Incorporating the science of nutrition into the management of captive animals.
The objective of this study was to compare a field nitrate test using two different test strips to the hay nitrate concentrations determined at a commercial laboratory. Twelve samples of sudangrass hay collected in 2006 through 2008 were used to compare the nitrate concentration determined at a commercial laboratory using the RQflex Reflectometer method to those determined by a field...
Animal enrichment has become an essential part of caring for captive animals in a zoological setting. There are various types of enrichment, which include social groupings, exhibit design, sensory stimulation, and different feeding strategies. One of the most common types of enrichment is feeding strategies. Ice blocks filled with various vegetables and fruits can be used to enrich animals. Ice...
Limited quantities of vital nutrients such as calcium and vitamin A in crickets have led to the occurrence of diseases such as rickets, osteomalacia, metabolic bone disease (calcium deficiency) and more recently, squamous metaplasia or “short tongue syndrome” in amphibians. Gut loading has been an effective method to supplement feeder crickets with both calcium and vitamin A. A dose of...
This study was undertaken to determine the efficacy in delivering vitamin A supplementation via dusting feed crickets (Acheta domestica) to reptiles and amphibians, many of whom have shown vitamin A deficiencies at Disney’s Animal Kingdom and other institutions. While there have been multiple previous studies regarding supplementation in crickets, the majority have focused on calcium supplementation. Levels of vitamin A...
Indirect methods of assessing chelonian body condition using combinations of body mass and shell measurements have been explored: however, there is little published data on tracking captive chelonian health and growth using a body condition index (BCI). Two published BCI formulas were compared for application with a captive colony of leopard tortoises (Geochelone pardalis).
It is suggested tortoises are attracted to certain ingredient scents. The preference for scent of ginger, anise, rose, and a control (water) among leopard tortoises was evaluated. Sixteen leopard tortoises (Geochelone pardalis) participated in a series of trials exposing them to pair-wise combinations of the three scents and control. Response criteria evaluated include position (left, right, no decision) and scent...
Nutrition is an important modulator of immune function and can often tip the balance between health and disease. In order to maintain fish in aquaria, sound nutrition and adequate feeding are essential to fish health as clinical disease often ensues when nutritional needs are not met. Diets that are adequate with respect to essential nutrients can hasten recovery from infection,...
Lactation, the exocrine secretion of milk from mammary glands for the nourishment of young, is a defining characteristic of mammals. All female mammals produce milk, and milk is the first food of all neonatal mammals. The diversity of the mammalian radiation is reflected in the diversity of lactation strategies that have evolved. This in turn is reflected in differences in...
The first objective of this trial was to evaluate whether biomarkers for type I and type II collagen were detectable in elephant serum samples. Two commercially available enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent (ELISA) assays for the detection of the crosslinking telopeptides of type I collagen (CTX-I) and type II collagen (CTX-II) were validated for use with elephant sera. The second objective was to...
Twelve pelicans (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) captured in northeast Mississippi were used to determine nutrient metabolism when consuming channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) and(or) grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella). Another objective was to determine the dietary preference of pelicans when allowed to consume catfish and carp. For the 7-day metabolism trial pelicans were allotted to one of three treatment diets (4 birds/diet): catfish only,...
Population numbers of North Island brown kiwi (Apteryx mantelli) are estimated to have almost halved in the last decade. Despite some success of captive breeding, captive bred kiwi suffer higher embryonic and adult mortality rates, smaller eggs and lower hatching rates than wild kiwi. A major contributor to these problems is likely to be diet. The current diet fed to...
Crop milk, a glandular secretion produced by doves, pigeons, and some species of penguins and flamingoes, was collected from five different species of dove squabs at the Memphis Zoo between day 0 and 14 post-hatching. These species (Ptilinopus jambu, Ptilinopus magnificus, Gallicolumba luzonica, Gallicolumba rufigula, and Streptopelia decaocto), range from primarily frugivorous to primarily granivorous representatives of Columbidae. The samples...
The microbiota of the vertebrate gastrointestinal tract consists of a diverse collection of microbial species. In the past, identification of these species has involved cultivation-based techniques. However, due to the dependence upon bacteria-specific media during cultivation, up to 80% of species may not have been identified using these techniques. To overcome this bias, a DNA-based technique of identifying microbial communities...
Brother’s Island tuataras (Sphenodon guntheri) housed at the San Diego Zoo were measured and weighed routinely as part of the preventative medicine procedure. From June 2000 through April 2009, snout-vent length and mass were used from that data and compared to Brother’s Island tuataras that were sampled by Hoare et al., in the wild from 1957 to 2001. Along with...
In the absence of species specific energy requirements, allometric formulas are one method to predict practical diet quantities. The objective of this study was to quantify individual voluntary dry matter (DMI), metabolizable energy (MEI) intake and body weight (BW) in 18 juvenile leopard tortoises (Geochelone pardalis). Over two 15-day periods (A, B), each animal was offered a nutritionally complete, extruded...
