Trainer Interaction Can Improve Welfare Outcomes of Toy Enrichment for Isolated Animals: A Case Study
In cases where social animals must be temporarily housed alone, environmental enrichment is particularly important. Providing animals with manipulable objects (“toys”) is a common form of environmental enrichment, but its effectiveness can be limited by animal disinterest or habituation. The current study examined whether caregiver interaction could increase the effectiveness of object-based enrichment for a […]
Enrichment with classical music enhances affiliative behaviours in bottlenose dolphin
Environmental enrichment is a crucial element for the promotion of welfare of animals kept under human care. While a large variety of environmental enrichments has been proposed and studied for terrestrial animals, including a growing area represented by acoustical enrichment such as music, the same is not true for marine mammals. The purpose of this […]
Environmental Enrichment Factors Associated with the Activity Level of Bottlenose Dolphins under Professional Care
Environmental enrichment can be used to improve the welfare of dolphins in zoos and aquariums. Bottlenose dolphins under professional care are typically provided with a range of enrichment that has a variety of features and levels of complexity at various frequencies. In the present study, a subset of data from a larger study entitled “Towards […]
Using Anticipatory Behavior as Preference Test in The Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)
Saliva and Blood Cortisol Measurement in Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus): Methodology, Application, and Limitations
A central task of zoos and aquaria is the frequent and accurate assessment of their animals’ welfare. Recently, important steps have been made, such as the introduction of animal welfare evaluation tools and welfare decision trees. To determine animal welfare, it is not only important to collect life history data, such as longevity and reproductive […]
Cognitive enrichment device provides evidence for intersexual differences in collaborative actions in Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus)
Social living, long lifespan and advanced cognitive skills provided favourable conditions for the development of pro-social behaviours and cooperative activities in cetacean. Dolphins have been observed to collaborate for various purposes, finding food, finding mates or raising and teaching younger individuals. This study investigated the potential impact of demographic factors (sex and age), social factors […]
Monitoring captive odontocetes’ participation during training sessions for improving training efficiency and welfare evaluation
In captive facilities, odontocetes are subject to daily training/feeding sessions which often create close relationships between animals and their caretakers. Therefore, such sessions are thought to provide information that can be useful for welfare assessment. Recent studies on bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) validated caretakers’ ratings of dolphins’ participation during training sessions as a welfare indicator. […]
Activity Budget Comparisons Using Long-Term Observations of a Group of Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) under Human Care: Implications for Animal Welfare
Zoos and aquaria must provide optimal husbandry conditions and the highest welfare standards for their animals. How the welfare state of an animal or a group of animals can be precisely assessed is currently under debate, and new approaches are necessary to reliably evaluate changes in welfare. One particular measure that is easily applicable is […]
Activity, Social Relationships, and Maternal Care in a Bottlenose Dolphin Group under Professional Care
Defining the activity patterns and social relationships of animals can provide valuable information related to animal welfare. Bottlenose dolphins under professional care engage in a variety of social and solitary activities, which may be influenced by conspecifics, time of day, and maternal behaviors. This study examined the social, solitary, and maternal behaviors of eight dolphins […]
Behavioural Diversity Study in Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) Groups and Its Implications for Welfare Assessments
In the recent past, animal welfare studies have tried to determine the best animal welfare measures and indicators. Expression of behavioural diversity is considered a potential positive welfare indicator, and to the authors’ knowledge, it has not been validated nor studied in cetaceans. For the first time, a behavioural diversity study on bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops […]