are sated quickly by interaction with resources, yet still have large welfare benefits; (2) active interaction may just be a way to achieve a goal or solve a problem, without being beneficial for welfare in itself; (3) having opportunities for choice and control may be inherently beneficial, even when not acted on; (4) some enclosure features meet social needs for structure, landmarks, and blocked sightlines; and (5) some stimuli may be preferred because they signaled good environments to an animal's ancestors. We use this information to identify  improved ways of enhancing and assessing zoo animal welfare. Incorporating these concepts should expand the scope of behaviors and subjective experiences that are targeted, to now include those that involve little active interaction and yet still are important for good welfare.

Behaviour, Furnishing and Vertical Space Use of Captive Callimico (Callimico goeldii): Implications for Welfare

Provision of optimal captive care should be supported by species-specific evidence. Callimico (Callimico goeldii) is a small South American callitrichid primate. This study sought to address gaps in species-specific knowledge and captive management research by examining differences in callimico behaviour across multiple collections, investigating vertical enclosure use and a possible association between specific behaviours and vertical zones. Observational research was conducted at five European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) organisations, in exhibits that were visually divided into four vertical zones. Instantaneous scan sampling was used to record behaviour and location of callimico over a six-day period at each collection, exceeding 160 observational hours. Significant differences were observed in foraging between collections and were much lower than the recommendations in Best Practice Guidelines, although near-wild levels were recorded in one enclosure. At an average height of 2 m, callimico utilized a similar vertical space across very different enclosures, regardless of overall available height, reflective of their natural ecology. The association between whole food items and increased foraging time, horizontal branches and locomotion and deep substrate and diversity of behaviours, offers further species-specific evidence of how the callimico use their captive environment. Our findings complement current EAZA guidelines to support species appropriate care for callimico and makes specific recommendations for further research.

Promoting Good Nonhuman Primate Welfare outside Regular Working Hours

Promoting good primate welfare outside of daylight hours is an important task. The responsibility to provide a complex environment and environmental enrichment is an essential element of primate wellbeing programs that should be approached from a 24-h perspective and planned according to the species and individual needs, including giving animals the ability to interact with and control their environment during hours when animal care staff are not present. One must be aware, however, that their needs may differ at night-time from their care needs during the day when staff are present. Assessing welfare and providing enrichment during times when staff are not on hand can be achieved through the use of a variety of technologies, such as night-view cameras, animal-centred technologies, and data loggers. This paper will address the relevant topics concerning the care and welfare of primates during off-hours, and the use of related technologies to facilitate and assess wellbeing at these times.

The Role of Zoos and Aquariums in a Changing World

Zoos and aquariums have evolved significantly. From their origins as enclosures for the mere entertainment of the public, these institutions have undertaken new functions responding to the biodiversity crisis and social demands. Modern zoos and aquariums have the opportunity to educate people, contribute to species conservation, and produce animal-related research. However, there is increasing criticism toward the outcomes of their actions and the holding of species in their facilities. This review offers an integrated analysis of the state of knowledge about the role that zoos and aquariums play today. It describes their performance regarding their conservation, education, and research functions, highlighting general patterns and offering future perspectives. It identifies some challenges common to all these institutions, concluding that the way they keep up with the ever-growing social and environmental expectations will be decisive hereafter.

Cognitive Foraging Enrichment (but Not Non-Cognitive Enrichment) Improved Several Longer-Term Welfare Indicators in Bottlenose Dolphins

Bottlenose dolphins are the most common cetacean kept globally in zoos and aquaria (hereafter zoos), and are gregarious animals with a mostly opportunistic, generalist feeding strategy in the wild. In zoos, they have limited to no opportunities to express natural foraging behaviours as they receive their daily food ration of dead fish in a series of training sessions. Enrichment provision has increased in recent years, but items are still predominantly simple and floating in nature, and do not always target the animals' problem-solving or food-acquisition behaviours. These discrepancies run concurrently with the intense debate about dolphin welfare in zoos and how to improve it. The current study used a within-subject design on 11 bottlenose dolphins at Kolmårdens Djurpark and measured how several welfare indicators differed between two treatments of "cognitive" and "non-cognitive" food-based enrichment. The treatments were provided on an alternating basis for eight consecutive weeks: during cognitive enrichment weeks, the animals received items which stimulated their problem-solving and foraging behaviours, and during non-cognitive enrichment weeks, they received simple items paired with fish (to eliminate bias due to food value). Data were taken related to several multidisciplinary welfare parameters during enrichment provision and training sessions, and to activity budget behaviours throughout the week. During the cognitive as opposed to non-cognitive enrichment weeks, the dolphins engaged more with the enrichment, were more motivated to participate in training sessions and performed less anticipatory and stereotypic behaviours, suggesting that cognitive enrichment improved several indicators of bottlenose dolphin welfare. Valuable lines of further investigation would be to understand how individual differences and different types of cognitive enrichment impact potential welfare benefits. Our results suggest that enrichment items promoting cognitive foraging behaviours may improve dolphin welfare, and therefore zoos might prioritise giving cognitive enrichment to this species as well as considering the same for other species with similar cognitive skills and foraging ecologies.

