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The Effects of Feeding Enrichment on Behavioral Measures of Welfare in Four Bear Species

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The Effects of Feeding Enrichment on Behavioral Measures of Welfare in Four Bear Species THE EFFECTS OF FEEDING ENRICHMENT ON BEHAVIORAL MEASURES OF WELFARE IN FOUR BEAR SPECIES by JASON DANIEL WAGMAN Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Department of Biology CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY August, 2015 CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES We hereby approve the thesis of _______________Jason Wagman________________ candidate for the degree of _________Master of Science__________. _____________Mandi Wilder Schook, PhD____________ (chair of the committee) _________________ Kristen E. Lukas, PhD_____________ _______________ Pam Dennis, DVM, PhD_____________ _________________Mark Willis, PhD_________________ _________March 19, 2015__________ *We also certify that written approval has been obtained for any proprietary material contained therein. To my parents, for loving me like only parents can, for always taking me to zoos, for instilling in me a passion for wildlife, and for some wonderful times in wild places. To my wife. For saying yes at a crazy time in our lives, and for giving so much love during some of the most difficult times in our lives. I couldn’t have done it without you. i Table of Contents List of Tables ……………………………………………………………………………. iii List of Figures ………………………………………………………………………….... iv Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………………..v List of Abbreviations …………………………………………………………………… vii Abstract ………………………………………………………………………………... viii Introduction …………………………………………………………………………….... 1 1. Animal Welfare ……………………………………………………………..… 1 1.1 Definition of Welfare ………………………………………………... 1 1.2 Animal Welfare in Zoos….…………………………………..……….. 2 1.3 Behavioral Evaluations of Animal Welfare ...…………………….….. 3 1.4 Using Behavioral Data to Inform and Assess Improvements in Animal Welfare …………………………………………………………...…...6 2. Bear Biology and Behavior ……..…………………………………………….. 7 2.1 Behavior in the Wild ………...…………………………………….… 7 2.2 Behavior in Zoos ….………………………………...……....……..... 10 2.3Effects of the Environment on Behavior and Welfare ……...………... 17 3. Promoting Positive Affective States ...……….………………………………. 18 3.1 The Use of Enrichment in Zoos ..…………………………………… 20 3.2 Effects of Enrichment on Behavior and Welfare ..………..…………. 22 Study: Using Behavioral Measures to Assess the Effects of Feeding Enrichment on the Welfare of Four Bear Species 1. Introduction ………………………………………………………………….. 30 2. Methods ……………………………………………………………………… 34 2.1 Animals and Animal Care.…………………………………………... 34 2.2 Study Design……………………………..………………………….. 35 2.3 Behavioral Data Collection ………………………………………..... 40 2.4 Statistical Analysis …………………………………………….……. 42 3. Results ……………………………………………………………………….. 45 3.1 Experiment One ………………………………………………….…. 45 3.2 Experiment Two ……………………………………………………. 51 4. Discussion …………………………………………………………………..... 56 5. Conclusions……………………………………………………………………64 Works Cited …………………………………………………………………………….. 67 ii List of Tables Table 1: Ethogram used for behavioral data collection ………………………………... 41 iii List of Figures Figure 1: Timeline for experimental design..…………………………………………… 38 Figure 2: Example enrichment and observation schedule with photos of all enrichment items used in the study…………….…………………...……………………………….. 39 Figure 3:Differences in exploratory behavior between the experimental periods in Experiment One, paneled by observation time ..….…..………..…………………….… 48 Figure 4:Differences in abnormal behavior, self-directed behavior, and visibility between the experimental periods in Experiment One ...……...………………………..……...… 50 Figure 5:Differences in exploratory, abnormal and stationary/rest behaviors between the experimental periods in Experiment Two, paneled by observation time …......……...… 54 Figure 6:Differences in Shannon-Weiner diversity indices between the experimental periods in Experiment Two ……………....………….………………………..……....... 55 iv Acknowledgements Many people have given me the support necessary for me to achieve the completion of this degree. I would like to first thank my advisor, Mandi Schook. She has offered more hours, thought, advice, and passion than I could ever have expected or hoped. Whether it was early morning e-mails, late night phone calls, frequent office visits or weekend-long flurries of revisions, she has been there for me every step of this journey, doing her best to ensure my academic, career and personal success. Mandi, I could not have done this without you. Thank you. I’d like to thank the rest of my committee. Kristen Lukas, Pam Dennis, and Mark Willis gave invaluable advice at all stages of this research project. Thank you Kristen for making this program a great success, for being our go-to expert on all things animal behavior, and for your