Animal EnrichmentEnrichment helps keep animals healthy, fit, and gives them the skills they would need if they had to survive in the wild. In zoos, animals might be given a challenging environment to help them stay active and develop abilities that they would have out in the wild. Many environments or habitats that zoos give animals give animals the opportunity to run, jump, pounce, climb, and other physical skills that are things that will come naturally to them. Enrichment keeps animals physical and mentally fit.
Association of Zoos and Aquariums
https://www.aza.org/Education/KidsAndFamilies/detail.aspx?id=277 |
Enrichment for Okapis |
Ways that zoos that enrich okapis are by spending time with their keeper, novel items that can get their attention, giving them a choice on what foods they want to eat or how much they want to eat, and putting certain animals with the okapi to make it more social and not as shy around other animals and humans. They also give them a forest themed habitat to make them feel like they are out in their wild habitat. People also give them objects to rub their necks on, sticks to scratch the inside of their ears, and grouping branches together and putting them in a corner to make a place for the okapi to go when they are startled. There are also many other ways that people help enrich okapi at zoos. http://theokapi.org/Enrichment/enrichment.aspx https://www.aza.org/enrichment/
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Enrichment for Giraffes |
Ways that zoos enrich giraffes are by feeding them food in different ways, making them more social towards people and other animals, and giving them an exhibit like their habitat out in the wild. One way that zoos help enrich giraffes is by feeding them foods that they like mixed with foods that are still healthy for them. For example, giraffes favorite leaf comes from a acacia tree, so many zoos will feed that to giraffes. Another way that zoos enrich giraffes is by making them more social with other animals and people. For example, some zoos let people hand feed giraffes which helps them get used to people more easily and makes them more social. Also, most zoos build an exhibit for the giraffe that is like their habitat in the wild to keep them more comfortable in their area and help them keep or develop the skills that they would need in the wild. http://www.zoomiami.org/giraffe-feeding-station https://www.aza.org/enrichment/
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