Maximum longevity and juvenile mortality in zoo-housed mangabeys

Little is known about the biology of grey-cheeked and black crested mangabeys (Lophocebus albigena and Lophocebus aterrimus, respectively). As these primates face threats in the wild, well-monitored zoo-housed populations with up to date registries are becoming increasingly valuable to acquire species knowledge and to support conservation efforts. We used international studbooks to extract demographic and genetic information on 519 mangabeys to investigate how life history and parent-related variables influence maximum longevity and juvenile mortality. Generalized linear mixed models, as well as survival analyses, were applied. Results showed that females lived significantly longer than males, which is not uncommon in primates. Furthermore, our results indicated that the maximum longevity is lower for individuals living in European zoos versus individuals from North American zoos, which may be due to a combination of environmental differences and potential founder effects. We also show that the maternal maximum longevity is positively related to the maximum longevity of the offspring, which may be explained by the inheritance of "good genes". However, the age of the mother at the moment of birth was negatively related to the maximum longevity of the offspring, which contradicts literature that states that, in primates, more experienced and thus older mothers will raise their offspring better than less experienced mothers. Instead, it is more likely that an "optimal age range" exists for breeding mothers. Our study provides insights into the population biology of captive mangabeys and may be helpful for identifying future research priorities to optimize primate health and welfare directly ex situ, and indirectly in situ.

Psychological and social well-being of bony fishes in zoos and aquariums

Research on the behavior of animals in zoos has been conducted for decades and observations have provided information that has improved the psychological and social well-being of animals. However, research on fishes in zoos and aquariums seems to be lacking. Here we assess the current state of research on fishes in zoos and aquariums by surveying peer-reviewed literature. Our assessment differs from previous surveys in that we examine the taxonomic classes Chondrichthyes (sharks and rays) and Osteichthyes (bony fishes) separately. Our survey finds that bony fishes have been drastically underrepresented in zoo journals, more so than chondrichthyans, revealing an urgent need for zoos and aquariums to conduct research on the behavior of the bony fishes in their care, to ensure a positive state of psychological and social well-being. To plot a course for the future, we discuss the few studies that have been conducted on the behavior of bony fishes in zoos and aquariums, and we discuss research conducted on bony fishes in food-fish aquaculture and biomedicine to identify the types of studies that could be conducted in zoos and aquariums. We conclude that data-driven analyses of fish behavior could aid in development of evidence-based practices that enhance the well-being of bony fishes in zoos and aquariums, just as they already do for terrestrial animals.

A dynamic concept of animal welfare: The role of appetitive and adverse internal and external factors and the animal’s ability to adapt to them

Animal welfare is a multifaceted issue that can be approached from different viewpoints, depending on human interests, ethical assumptions, and culture. To properly assess, safeguard and promote animal welfare, concepts are needed to serve as guidelines in any context the animal is kept in. Several different welfare concepts have been developed during the last half decade. The Five Freedoms concept has provided the basis for developing animal welfare assessment to date, and the Five Domains concept has guided those responsible for safeguarding animal welfare, while the Quality of Life concept focuses on how the individual perceives its own welfare state. This study proposes a modified and extended version of an earlier animal welfare concept - the Dynamic Animal Welfare Concept (DAWCon). Based on the adaptability of the animal, and taking the importance of positive emotional states and the dynamic nature of animal welfare into account, an individual animal is likely in a positive welfare state when it is mentally and physically capable and possesses the ability and opportunity to react adequately to sporadic or lasting appetitive and adverse internal and external stimuli, events, and conditions. Adequate reactions are elements of an animal’s normal behavior. They allow the animal to cope with and adapt to the demands of the (prevailing) environmental circumstances, enabling it to reach a state that it perceives as positive, i.e., that evokes positive emotions. This paper describes the role of internal as well as external factors in influencing welfare, each of which exerts their effects in a sporadic or lasting manner. Behavior is highlighted as a crucial read-out parameter. As most animals under human care are selected for certain traits that may affect their behavioral repertoire it is crucial to have thorough ethograms, i.e., a catalogue of specific behaviors of the species/strain/breed under study. DAWCon highlights aspects that need to be addressed when assessing welfare and may stimulate future research questions.