emotional support during some very tough times. Thank you Pam for your million ideas per minute, for always being open to answering questions, and for always being willing to ask the tough questions. Thank you Mark for helping me navigate the academic world, for always being a source of guidance and humor, and for bringing a fresh perspective to the zoo world. There are a number of other people I have to thank at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. I would like to thank the other team members in Conservation & Science. Thank you Jason Wark, Austin Leeds, Bonnie Baird and Laura Amendolagine for your friendship, advice, and empathy over the past several years, and for allowing me to vent when the pressure was more than I could take. Thank you Kym Gopp for allowing me to pursue my interest in conservation, for your emotional support, and for helping me develop a new set of skills. I would also like to thank Travis Vineyard for being the inspiration behind this project and for his support of this research project and Michael Murray for his v daily support and for helping me with the logistics that allowed this project to succeed. Thank you to the keeper staff in Northern Trek, Joe Carroscia, Curt Gindlesperger, Mark Chase, Patty Young, and Aimee Kindry, for your assistance in constructing and implementing the enrichment items used in this project and for accommodating my research in conditions that were often less than ideal. Thank you to my volunteers for the many hours you put into behavioral observations and data entry in often inclement weather. Finally, I would like to thank my parents, Cindy and Daniel Wagman for instilling in me the compassion, work ethic and integrity essential to my success. Thank you to my sister and brother-in-law Amy and Phillip Gillette for being models of academic excellence, for many hours of proof reading, and for the love and advice that has helped get me to this point. My wife, Nadia Wagman, deserves much more than my thanks. I love you for being a constant partner on a sometimes very emotional journey, for helping me find a work-life balance, for holding me accountable, for mourning with me and celebrating with me, for helping me relax when necessary, for being the pressure to keep me moving forward when necessary, and for being a source of so much joy in our lives. vi List of Abbreviations AZA – Association of Zoos and Aquariums GLMM - generalized linear mixed models T1 – early morning observation (1000-1130) T2 – late morning observation (1130-1300) T3 – early afternoon observation (1330-1500) T4 – late afternoon observation (1500-1630) USDA – United States Department of Agriculture WAZA – World Association of Zoos and Aquariums vii The Effects of Feeding Enrichment on Behavioral Measures of Animal Welfare in Four Bear Species Abstract by JASON DANIEL WAGMAN Zoo-housed bears are prone to exhibiting stereotypic behaviors, which are generally considered indicators of negative welfare and often addressed with environmental enrichment. This study examined the effects of feeding enrichment on behavioral time budgets and normal behavioral diversity in four bear species at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. Because there have been no systematic efforts to examine the effects of an unpredictable feeding schedule in bears, the aim of Experiment One was to test the effects of fixed- vs. variable-time presentation of “work-for-food” enrichment. Experiment Two aimed to determine if habituation to enrichment occurred over a 30-day period when using a semi-variable schedule. Feeding enrichment was associated with increased exploratory behavior and decreased abnormal behavior in both experiments; adding unpredictability to the feeding schedule increased the magnitude and distribution of exploratory behavior compared to a fixed-time schedule. No habituation was observed during the 30-day sustained enrichment period for these behaviors. viii Introduction 1. Animal Welfare 1.1 Definition of Welfare Modern zoos seek to continually improve the standards of animal care in zoos and aquariums (hereafter referred to as zoos) and the quality of life for individual animals within the context of animal welfare (e.g., Barber, 2009; Goulart et al., 2009; Hill and Broom, 2009; Swaisgood, 2007; Watters, 2014; Whitham and Wielebnowski, 2013). Welfare can be defined as “an individual’s state as regards to its attempt to cope with its environment” (Broom, 1986) and is typically rated on a scale from poor to good (Hill and Broom, 2009). Animal welfare assessments have historically focused on negative welfare and paid little attention to promoting positive welfare. For example, in 1992, the five freedoms were the main principles by which animal welfare was judged [freedom from hunger and thirst, freedom from discomfort, freedom from pain, injury and disease, freedom from fear and distress, and the freedom to express natural
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