Distressed Animal Behaviors and Some Recommendations for Improvements at the Kuala Lumpur Zoo,Malaysia

The artificial living conditions of captive animals present numerous challenges for animal caretakers. In this study I explored abnormal behaviors in certain caged animals at the Kuala Lumpur Zoo. Findings obtained from observations of animals and interviews of the zoo staff are followed by recommendations: including the development of standards and manuals, licensing of zoos and animals, and increased budgets from governments or alternative sources. Such interventions should bring considerable improvements in animal welfare at the zoos in the region.     

Zoo Animal Feeding: A Natural History Viewpoint

In order to formulate animal feeding programs, zoos traditionally borrow knowledge and techniques, developed for domesticated animals, from livestock industry. Although livestock industry provides some of the basic components of feeding it is aimed at economic gain from animals, and the number of species it covers is extremely small. Moreover, wild animals are forced to make considerable adjustments to captivity in all aspects of life, and limitations of domesticated animal models should be recognized and examined. There exists a dire need to increase utilization of knowledge on food habits of wild animals acquired by field biologists, in our effort to improve zoo animal husbandry. Natural history attracts limited interest by zoos. However, it offers a wealth of information which needs to be explored to benefit zoo animal feeding practices.     

Zoo Animal Feeding: A Natural History Viewpoint

In order to formulate animal feeding programs, zoos traditionally borrow knowledge and techniques, developed for domesticated animals, from livestock industry. Although livestock industry provides some of the basic components of feeding it is aimed at economic gain from animals, and the number of species it covers is extremely small. Moreover, wild animals are forced to make considerable adjustments to captivity in all aspects of life, and limitations of domesticated animal models should be recognized and examined. There exists a dire need to increase utilization of knowledge on food habits of wild animals acquired by field biologists, in our effort to improve zoo animal husbandry. Natural history attracts limited interest by zoos. However, it offers a wealth of information which needs to be explored to benefit zoo animal feeding practices.     

Further role of zoos in conservation: Monitoring wildlife use and the dilemma of receiving donated and confiscated animals

The role of zoos in conservation has evolved. Additional roles that zoos can play in conservation include monitoring live wildlife use (one of the main threats for many species). Zoos in many parts of the world are offered animals by the public and are required to receive animals confiscated by the authorities. By quantifying these animals, zoos can monitor live wildlife use rates and trends and obtain relevant information on the environment of a region which can assist in situ conservation management. Zoos are sometimes forced to receive unwanted animals from the public or the authorities. Receiving these animals is a burden for zoos. Agreements between zoos and governments are important to take care of these animals and to optimize the use of conservation resources. It is not possible or desirable to maintain all donated and seized animals. The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources provides useful guidelines on what to do with them. In all cases, species conservation should take precedence over individual animal welfare. These issues are illustrated with data collected at Zoológico Regional Miguel Alvarez del Toro (ZOOMAT) in Chiapas, southern Mexico. Zoo Biol 24:115–124, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Journey from Wilderness: Facing Dilemmas of Wild Animal Exhibits

Wild animal trade, including capture and transport of animals from faraway lands to European and American markets for public exhibition, became a well-established business by the nineteenth century. Journey by animals to the destination in rudimentary conditions caused high mortality. This is an area in history that receives scant attention today. Also, husbandry technology in zoos was in dire need of improvement in earlier years. It is easy for us to condemn the work of yesteryear by using today's prism, an act called “Presentism”. Instead, we should review the deed of our predecessors in historical perspective; judging them by today's moral standard will not get us anywhere. In early day America, traveling menageries first introduced the public to captive wild animals before zoos developed as civic institutions in increasingly urban societies. During the era, the division of circuses, menageries and zoos often blurred. This essay attempts to present a holistic review of wild animal exhibition operations including traveling menageries, circuses and zoos, focusing on selected topics from the eighteenth century through the middle of the last century. Today, even with tremendous contributions having been made, zoos still face considerable challenges in terms of wildlife conservation.     

Where Are Zoos Going—or Are They Gone?