Confronting Back-of-House Traditions: Primates as a Case Study

This review commentary focuses on traditional management practices and facility design with suggested improvements in non-public primate management areas, often called “back-of-house”, (henceforth BOH) in zoos, sanctuaries, and research facilities. Progress has been made toward improving animal quality of life in larger, more naturalistic, and enriched indoor and outdoor display areas. However, the quality of life in BOH areas has improved little in comparison. Basic management, regulatory, structural, and spatial BOH environments are lagging, especially in the developing world, and animals may be confined in less enriching spaces for substantial periods of the 24 h day. We reviewed traditional management policy and practice, as well as newer training, enrichment, and welfare policies and actions, and suggested alternatives for structural environments and spatial environments. The suggestions included using more animal-friendly construction materials and animal–computer interaction, providing greater control of the ambient environment and choice of access to multiple areas by the animals themselves, and designing for optimal animal wellbeing at all times, including when caregivers are no longer present. Case studies focused on primates were included. We concluded by suggesting a new, integrated design model based not upon rote standards and old models but building on empirical foundations while embracing empathy and innovation.

Differing animal welfare conceptions and what they mean for the future of zoos and aquariums, insights from an animal welfare audit

Animal welfare is a growing public concern that has the potential to undermine the social license of zoos and aquariums. The lack of consensus on how animal welfare is defined across such a diverse sector combined with and a widespread belief that commercial priorities such as entertaining visitors conflicts with animal welfare, hinders efforts to effectively address this fundamental issue for the sector. Data derived from an audit of habitats across a major North American wildlife attraction revealed that holistic animal welfare assessments undertaken by animal carers embracing three principal constructs of animal welfare, correlated strongly with visitor perceptions of animal happiness. Visitor assessments of animal happiness also correlated with animal carer assessments of social, behavioural and locomotor opportunities and inversely with the prevalence of stereotypic behaviours, supporting the proposition that folk conceptions of animal welfare are more accurate than may have previously been considered to be the case. However, the holistic animal welfare assessment inversely correlated with assessments of a habitat's capacity to safeguard welfare as determined by the facility's veterinary staff, supporting the proposition that tensions exist between physical and psychological components of captive animal welfare provisioning. This further underlines the importance of clarity on how animal welfare is conceived when developing institutional animal welfare strategies. Finally, the data also showed that both holistic animal welfare assessments and visitor perceptions of animal happiness strongly correlated with the level of enjoyment experienced by visitors, challenging the belief that animal welfare competes with the commercial priorities of zoos and aquariums. The audit supports the case that maintaining high animal welfare is a commercial imperative as well as a moral obligation for zoos and aquariums and underlines the necessity to utilize conceptions of animal welfare that acknowledge the centrality of the affective states of animals in maintaining those standards.

Twelve Threats of Precision Livestock Farming (PLF) for Animal Welfare

Research and development of Precision Livestock Farming (PLF) is booming, partly due to hopes and claims regarding the benefits of PLF for animal welfare. These claims remain largely unproven, however, as only few PLF technologies focusing on animal welfare have been commercialized and adopted in practice. The prevailing enthusiasm and optimism about PLF innovations may be clouding the perception of possible threats that PLF may pose to farm animal welfare. Without claiming to be exhaustive, this paper lists 12 potential threats grouped into four categories: direct harm, indirect harm via the end-user, via changes to housing and management, and via ethical stagnation or degradation. PLF can directly harm the animals because of (1) technical failures, (2) harmful effects of exposure, adaptation or wearing of hardware components, (3) inaccurate predictions and decisions due to poor external validation, and (4) lack of uptake of the most meaningful indicators for animal welfare. PLF may create indirect effects on animal welfare if the farmer or stockperson (5) becomes under- or over-reliant on PLF technology, (6) spends less (quality) time with the animals, and (7) loses animal-oriented husbandry skills. PLF may also compromise the interests of the animals by creating transformations in animal farming so that the housing and management are (8) adapted to optimize PLF performance or (9) become more industrialized. Finally, PLF may affect the moral status of farm animals in society by leading to (10) increased speciesism, (11) further animal instrumentalization, and (12) increased animal consumption and harm. For the direct threats, possibilities for prevention and remedies are suggested. As the direction and magnitude of the more indirect threats are harder to predict or prevent, they are more difficult to address. In order to maximize the potential of PLF for improving animal welfare, the potential threats as well as the opportunities should be acknowledged, monitored and addressed.

Jumping on the Bandwagon of Responsibility—Or Not? Consumers’ Perceived Role in the Meat Sector

It is evident that sustainable meat consumption and production require shared responsibility for actions and consequences by consumers and producers. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the relevant focus areas within the meat food value chain that consumers attach relevance to. Furthermore, the study provides an understanding of potential actions of consumer social responsibility (CNSR) and reasons for not taking responsibility. The study is based on an online consumer survey (n = 1003) including standardized and open-ended questions. Data were analyzed via content analysis using a combination of inductive and deductive analyses in an iterative process. Results reveal that consumers consider animal husbandry as the core area where there is a need to take responsibility. This is followed by food safety, slaughtering, and transport, while environment and social issues related to the working conditions of employees are judged to have lower relevance. In most focus areas, the large majority of respondents attribute responsibility to one or several of the other stakeholder groups but not to consumers of meat products. Recommendations for the meat sector as well as for policymakers are derived in this paper to further encourage meat consumers to take their part of the overall responsibility.