The Species Survival Plan ® (SSP) or Taxon Advisory Group (TAG) is responsible for creating and updating information on their prospective species. It is important to assemble this information in a systematic and consistent manner. In 2005, the Association of Zoo & Aquariums (AZA) created standardized guidelines. Considering the exact nutrient requirements of many exotic animals held in captivity are...
Zoo and wildlife nutritionists apply their nutrition expertise daily to a variety of situations, ranging from the most applied to the most basic. These include commissary operation, inventory maintenance, staff direction, laboratory management, diet formulation and evaluation, consultations with other zoo personnel and other zoos, and budget supervision. Beyond this, they interact with professionals on topics outside of their profession,...
Historically, grass nutrient content at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge (DAKL) has been observed to have high levels of potassium (> 4 %), a possible concerning factor in the development of hypomagnesemia in grazing hoofstock. There had been no fertilization of the savannahs at DAKL for 2 years prior to the current study, and potassium levels had reduced approximately by half...
The objective of this study was to evaluate two seasons of harvest and water addition at the time of ensiling on silage quality of Carolina willow (Salix caroliniana). If successful, willow silage could be used as a supplement during the winter months for some browse-consuming animals at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The experiment consisted of two harvest seasons and two moisture...
Protein provided to ruminants can be divided into rumen degradable protein (RDP) and rumen undegradable protein (RUP). The RDP provides amino acids and ammonia-nitrogen which are vital to the growth of rumen microbes. An imbalance of the RDP supply and microbial RDP requirement can alter ruminal fermentation. The imbalance could lead to reproductive inefficiencies, inadequate growth, and ruminal acidosis. To...
Iron is a trace element required for the synthesis of haemoglobin and a number of energetic reactions. In most species, iron uptake is primarily regulated by the absorption of iron and protein-addition conversion to ferritin in the mucosal layers of the intestines and the sloughing of mucosal layers when iron levels are replete. However, if this system becomes imbalanced as...
The maned wolf, a canid native to South America, has had a history of cystinuria and poor fecal consistency in North American institutions. Factors contributing to this may be related to feeding the species a primarily carnivorous diet, despite its omnivorous dietary habits under free-ranging conditions. To address cystinuria and fecal consistency, a commercially manufactured diet was fed to all...
From 1995 – 2008 the brown bears (Ursus arctos) at Brookfield Zoo were fed a standard diet consisting of carnivore meat products, fish (seasonally), dog food, apples, carrots, lettuce, bread, and a small assortment of fruit as treats. The diet increased or decreased in amount based on the bears’ motivation for food (i.e., by season), but the diet composition was...
Subclinical iron deficiency anemia was diagnosed in a captive neonatal female Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus) through blood samples obtained as part of an in-house training program for venipuncture. Routine blood testing performed at day 2 of age was within in-house and ISIS normal values for this species. Microcytic hypochromic anemia (HCT = 16 %; MCV = 38.4 fL; MCH =...
Taurine is not considered an essential amino acid in most mammals as it can be synthesized from cysteine. Cats are an exception, lacking an enzyme necessary for this conversion and a lack of dietary taurine has been linked to central retinal degeneration and dilated cardiomyopathy. This form of feline cardiomyopathy is reversible with a dietary taurine supplement. More recently, a...
Metabolic bone disease has occurred in several incidences of elephant neonates hand-reared on milk replacement formula. Monitoring for metabolic bone disease historically has been done through serum calcium and phosphorus concentrations. Serum concentrations are tightly regulated and changes in concentration are typically not evident until skeletal changes have already occurred. Urinary calcium and phosphorus excretion levels may provide earlier evidence...
Hypocalcemia in elephants is a concern that needs attention. Cases of calcium-responsive dystocia have been reported anecdotally and the number of bone fractures in hospitalized working elephants in Thailand is relatively high. A feeding trial in 4 Asian elephants at the Rotterdam zoo showed that an increase in the calcium concentration of the roughage resulted in a significant rise in...
Over the past several years, herbivore diet formulations have transitioned toward lower starch and sugar and higher concentrations of structural carbohydrates such as neutral detergent fiber. Following the Giraffe Nutrition Workshop in 2005, recommendations were released that encouraged diets containing less than 5% starch and less than 0.5% phosphorus for captive giraffe. In December 2005, seven giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata)...
Baseline serum alpha-tocopherol (alpha-toc) values in captive giant anteaters have not previously been defined. Cats and dogs are typical models for carnivore nutritional physiology and may prove useful for evaluating vitamin E (vit E) nutrition in zoo carnivores. The objective of this study was to determine serum alpha-toc as a measure of vit E status in captive anteaters, for comparison...
Elevated serum iron parameters were lowered through dietary manipulation in captive Bird of Paradise (Paradisaea raggiana) using a modification of previously published low-iron diets. Study birds were part of a captive breeding program consisting of two males and one female, captive born, 3.5 to 9 years of age. Serum iron, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), percent transferrin saturation, body weight,...