Attempting to reduce regurgitation and reingestion in a captive chimpanzee through increased feeding opportunities: a case study

Persistent regurgitation and reingestion is an abnormal behavior seen in many captive NHPs, particularly gorillas and chimpanzees. Successful reduction of regurgitation in captive gorillas has been achieved by providing browse, such as branches and leaves, and feeding continuously throughout the day. However, this modality has not been tested in chimpanzees. The authors tested these methods in a 15-year-old male chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) with a seven-year history of regurgitation and reingestion by alternately providing additional opportunities to forage or giving daily browse. The results show that providing browse on a daily basis models the feeding behavior of wild chimpanzees and is a successful way to reduce regurgitation and reingestion in a chimpanzee unresponsive to previous dietary changes.