Welfare Assessment Tools in Zoos: From Theory to Practice

Zoos are increasingly implementing formalized animal welfare assessment programs to allow monitoring of welfare over time, as well as to aid in resource prioritization. These programs tend to rely on assessment tools that incorporate resource-based and observational animal-focused measures. A narrative review of the literature was conducted to bring together recent studies examining welfare assessment methods in zoo animals. A summary of these methods is provided, with advantages and limitations of the approaches presented. We then highlight practical considerations with respect to implementation of these tools into practice, for example scoring schemes, weighting of criteria, and innate animal factors for consideration. It is concluded that there would be value in standardizing guidelines for development of welfare assessment tools since zoo accreditation bodies rarely prescribe these. There is also a need to develop taxon or species-specific assessment tools to complement more generic processes and more directly inform welfare management.

Why Are Enrichment Practices in Zoos Difficult to Implement Effectively?

Simple Summary

Zookeepers often introduce enrichment practices in which they provide animals with diverse stimuli and challenges to stimulate mental and physical activity, but enrichment can be difficult to implement and the enrichment used in zoos is not always effective at improving animal welfare. Limited information is available on how zookeepers apply enrichment practices in zoos. To identify some of the reasons that zoos cannot always provide effective enrichment, we interviewed keepers across multiple zoos. Keepers that work with big cats were deemed particularly well suited to the study, given the extensive recommendations in the literature for this group of animals in zoos. We discovered that many impediments obstructed the capacity of zookeepers to enrich animals effectively, such as conflicting priorities, uncertainty about which enrichment practices are effective, and concerns about the perceptions of visitors. To illustrate, zoos often impose routines for keepers to address more immediate and visible problems, such as sick animals or visitors who do not like unnatural objects in the enclosure. Hence, the enrichment and stimulation of animals is not always perceived as important or pressing and, therefore, may be deferred or neglected. We suggest that greater clarity and increased transparency on the objectives and means of assessing enrichment could curb confusion surrounding enrichment practices in zoos.

Abstract

The good intentions of zoos to introduce enrichment practices that stimulate animals mentally and physically are not always achievable. Changes to the policies and procedures in organisations are difficult to fulfil for a range of reasons frequently investigated in change management literature. The implementation of these changes can be the source of ineffective attempts to generate positive interventions in organisations. In this study, we investigate whether interventions to improve animal management in zoos through enrichment are subject to implementation impediments. Qualitative data gathered from interviews with 23 keepers working with big cats across 12 zoos globally provided valuable insights into the barriers and enablers to the implementation of enrichment. Keepers participated voluntarily and worked in accredited zoos across Australia, New Zealand, Europe, south-east Asia, South Africa, and the United States of America. Thematic analysis of the data revealed five key themes that described some of the challenges zoos and keepers experience when implementing enrichment for big cats, in their words: “let’s just be cautious”, “purely surviving”, “struggle to understand the goal”, “can’t always provide what you should”, and “judge the effectiveness”. These themes provide additional insights into potential areas for improvement, including greater attention to the benefits of enrichment for animal mental health and increased transparency around enrichment objectives in zoos.

Supporting Zoo Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) Welfare and Herd Dynamics with a More Complex and Expanded Habitat

Ensuring good health and welfare is an increasingly important consideration for conservation of endangered species, whether free-ranging or managed to varying degrees under human care. The welfare-based design of a new habitat for Asian elephants at the Oregon Zoo focused on meeting the elephants' physical, physiological, psychological, and social needs 24 h a day and across life stages. The habitat was designed to encourage activity, promote species-typical behaviors, support changing social dynamics, offer increased opportunities for choice, and provide biologically meaningful challenges. In this 4-year study, we monitored elephant health and welfare indicators throughout the transition and acclimation from the previous habitat to the new habitat. Several welfare indicators obtained through longitudinal hormone analyses, behavior assessments, and GPS measurement of walking distance and space use provided evidence that these goals were achieved. The elephants were more active and walked farther on a daily basis in the new habitat, with an average walking distance of over 15 km per day. A switch from primarily caretaker-delivered food to seeking food on their own indicates that the disbursement of food with less temporal and spatial predictability increased foraging opportunities, which better satisfies appetitive motivations important for psychological well-being. All individuals showed adaptive and normal adrenal responses to change and challenge, with the highest fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (FGM) concentrations and variability during the construction phase, and a return to previous baseline concentrations in the new habitat, suggesting they acclimated well to the new environment. The elephants expressed a diverse range of species-typical behaviors and demonstrated social dynamics of a healthy herd in both habitats with transitions of individuals through life stages. They exhibited more autonomy in choosing whom to associate with socially and also by choosing different aspects of their environment with regular indoor/outdoor access and extensive resource use in the new habitat. Findings indicate that the complexity and flexibility of the new habitat and habitat management has been effective in improving overall welfare by providing meaningful challenges and the opportunity to express appetitive behaviors, by offering choice in environmental conditions, and by providing the space and resource distribution to support evolving herd dynamics and increased social equity for individuals.

