The effects of enrichment on the physical and psychological health of two related species at the Toronto Zoo

The cumulative effects of environmental destruction have resulted in the unavoidable need for captive animal institutions that house captive animals for a multitude of reasons. Regardless of the reason for placing these species in captivity, the physical and psychological health implications of captive animals should be considered. An observational study investigating the effects of enrichment on the display of abnormal/stereotypic behaviour for both the western lowland gorilla and the ring-tailed lemur at the Toronto Zoo, was conducted. Both species had varying amounts of enrichment, which allowed for the comparison between the amount of abnormal/stereotypic behaviour being displayed and the amount of enrichment provided. In terms of psychological health, results indicated that more enrichment was beneficial for reducing the amount of abnormal/stereotypic behaviour displayed. In terms of their physical health, it seems that the amount of enrichment had very little bearing on the amount of physical illnesses displayed over a one-year period. Results indicated that although there is no optimal enrichment program, as each animal has individual needs, providing captive animals with any form of enrichment is beneficial – particularly for their psychological well- being. The extent to which all captive animals should be given enrichment needs further investigation, but it seems likely to assume that all captive animals should be given thisconsideration.