ABSTRACT

To some, zoos are prisons exploiting animals. In reality zoos range from bad to better. I make this distinction: A bad zoo makes animals work for it; a good zoo works for animals. Good zoos do effective conservation work and continually strive to improve exhibits, relevance to conservation, and inspiring public engagement for wildlife. Many zoos have improved enormously; the better ones being crucial in saving species that would have otherwise gone extinct. Nonetheless, for some people the mere word “zoo” carries impressions of old zoos, bad zoos, circuses, and theme-park shows that many find distasteful. Good zoos know they must innovate forward. As society grows increasingly estranged from nature and continues driving broad declines of wildlife, wild lands, and natural systems, the goal of zoos and every organization concerned with animal welfare should not be to separate humans from other animals, but to entangle all humans in nonhuman lives. Zoos of the next decades must become the first stage in bringing young people into life-long, engaged caring about animals. They could carry on that mission in their communities, in schools, in wild lands, as well as inside their gates. Without a strong public constituency, wild animals will not withstand continued human proliferation. Zoos and aquariums must innovate toward being a crucial force abetting the continued existence of wildness on Earth. Zoos of the future must become uplifting places of respect, rescue, enhancement, conservation, and public engagement.     

Ethics and animal welfare evaluations in South East Asian zoos: a case study of Thailand

Concern for zoo animals is palpable throughout society in many countries in South East Asia. It is important to understand problems of animal welfare in order for zoos to make significant improvement in maintaining high standards. With a case study of 3 zoos in Thailand, this article presents results for the first time on how ethics and welfare evaluations are conducted in South East Asian zoos. The study identified several major and minor welfare problems and provided constructive suggestions to zoo authorities, which in turn significantly improved the standards of animal welfare. Thus, the data presented in this article could serve as a model for other zoos to follow animal welfare evaluations locally, regionally, and globally.     

A Postzoo Future: Why Welfare Fails Animals in Zoos

ABSTRACT

Discussions on the welfare of nonhuman animals in zoos tend to focus on incremental improvements without addressing the underlying problem of captivity. But alterations to the conditions of zoo captivity are irrelevant for animals. Real zoo reform will involve working to completely change the landscape. We offer six necessary reforms to bring zoos into a more ethical future: (1) Shut down bad zoos, now; (2) stop exhibiting animals who cannot and never will do well in captivity; (3) stop killing healthy animals; (4) stop captive breeding; (5) stop moving animals around from one zoo to another; and (6) use the science of animal cognition and emotion on behalf of animals.     

Welfare evaluations of nonhuman animals in selected zoos in the Philippines

This study evaluated 3 zoos in the Philippines: the Wildlife Rescue Center and Mini Zoo, Manila Zoological and Botanical Garden, and Cavite Botanical and Zoological Park to determine the standards of nonhuman animal welfare. The study measured and compared the cage sizes of various animals to the international minimum standards. According to the categories of management and husbandry, the 3 zoos showed a significant difference on the mean scores of ranking. The Wildlife Rescue Center and Mini Zoo ranked first, followed by Manila Zoo and Cavite Zoo. Although most cages in the 3 zoos followed acceptable minimum standards, the study identified several problems related to animal welfare, hygiene, husbandry, and management. Based on the evaluations, the study recommended that the 3 zoos improve animal welfare standards.     

Homage to Niko Tinbergen and Konrad Lorenz: Is classical ethology relevant to zoos?

A personal account of the impact of the founders of ethology is presented. Niko Tinbergen and Konrad Lorenz profoundly affected the attitudes of people toward animals, showing people, for the first time, the sophistication of animal behavior. Also presented is a personal memoir of working with Tinbergen, and speculation on how zoos might benefit from a closer look at the lessons of animal behavior in both the care of the animals and the education of the public.     