Increasing the Awareness of Animal Welfare Science in Marine Mammal Conservation: Addressing Language, Translation and Reception Issues

Simple Summary

Traditional conservation strategy focuses on population-level effects. However, the rapidly evolving scientific discipline of animal welfare science, in conjunction with growing societal expectations around the value of individuals, is prompting change in conservation. Despite growing recognition of this approach in terrestrial conservation efforts, limited application of animal welfare science to marine mammals has been observed. To investigate the factors underlying this disparity, we undertook an initial “Welfare in the Wild” workshop at the 32nd European Cetacean Society conference (La Spezia, Italy) to explore expert opinion on this topic. Secondly, we analysed the English language peer-reviewed literature to assess to what extent marine mammal welfare research is reported. The results of the workshop reveal a range of views about the scientific discipline of animal welfare science, with participants’ definitions varying depending on their disciplinary expertise. Meanwhile, the extensive literature review spanning 1950 to July 2020 revealed extremely low reporting of research related to welfare in the context of marine mammals, with only 0.96% (n = 299) of all published articles on marine mammal taxa (n = 31,221) featuring the word welfare in either the title, abstract or keywords. This highlighted a need to explore differences and distil common themes. Here we suggest practical solutions to the language, translation and reception issues of this cross-disciplinary collaboration between animal welfare science and marine mammal conservation.

Abstract

Integrating welfare principles into conservation strategy is an emerging synthesis that encourages consideration of individual animals’ quality of life in research, policies and law. However, these principles have gained limited traction in marine compared to terrestrial animal conservation. This manuscript investigates several factors that may be contributing to this disparity. In order to gauge current understanding of animal welfare science principles by marine mammal researchers and other stakeholders, a “Welfare in the Wild” workshop was convened at the 32nd European Cetacean Society conference (La Spezia, Italy, April 2018). The workshop was attended by 30 participants who completed pre- and post-workshop surveys on animal welfare principles. The survey results highlight a range of different views about exactly what animal welfare science is and how it can be applied to marine mammals. Specifically, participants’ definitions appeared to vary depending on the type of employment or research they engaged in, indicating a need for an interdisciplinary common language. Secondly, we analysed the peer-reviewed literature in order to ascertain where marine mammal publications exploring welfare were being published. From 1950 to July 2020, a total of 299 articles featured both marine mammal taxa (one or more) and the word welfare in the title, abstract or keywords. This represents just 0.96% of the total peer-reviewed published papers on marine mammal taxa (n = 31,221) during the same period. When examining articles published within “Welfare and Ethics” (n = 6133) and “Aquatic-focused” (n = 139,352) journals, just 1.2% (n = 71) and 0.04% (n = 57) of articles, respectively, featured the word welfare when examining marine mammals. With the aim of exploring how explicitly including welfare evaluations in marine mammal research and management can benefit conservation outcomes, we framed our workshop and quantitative literature review findings to provide practical solutions to the language, translation and reception issues of this burgeoning cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Choice, Control and Computers: Empowering Wildlife in Human Care

The purpose of this perspective paper and technology overview is to encourage collaboration between designers and animal carers in zoological institutions, sanctuaries, research facilities, and in soft-release scenarios for the benefit of all stakeholders, including animals, carers, managers, researchers, and visitors. We discuss the evolution of animal-centered technology (ACT), including more recent animal-centered computing to increase animal wellbeing by providing increased opportunities for choice and control for animals to gain greater self-regulation and independence. We believe this will increase animal welfare and relative freedom, while potentially improving conservation outcomes. Concurrent with the benefits to the animals, this technology may benefit human carers by increasing workplace efficiency and improving research data collection using automated animal monitoring systems. These benefits are balanced against cultural resistance to change, the imposition of greater staff training, a potential reduction in valuable animal-carer interaction, and the financial costs for technology design, acquisition, obsolescence, and maintenance. Successful applications will be discussed to demonstrate how animal-centered technology has evolved and, in some cases, to suggest future opportunities. We suggest that creative uses of animal-centered technology, based upon solid animal welfare science, has the potential for greatly increasing managed animal welfare, eventually growing from individual animal enrichment features to facility-wide integrated animal movement systems and transitions to wildlife release and rewilding strategies.

