A Plan of Action

We propose moving beyond trying to simply determine what we can "add to" an animal’s existing exhibit that is meant to "enhance" its environment. Instead, as others have proposed, we suggest looking at the animal’s entire captive environment and, using the species’ behavioral and biological needs, to re-think the way we house, feed, train, and exhibit them. We see a need to be pro-active, not reactive, creating specific goals for these animals and developing ways to measure how well we attained these goals. Enrichment needs to be more than a bandage on abnormal behavior or inactivity; it should be a concerted plan of action for captive management with measurable goals and results. Such an approach may require a shift in the current philosophy around animal care. 

We suggest that a good enrichment program (e.g., the framework or process your zoo/aquarium has adopted) has several guiding principles:

1. The program should be both proactive,  (e.g., don’t wait until your animal is pacing; instead provide an environment in which the animal is less likely to pace); and also be able to react to behavior challenges that may arise.
2. Each enrichment plan (i.e., a plan for a specific individual, group or species) should allow animals to have some choices within their environment (e.g.,  if an animal is hot, there is shade available; if it’s frightened, it has a place to hide);
3. Each enrichment plan should be: based upon the animals’ biological, social, and cognitive needs; contingent upon encouraging species-appropriate behaviors; and mediated by the animals’ individual history.
4. An enrichment program should cover all taxa represented in the collection (i.e., we need to move beyond being ‘mammalist’), and be specific enough to deal with the needs of individual animals.
5. An enrichment program should involve all relevant staff members including director, curators, veterinarians, scientists, nutritionists, horticulture, and maintenance representatives, as well as aquarists/keepers – since all have responsibilities for providing animals with an enriched environment. At many institutions, volunteers, students, and docents assist with enrichment; their roles in the enrichment program should also be defined.
6. Successful enrichment programs must be fully integrated into the animal management program and supported at all levels of the institution. The establishment of comprehensive frameworks ensures that the programs are not dependent on a few key people, but are part of an institution’s common goals.

AZA Accreditation Standards

The framework described in this web-site is very similar to the process recommended by the 2003 American Zoo and Aquariums Association accreditation standards, which state:

“A formal written enrichment program is recommended which promotes species-appropriate behavioral opportunities for appropriate taxa.

Explanation: It is recommended that an enrichment program be based on current information in behavioral biology, and should include the following elements: goal-setting, planning and approval process, implementation, documentation/record-keeping, evaluation, and subsequent program refinement.” (AZA Accreditation Guide & Standards 2003, pp.38)

The Importance of a Framework

If asked the question, "Do you have an enrichment program or a training program at your zoo or aquarium?" a director might point to a plastic ball floating in a sea lion pool. "Yes, see, we’re providing enrichment for the sea lions." That same director might talk about a diabetic monkey that has been trained to take insulin injections. "Yes, we have a training program." But what happens if the keeper that trained that monkey leaves the zoo? Does the ability to inject the monkey leave with that keeper? Do the sea lions receive enrichment every day or just on the days that a highly motivated keeper works? What is the goal of adding a ball to the sea lion’s pool? Was it successful in enriching the sea lion? How do you know? If a director was asked to characterize his/her enrichment or training program, what would that include? Are these programs successful? What is the curator’s role in an enrichment or training program? These are all difficult questions to answer and perhaps even more difficult to ask.

Our point here is that isolated enrichment or training events do not constitute programs; simply identifying a position (e.g., Enrichment and Training Coordinator) does not constitute a program. As an example, providing veterinary care or adequate nutrition to captive animals is not done in a haphazard way. Veterinary care and nutritional plans are integrated programs and there is an expectation at the director, curator, and keeper levels that animals will be medicated and fed in a prescribed and consistent manner.

• Currently, some enrichment programs appear to be reactive and driven by some current situation (e.g., "What do we do about the pacing polar bear?"). Many current enrichment programs are typically limited to certain species (e.g., "I think primates, carnivores, and marine mammals should be enriched because they are more intelligent.").

  
  
• Most enrichment programs may not be self-sustaining, (i.e., they appear dependent upon a few highly motivated keepers).
  
• And finally, some current enrichment programs appear to lack strong leadership or direction (i.e., "What is our institution’s goal?"). We feel that zoos and aquariums that have "pockets" of successful enrichment or "pockets" of successful training do not have successful, sustainable programs.

A successful program is goal-oriented, self-sustaining, and integrated into the daily management of the animals – just as veterinary care and adequate nutrition are integrated into daily management. We suggest here that a successful enrichment program is not only integrated into the daily management of the animals, but a successful program is dependent upon three important components: a solid framework; staff perspective, attitude and training; and perhaps most critically, leadership [from Sevenich MacPhee & Mellen, 2000a].