Measuring Animal Personality for Use in Population Management in Zoos: Suggested Methods and Rationale

The concept that animals have personalities is gaining traction in the scientific community and is well established in zoos and aquariums. Applying knowledge of animal personalities has occurred more slowly and is most often only considered informally. However, animal personalities are likely to affect the welfare animals experience in captivity and thus should be of primary concern to zoo managers. In addition, animal personality likely affects the outcomes of zoo guest experiences and potentially guests' conservation‐related behavior. With over 1,000,000 animals in the care of zoos internationally and hundreds of millions of visitors annually, it would be prudent and beneficial to maximize our use of animal personality data in zoos to effect positive conservation outcomes. Understanding how to broaden population planning techniques to include measures of animal personality and the important outcomes of welfare and education value is of prime importance to the zoo industry. In order to succeed, it is necessary to employ techniques that reliably assess animal personalities and provide measures that can easily be used in population planning models. We discuss the outcomes of recent workshops designed to determine the best techniques for measuring animal personalities in the zoo setting with the goal of incorporating personality into population planning. Zoo Biol 31:1;–12, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

What Is the Future for Zoos and Aquariums?

ABSTRACT

Animal welfare concerns have plagued the professional zoo and aquarium field for decades. Societal differences remain concerning the well-being of animals, but it appears a shift is emerging. Scientific studies of animal welfare have dramatically increased, establishing that many previous concerns were not misguided public empathy or anthropomorphism. As a result, both zoo and aquarium animal welfare policy and science are now at the center of attention within the world’s professional zoos and aquariums. It is now possible to view a future that embraces the well-being of individual captive exotic animals, as well as that of their species, and one in which professional zoos and aquariums are dedicated equally to advancing both. Though the ethics of keeping exotic animals and animals from the wild in captivity are still a contentious subject both outside and even within the profession, this study argues. We argue that this path forward will substantially improve most zoo and aquarium animals' welfare and could significantly reduce societal concerns. If animal welfare science and policy are strongly rooted in compassion and embedded in robust accreditation systems, the basic zoo/aquarium paradigm will move toward a more thoughtful approach to the interface between visitors and animals. It starts with a fundamental commitment to the welfare of individual animals.     

中国动物园动物种类与种群大小

2007～2008年,我们开展了中国动物园物种编目与易地保护抽样调查,抽样调查了68家动物园。抽样动物园饲养了789种[(包括虎(Panthera tigris)和金钱豹(P.pardus)的亚种]野生动物,比20世纪90年代初中国动物园饲养的600种野生动物,增加了180多种;抽样动物园饲养展出野生动物中有国外野生动物种类267种,比20世纪90年代初中国动物园饲养的100种国外野生动物,增加了160种。抽样动物园展出的中国哺乳类、鸟类、爬行类和两栖类种类数分别占中国哺乳类(607种)、鸟类(1332种)、爬行类(384种)和两栖类(302种)种类总数的25.0%、28.2%、22.7%、4.0%。这些抽样动物园饲养了234种国家重点保护野生动物和254种CITES附录物种,其中,饲养的国家Ⅰ级和Ⅱ级重点保护野生动物分别占国家Ⅰ级和Ⅱ级重点保护野生动物总数的70.57%和47.09%;饲养的列入CITES附录Ⅰ、附录Ⅱ及附录Ⅲ的中国动物分别占列入这些附录的中国动物总数的64.21%、60.86%和50%。中国动物园成功繁殖了大熊猫(Ailuiopodidae melanoleuca)、金丝猴(Rhinopithecus roxellanae)、雪豹(P.unicia)、华南虎(P.tigris amoyensis)和亚洲象(Elephas maximus)等濒危物种,也成功繁殖了从国外引入的猎豹(Acinonyx jubatus)、大猩猩(Gorilla gorilla)、美洲狮(Puma concolor)等动物。然而,调查发现,(1)抽样动物园仅饲养了四分之一左右的中国哺乳类、鸟类及爬行类动物种类,饲养的两栖类更少;(2)抽样动物园饲养种群小,多数物种没有形成可繁殖种群。抽样调查的动物园两栖类、爬行类、鸟类及哺乳类种群大小分别为5.09(±2.15)只、5.69(±4.28)只、15.00(±6.63)只和10.08(±2.91)只;(3)一些动物园,特别是小型动物园动物饲养空间小,一些动物表现出刻板行为;(4)中国动物园饲养繁殖的大熊猫、华南虎、鹤类已经建立了谱系,其他一些物种的谱系正在建立之中,然而,多数动物还没有谱系;(5)一些小型动物园存在笼舍不清洁,仅饲养了单只动物,展出动物名牌错误等问题。动物园是人类社会的重要组成部分。应当重视动物园的发展,加强国际交流与合作,为更多动物建立谱系,加大动物园的投入,增加动物种类,增大动物园面积,丰富圈养环境,发挥大型动物园的示范作用,以充分发挥动物园的动物展示、科学普及与物种资源保存功能。     