Longitudinal Improvements in Zoo-Housed Elephant Welfare: A Case Study at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo

Simple Summary

Zoo elephant welfare has been the topic of much debate over the last two decades, with criticisms made regarding the husbandry and welfare of these species held in European and North American zoos. The aim of this study was to evidence the value of a species-specific behavioural monitoring programme and highlight the positive improvements in elephant welfare that were made in a single collection case study, by the comparison of behavioural activity budgets (time spent performing a particular behaviour) with previous published literature. This study identifies numerous indicators of positive welfare in our collection, including species-appropriate levels of feeding, low engagement in stereotypy (abnormal repetitive behaviour), and proportions of resting behaviour that are consistent with figures published from comparative zoo individuals. Additionally, we show that positive social associations exist between individuals in our study group, with low incidences of agonistic social behaviour and high engagement in positive social interactions. Finally, we acknowledge that improvements are required to further enhance elephant welfare in zoos and we have used the data collected throughout this research programme to adopt an evidence-based approach to the husbandry and management of Asian elephants at Zoological Society of London (ZSL) Whipsnade Zoo.

Abstract

Over the last two decades, criticisms were raised regarding the welfare experienced by elephants in European and North American zoos. Concerns regarding the welfare of zoo-housed elephants in the UK and Europe were consolidated in the publication of several key reports, and media interest peaked. Throughout this study we aim to outline the behavioural measures of welfare observed in the current group of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) at Zoological Society of London (ZSL) Whipsnade Zoo, using key welfare indicators for this species and comparing them to previous published work. Following the instigation of a species-specific research programme, empirical behavioural data were available to quantify any developments in care and welfare. The collection of behavioural information revealed that individuals in our study group engage in low levels of stereotypic behaviour, have formed and maintain strong associations with one another and display a high proportion of engagement in lying rest. We outline that by applying simple, low-cost methods of behavioural data collection and analysis, it is possible to collect evidence that allows us to evaluate individual level welfare. This facilitates the adoption of an evidence-based approach to zoo management as well as demonstrating compliance with updated legislation for this species.

Can Zoos Ever Be Big Enough for Large Wild Animals? A Review Using an Expert Panel Assessment of the Psychological Priorities of the Amur Tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) as a Model Species

Simple Summary

The reduction in space available to wild animals in zoos and aquariums is widely perceived to be detrimental to their welfare by scientists and the general public alike. Evidence suggests that naturally wide-ranging carnivores are more likely to suffer in captivity than those that travel less widely. Using the Amur tiger as a representative for wide-ranging species frequently held in zoos, an expert panel assessment was undertaken to identify psychological priorities in order to see how the negative welfare impacts of reduced ranging opportunities might be most effectively overcome. This assessment highlights that whilst reduced access to space may be central to compromised welfare for many species, there may be more effective strategies in safeguarding welfare than simply making captive habitats marginally bigger. Central to this for Amur tigers is providing appropriate mental stimulation rather than focusing only on behaviours linked to hunting. Various strategies intended to safeguard welfare are discussed for Amur tigers, which can also be considered for other wide-ranging species.

Abstract

The ecology of large, wide-ranging carnivores appears to make them vulnerable to conservation challenges in the wild and welfare challenges in captivity. This poses an ethical dilemma for the zoo community and supports the case that there is a need to reconsider prevailing management paradigms for these species in captivity. Whilst the welfare challenges wide ranging carnivores face have been attributed to reduced ranging opportunities associated with the decreased size of captive habitats, attempts to augment wild carnivore welfare in captivity typically focus on behaviours linked to hunting. Thus far, this has yet to result in the systematic elimination of signs of compromised welfare amongst captive carnivores. Here an assessment is carried out to identify the likely welfare priorities for Amur tigers, which, as one of the widest ranging terrestrial carnivores, serves as an excellent exemplar for species experiencing extreme compression of their ranging opportunities in captivity. These priorities are then used to consider novel strategies to address the welfare challenges associated with existing management paradigms, and in particular, attempt to overcome the issue of restricted space. The insights generated here have wider implications for other species experiencing substantive habitat compression in captivity. It is proposed here that the impact of habitat compression on captive carnivore welfare may not be a consequence of the reduction in habitat size per se, but rather the reduction in cognitive opportunities that likely covary with size, and that this should inform strategies to augment welfare.

The impact of smog on the concentration of particulate matter in the antelope house in the Silesian zoological garden

Persistent negligence in the field of environmental protection in Poland as well as strong dependance of the energy sector on the fossil fuels have led to serious pollution of the air with particulate matter, which at high concentrations is capable of penetrating into the buildings. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of particulate airborne pollution on the concentration of particulate matter inside the antelope house in the Silesian Zoological Garden located within the Upper Silesia in Poland. The research was conducted from February to May in 2018. The records taken in the research period show that the concentration of PM10 exceeded the level of 50 µg/m³ outside the building during 26 days and 11 days when it comes to the concentration of particulate matter inside the antelope house. The quantity of particulate matter in the antelope house is strongly correlated with the concentration of the particles in the air. Despite fitting existing ventilation system with a filter that reduces the dust level by 60% during the highest level of smog, particulate matter concentration in the antelope house exceeded acceptable limit for PM10 more than twofold. Particle size-fraction analysis revealed that as much as 85% of the particles detected in the studied compartment constitute PM2.5.

