spritzing a cage with perfume encourages an animal to do
something it would do in the wild: snif out new scents. As
long as the activity is safe and doesn’t scare the animal, it may
keep it busy. And if it’s busy, it’s probably not bored.
The Monotonous Lives of Mink
How do we know animals are truly bored? h ey can’t speak
to us. And how do we know that enrichment activities make
a dif erence?
Researchers from the University of Guelph in Canada
decided to test the ef ect of enrichment on captive mink. In
step one, the researchers took 29 mink and split them into two
groups. h e i rst group lived in a plain wire mesh cage. h e
second had the same kind of cage, but it included an overhead
tunnel that led to an even bigger cage i lled with interesting
things. For example, the bigger cage had a trough of water the
mink could wade in, shelf-like structures they could climb on,
and objects like rubber dog toys they could play with.
After seven months, the researchers introduced food treats,
new objects, and new experiences to both groups of mink.
Sometimes the items were rewarding, like
a power toothbrush the mink could
chase. Sometimes they were neutral
like a plastic bottle or frightening
like the urine of a bobcat, a
predator. h e goal was to see
if the mink in the plain cages
would act more interested in
the new items than the mink
in the enriched cages.
“In humans, the most
consistent things reported
(^3) Work for dinner
Scatter food around the enclosure
and make the animals hunt for it. Put
the food in a tricky feeder and let the
animals puzzle out how to get it. Throw
the food on a mesh roof so the animals
have to work to pull it through. The idea
is to make feeding times longer and
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the wild.
(^4) Think and play
Encourage the animals to explore and
have fun with mouths, claws, horns,
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tires. Hang things up or tuck things
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like a curtain can add excitement to an
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(^5) Hang out with others
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sometimes they live in groups. If they
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grouped appropriately in the zoo too.
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with other animals they would live
peacefully with in the wild. Plus give
them plenty of zookeeper time so the
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THE STRESS OF BEING BORED
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way you want.
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glucocorticoid). This is the same hormone that gets
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health. It could play a part in issues like chronic
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depression, and more.