Doing better for understudied species: evaluation and improvement of a species-general animal welfare assessment tool for zoos
Open accessAbstract
Accredited zoos and aquariums are required to have a welfare assessment process in place for the animals in their care. However, welfare assessment theoretical frameworks and methodologies vary widely. Previous studies have shown that taxonomic biases in research are found broadly within the field of animal behavior and specifically within applied animal welfare science, which could translate to taxonomic biases in applied welfare assessment tools. After creating and then using a species-general welfare assessment at Lincoln Park Zoo for 2.5 years, we sought to examine whether there were systematic differences in welfare scores for different taxa. There were 939 Welfare Discussion Tools completed for 174 species between July 2019 and – December 2021, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and invertebrates. We found that, broadly, no taxonomic group scored higher than mammals on overall welfare scores, input (resource-based) scores, or output (animal-based) scores. Raters also provided fewer incomplete responses (in the form of “not applicable” or “I don’t know” judgments) for mammals than for other taxonomic groups. Integrating these findings with input from welfare scientists, animal caretakers, behavioral husbandry experts and veterinary staff, we modified our original welfare assessment tool to broaden the taxonomic relevance of the tool. Copies of the original tool and the updated/modified tool are included to serve as a model for institutions developing or revising their own welfare assessment tools.
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The Welfare Discussion Tool (WDT) presents a comprehensive assessment approach with inter-rater reliability across three raters, quantitative scoring, and regular discussion between raters after assessment to promote positive management changes to improve animal welfare.
“WDT presents a comprehensive assessment approach, inter-rater reliability across three raters, quantitative scoring, and regular discussion between raters on post–assessment period to positive management changes to improve animal welfare.”
From Comparison of animal welfare assessment tools and methodologies: need for an effective approach for captive elephants in Asia (2024) · cites this paper as [89]
Zoos and aquariums regularly evaluate the welfare of animals under their care to satisfy accreditation criteria.
“To satisfy accreditation criteria, zoos and aquariums regularly evaluate the welfare of animals under their care (89), often using tools designed for multiple species.”
From Comparison of animal welfare assessment tools and methodologies: need for an effective approach for captive elephants in Asia (2024) · cites this paper as [89]
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- Authors
- O’Brien, S. L., & Cronin, K. A.
- Affiliations
- Lincoln Park Zoo (US)
- Corresponding author
- O’Brien, Shannon L.
- Venue
- Applied Animal Behaviour Science
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2023-07
- Volume
- 264
- Pages
- 105965
- ISSN
- 0168-1591 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4377115964
- Cited by
- 20
- References
- 24
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 3
- FWCI
- 6.12
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Applied Animal Behaviour Science (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Funders
- American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
- DePaul University
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Animal Behavior and Welfare Studies
- Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Veterinary Pharmacology and Anesthesia
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Primate Behavior and Ecology
- Keywords
- animal welfare assessment, zoos, taxonomic bias, Lincoln Park Zoo, tool modification, captive husbandry
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