Zookeepers' Perception of Zoo Canid Welfare and its Effect on Job Satisfaction, Worldwide

Simple Summary

An important part of zookeepers’ work consists of monitoring and assessing zoo animal welfare. In this study, we investigated zookeepers’ perception of the importance and fulfilment of zoo canids’ fundamental freedoms, and how it correlates with their job satisfaction. Our findings suggest that zookeepers perceive zoo canids’ freedoms to be important, but not as much guaranteed, especially those related to psychological aspects of welfare. However, zookeepers’ female gender is associated with a more positive perception of both the importance and fulfilment of these freedoms. Overall, zookeepers who reported a more positive perception of the fulfilment of zoo canids’ freedoms, as well as a stronger keeper–animal bond, appeared to be more satisfied with their job, in general. Our findings suggest that zoos should put more efforts in ensuring their canids the protection of fundamental freedoms, especially those related to psychological aspects of welfare. Furthermore, enhancing zoo canid welfare, as well as promoting management procedures that allow the development of proper keeper–canid interactions, may increase job satisfaction among zookeepers.

Abstract

Recently, zookeepers’ role in monitoring and assessing zoo animal welfare is gaining importance. One hundred-sixteen zoo canid keepers responded to an online questionnaire aimed at assessing, on a 1 to 5 scoring scale, their perception of the importance and fulfilment of the Brambell’s Freedoms for zoo canids, the bond with canids under their care, and their level of job satisfaction. Results showed that zookeepers perceive the Brambell’s Freedoms as highly important (median = 5, min–max = 3–5), but not equally guaranteed (median = 3, min–max = 1–5, p < 0.01). Although there was no difference in their perception of the importance of each freedom, those related to psychological issues (median = 3, min–max = 1–5) were perceived as significantly less guaranteed than those addressing physical needs (median = 4.5, min–max = 1–5, Mann–Whitney U test, p < 0.01). Female zookeepers tended to perceive all freedoms as more important (Ordinal Logistic Regression model, p = 0.009), as well as more guaranteed (Ordinal Logistic Regression model, p = 0.007), than male zookeepers. Regardless of gender, a more positive perception of the Brambell’s Freedoms for zoo canids was associated with higher job satisfaction (Mann–Whitney U test, p < 0.01, ρ = 0.241). The latter was also positively correlated with zookeepers’ perception of the strength of the bond with the canids under their care (Spearman Rho’s correlation, p = 0.01, ρ = 0.230). Our results highlight the need for zoos to focus on guaranteeing psychological welfare of their canids. Enhancing animal welfare may increase zookeepers’ job satisfaction.

Assessing the Psychological Priorities for Optimising Captive Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) Welfare

Simple Summary

The welfare of elephants in captivity is of significant public interest and the cause of considerable debate amongst the scientific, legislative, zoo and animal welfare advocacy communities. A tool capable of identifying what elephants need to experience to have good welfare would not only help bring clarity to this debate, it could also direct elephant welfare policy and management to more effectively optimise welfare and provide a valuable reference tool by which elephant welfare could be assessed. To that end, a systematic process is trialed to identify the welfare priorities for Asian elephants. These pilot assessments demonstrate the importance of providing species-appropriate feeding, social and mental opportunities to protect elephant welfare and suggest that the current priorities established in husbandry guidelines do not accurately reflect the psychological needs of elephants; in particular, they appear to underestimate the importance of behaviours and mental processes associated with acquiring food.

Abstract

The welfare status of elephants under human care has been a contentious issue for two decades or more in numerous western countries. Much effort has gone into assessing the welfare of captive elephants at individual and population levels with little consensus having been achieved in relation to both the welfare requirements of captive elephants, or their absolute welfare status. A methodology capable of identifying the psychological priorities of elephants would greatly assist in both managing and assessing captive elephant welfare. Here, a Delphi-based Animal Welfare Priority Identification System^© (APWIS^©) is trialled to evaluate the reliability of the methodology and to determine the welfare significance of individual behaviours and cognitive processes for Asian elephants (Elaphus maximus). APWIS^© examines the motivational characteristics, evolutionary significance and established welfare impacts of individual behaviours and cognitive processes of each species being assessed. The assessment carried out here indicates appetitive behaviours essential for survival in the wild, together species-specific social and cognitive opportunities are likely to be important to the welfare of Asian elephant in captivity. The output of this assessment, for the first time, provides comprehensive species-specific psychological/welfare priorities for Asian elephants that should be used to inform husbandry guidelines, habitat design and management strategies and can also provide a valuable reference tool for Asian elephant welfare assessment. The effective application of these insights could lead to substantive improvements in captive Asian elephant welfare.