Zoo Animal Welfare: The Human Dimension

ABSTRACT

Standards and policies intended to safeguard nonhuman animal welfare, whether in zoos, farms, or laboratories, have tended to emphasize features of the physical environment. However, research has now made it clear that very different welfare outcomes are commonly seen in facilities using similar environments or conforming to the same animal welfare requirements. This wide variation is almost certainly due, at least in part, to the important effects of the actions of animal care staff on animal welfare. Drawing mostly on the farm animal literature, we propose that this “human dimension” of animal welfare involves seven components: (1) positive human–animal interaction, (2) consistency and familiarity of keepers, (3) treating animals as individuals and taking account of their personalities, (4) the attitudes and personalities of keepers, (5) the keepers’ knowledge and experience, (6) the keepers’ own well-being, and (7) the influence of facility design on how keepers and others interact with the animals. We suggest that attention to these human factors provides major scope for improving the welfare of animals in zoos.     

Programs for invasive research in North American zoos and aquariums

Zoo-based research in North America is an emerging field, which has progressed from an ad hoc approach in a small number of zoos to a coordinated, integrated network of scientists with recognized research programs in approximately one half of the accredited institutions in North America. The disciplines most active in these programs--veterinary medicine and pathology, nutrition, reproductive biology, contraception, and behavior--are now becoming coordinated in zoos through Scientific Advisory Groups. Zoos with research programs generally establish either an institutional animal care and use committee or another committee to evaluate research proposals. In addition to scientific merit and experimental design, zoos evaluate proposals based on factors such as priority by conservation program/identified need; direct effect on species conservation, species type, and appropriateness; availability and location of animals; operational requirements/logistics; communication between institutions; and available funding. Euthanasia is considered only in rare circumstances. Zoo-based research has evolved into an integral component in animal management and conservation programs by providing practical information that is used to improve animal care, well-being, health, and reproduction. However, the degree to which zoos participate in invasive research varies considerably among institutions, due not only to resource limitations but also to how the term "invasive" is defined and accepted at each institution. A more standardized approach among zoological institutions for examining and approving research projects that are supported by zoo-based conservation programs would greatly facilitate the wildlife research efforts of North American zoos.     

Dither: A unifying model of the effects of visitor numbers on zoo animal behavior

Interest in the impact of human presence on the behavior and well-being of zoo and aquarium animals is increasing. Previous work has conceptualized the presence of zoo visitors as having one of three impacts on the behavior of animals in zoos: positive, negative, or neutral. Research suggests the same species may exhibit all three responses under different conditions, calling into question whether the positive/negative/neutral framework is the most useful way of considering visitor impact on animal behavior. Here we present a model of visitor effects that unifies these three predictions. Our model suggests that zoo-goers may provide a “dither effect” for some animals living in zoos. We posit animals may show nonlinear behavioral responses over a range of visitor densities, effectively exhibiting changes in both comfortable and anxiety-like behaviors under different levels of human presence. We tested this model during two COVID-19 related closures at the San Francisco Zoo, studying seven species for evidence of nonlinear relationships between visitor numbers and animal behavior. Our results support the dither effect acting in several species observed.     

