My Pet World: A little enrichment could give your pet a new lease on life
I contend that the average monkey, bear or lion in a zoo has a richer life than most of our dogs and cats at home. In fact, all pets require some enrichment, even lizards, and most certainly, pet parrots.
Providing enrichment means manipulating the environment to suit an animal's natural behavior. Over a long winter, and through a wet spring, providing environmental enrichment can also alleviate boredom, especially for dogs who can't get outside as often.
Some larger zoos have full-time employees whose sole task is enriching the lives of "residents." Here are some examples of enrichment at zoos:
--Various condiments are dispensed into holes in a log (offering choice), and as seen on National Geographic TV specials, chimpanzees use sticks and other debris as utensils to scoop the delicacies.
--Inside of a giant ice cube, a polar bear might find a fish treat.
--A pulley speeds across a cheetah exhibit with a whole (dead) chicken; the big cat can the "chase" the bird as if it were alive.
--Randomly spreading food on the ground of exhibits, ranging from various hoof stock species to warthogs, encouraging natural foraging behavior.
Pet dogs, cats and parrots often lead monotonous lives, a challenge for social animals. Families are busier than ever these days and many pets languish home alone. Then, when we are home, how much time do we spend with our beloved animals?
All dogs were bred to do something, but today the rate of canine unemployment is sky high. While increasingly, people keep cats indoors (where life is unquestionably safer), we live in a nation of brain-dead fat cats. Parrots are by nature problems solvers and relish using their beaks as construction tools -- something not always possible in the home.
However, some natural behaviors can be replicated indoors. Cats, for example, enjoy hunting and even playing with their food. Ideally, cats (and dogs) should be fed exclusively from enrichment toys that dispense kibble when pushed or maneuvered. We work for our food, so why shouldn't our pets?
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