Dolphins' Willingness to Participate (WtP) in Positive Reinforcement Training as a Potential Welfare Indicator, Where WtP Predicts Early Changes in Health Status

Welfare science has built its foundations on veterinary medicine and thus measures of health. Since bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) tend to mask symptoms of poor health, management in captivity would benefit from advanced understanding on the links between health and behavioural parameters, and few studies exist on the topic. In this study, four representative behavioural and health measures were chosen: health status (as qualified by veterinarians), percentage of daily food eaten, occurrences of new rake marks (proxy measure of social activity), and willingness to participate (WtP) in Positive Reinforcement Training sessions as qualitatively measured by their caretakers. These data were collected multiple times a day, every day over the course of a year from a multi-facility, large sample size (n dolphins = 51), allowing powerful analyses of the relationships between measures. First, it was found that dolphins with a higher WtP score also had a significantly better health status, ate a higher percentage of their daily food, and a lower occurrence of new rake marks. In addition, the WtP score was significantly lower up to 3 days before the weekly veterinary diagnosis of a decrease in health state; the percentage of daily food eaten and new rake mark measures did not show any significant change before such a diagnosis. These results suggest that WtP in training sessions is a potential behavioural measure of dolphin welfare, and an indicator of early changes in the dolphins' health state. We therefore suggest measurement of WtP as a more practical and non-invasive tool to support veterinary care and general management. More work needs to be conducted to elucidate the influence of social behaviour on health, and to identify other potential welfare indicators, but this long-term study has shown that qualitative measures can be both practical and valid when assessing dolphin welfare.

Dilemmas for Natural Living Concepts of Zoo Animal Welfare

This ethical discourse specifically deals with dilemmas encountered within zoological institutions, namely for the concept of natural living, and a new term-wilding. It is agreed by some that zoos are not ethically wrong in principle, but there are currently some contradictions and ethical concerns for zoos in practice. Natural living is a complicated concept, facing multiple criticisms. Not all natural behaviours, nor natural environments, are to the benefit of animals in a captive setting, and practical application of the natural living concept has flaws. Expression of natural behaviours does not necessarily indicate positive well-being of an animal. Herein it is suggested that highly-motivated behaviours may be a better term to properly explain behaviours of more significance to captive animals. Wilding refers to extrapolation of the natural living concept to treating an animal as wild, residing in a wild habitat. This definition is intrinsically problematic, as quite literally by definition, captivity is not a wild nor natural environment. Treating a captive animal exactly the same as a wild counterpart is practically impossible for many species in a few ways. This article discusses complexities of natural living versus natural aesthetics as judged by humans, as well as the possibility of innate preference for naturalness within animals. Zoos nobly strive to keep wild animals as natural and undomesticated as possible. Here it is argued that unintended and unavoidable genetic and epigenetic drift favouring adaptations for life in a captive environment may still occur, despite our best efforts to prevent this from occurring. This article further discusses the blurred lines between natural and unnatural behaviours, and the overlaps with more important highly-motivated behaviours, which may be better predictors of positive affective states in captive animals, and thus, better predictors of positive well-being and welfare. Finally, as we are now in the Anthropocene era, it is suggested that human-animal interactions could actually be considered natural in a way, and notwithstanding, be very important to animals that initiate these interactions, especially for "a life worth living".

"Feelings and Fitness" Not "Feelings or Fitness"-The Raison d'être of Conservation Welfare, Which Aligns Conservation and Animal Welfare Objectives

Increasingly, human activities, including those aimed at conserving species and ecosystems (conservation activities) influence not only the survival and fitness but also the welfare of wild animals. Animal welfare relates to how an animal is experiencing its life and encompasses both its physical and mental states. While conservation biology and animal welfare science are both multi-disciplinary fields that use scientific methods to address concerns about animals, their focus and objectives sometimes appear to conflict. However, activities impacting detrimentally on the welfare of individual animals also hamper achievement of some conservation goals, and societal acceptance is imperative to the continuation of conservation activities. Thus, the best outcomes for both disciplines will be achieved through collaboration and knowledge-sharing. Despite this recognition, cross-disciplinary information-sharing and collaborative research and practice in conservation are still rare, with the exception of the zoo context. This paper summarizes key points developed by a group of conservation and animal welfare scientists discussing scientific assessment of wild animal welfare and barriers to progress. The dominant theme emerging was the need for a common language to facilitate cross-disciplinary progress in understanding and safeguarding the welfare of animals of wild species. Current conceptions of welfare implicit in conservation science, based mainly on "fitness" (physical states), need to be aligned with contemporary animal welfare science concepts which emphasize the dynamic integration of "fitness" and "feelings" (mental experiences) to holistically understand animals' welfare states. The way in which animal welfare is characterized influences the way it is evaluated and the emphasis put on different features of welfare, as well as, the importance placed on the outcomes of such evaluations and how that information is used, for example in policy development and decision-making. Salient examples from the New Zealand and Australian context are presented to illustrate. To genuinely progress our understanding and evaluation of wild animal welfare and optimize the aims of both scientific disciplines, conservation and animal welfare scientists should work together to evolve and apply a common understanding of welfare. To facilitate this, we propose the formal development of a new discipline, Conservation Welfare, integrating the expertise of scientists from both fields.