About Zoo Animal Welfare

Animals in zoological collections are an important educational, research and conservation resource. Housing a wide range of animal species, meeting welfare needs can be a complex task. Implementation of evidence-based positive welfare practices can lead to benefits to both collections and animals. At a collection level, it can ensure ex-situ populations are more physically and cognitively representative of their species; displaying a behavioural repertoire more similar to their wild counterparts. This aids scientific research, ex-situ breeding, public education and animal management. From an individual animal point of view, the importance of provision of environments which support positive welfare for all animals is a well-recognised and advancing area of science, with clear benefits for animals in zoological collections.

Zoological facilities have been working for a long time to move from environments in which animals survive to ones in which animals thrive. The field has seen advancements in welfare assessment measures and protocols, including identification of indicators of positive welfare, which can be used alongside indicators of negative welfare. An imbalance of taxa representation in current published literature means there is still a knowledge gap in our understanding of the animal welfare practices and requirements of different zoo species. This collection welcomes research exploring zoo animal welfare, and possible impacts of zoos on animal welfare, ranging from enrichment and habitat construction to human-animal interaction. Research exploring case studies, methods of animal welfare assessment, through both qualitative and quantitative methods, and of species-specific welfare auditing protocols are also particularly welcome.

Keywords:
Zoo animal science, zoo animal welfare, evidence-based welfare, zoo animal experiences, human-animal interactions, positive welfare indicators

Submission deadline: 12th October 2023

Any questions about this collection? Please contact: research@f1000.com