Wild Animal Training: A Glance at Circuses and Hediger's Viewpoint

Historically, zoos have shared common features with circuses despite recent animosity toward them: Exhibition of wild animals in captivity. Experienced circus professionals can provide insight into the nature of wild animals from their sensitivity to man-made environmental components, potentially dangerous human errors, to animal escapes. These are told in numerous behind-the-scenes episodes. Zoos and circuses also have common needs such as improved animal husbandry and breeding. Moreover, both institutions face the public's naivete about animal life, and accusation about alleged cruelty to animals, often focusing on animal training. Professor Heini Hediger explained animal training from a scientific viewpoint. We can learn from his wisdom, for instance, the theoretical basis on training. Although traditional animal training has received adverse responses in recent years, accomplishments by trainers from the earlier era must be given a proper historical recognition.     

Children’s Opinions about Zoos: A Study of Portuguese and Spanish Pupils

In this study, we analyzed the opinions of primary-school children from Portugal and Spain about zoos. The sample consisted of 560 pupils, mean age 11.38 years and in the 6th grade of schooling. For the purpose of this study, a two-part questionnaire was designed. In the first part, children were asked to name up to three positive and negative aspects of these institutions. Special attention was given to aspects related to animal welfare. In the second part, they had to express their opinion about 18 statements relating to different perspectives toward zoos: six were anthropocentric statements (in favor of zoos), six were biocentric (against zoos), and six ecocentric (partially supporting their existence). The results were analyzed for the whole sample but also according to the children’s country, gender, and type of visit (with school or exclusively with parents and relatives). Children tended to highlight the facilities and the amusements on offer, but the contact with animals and the way animals are treated were also in evidence. On the whole, the children supported the existence of zoos, and disagreed more often with the biocentric statements. Even so, the Spanish children, as compared with the Portuguese, were more in agreement with the biocentric perspective. However, children who went to zoos in a formal context (school visit) tended to be more anthropocentric than the ones who went with family/relatives. This tendency may be related to the fact that school contents tend to highlight the educational and conservationist roles of zoos and focus less on the controversial dimension associated with these places. But this tendency needs further research.     

Applying Behavioral Conditioning to Identify Anticipatory Behaviors

The ability to predict regular events can be adaptive for nonhuman animals living in an otherwise unpredictable environment. Animals may exhibit behavioral changes preceding a predictable event; such changes reflect anticipatory behavior. Anticipatory behavior is broadly defined as a goal-directed increase in activity preceding a predictable event and can be useful for assessing well being in animals in captivity. Anticipation may look different in different animals, however, necessitating methods to generate and study anticipatory behaviors across species. This article includes a proposed method for generating and describing anticipatory behavior in zoos using behavioral conditioning. The article also includes discussion of case studies of the proposed method with 2 animals at the San Francisco Zoo: a silverback gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) and a red panda (Ailurus fulgens). The study evidence supports anticipation in both animals. As behavioral conditioning can be used with many animals, the proposed method provides a practical approach for using anticipatory behavior to assess animal well being in zoos.     

A visit to the zoos and aquariums in Northern Japan

For their trip to the National Parks in Hokkaido the authors also included in their schedule visits to the zoos and aquariums in Northern Japan. Their tight scheduled tour started at the Aquamarine Fukushima, which was after the large tsunami rebuilt and re-opened in July 2011. They continued with a visit to the Kamo Aquarium, which is famous for its unique and large jellyfish exhibition. On Hokkaido Island they visited the smaller zoos in Kushiro and Obihiro with a good collection of native Hokkaido animal species. Included was also the Asahiyama Zoo, which is at the moment one of the most popular zoos in Japan. It is well-known for its innovative enclosures for seals and penguins. The Sapporo Maruyama Zoo and the Chitose Salmon Aquarium were the last highlights of this tour. The themes and animal collections of these different zoos and aquariums are described. The general situation for the northern zoos and aquariums is quite different compared to the institutions in the southern parts of the country and entirely to the zoos in the large city areas like Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya. Here in the northern zoos and aquariums many native animal species and subspecies are kept and often successfully bred.