What is Enrichment?
You may or may not have heard about enrichment before. More than likely, the first time we meet with you to work with your pet, we will bring up enrichment. This topic definitely ties into the last blog “Meeting Their Needs”, so read that if you haven’t yet. The dictionary defines the word enrich as: “to make rich or richer especially by the addition or increase of some desirable quality, attribute, or ingredient”. We can enrich our lives with travel, hobbies, friends, etc. So what does this mean when it comes to our animal friends?
The National Zoo has a great definition of it on their website: “Enrichment gives animals a creative outlet for physical activity and mental exercise, as well as choice and control over how they spend their time.” Zoos are required to supply all animals with enrichment on a daily basis; it must be varied (they cannot put out the same toy every day) and documented so the USDA can verify they are following the rules. When I was a zookeeper, this was always a fun thing. Keepers would spend days, even weeks, creating some wonderful contraptions or artful pieces that would not only be very fun for the animals but also entertaining for visitors (think paper mache animals for predators to “hunt”). Enrichment could also be something as simple as presenting their diet in a commercial puzzle feeder, or when appropriate/safe, taking them for a walk or meet and greet with guests.
During my time at Moorpark College, I would take Peggy the Opossum out for sometime to sniff and wander around the grass with supervision.
Now how do we apply this to the animals we live with? Honestly, in exactly the same way. While you may not need to rigorously document what you’ve done (although, it can be fun to keep track of things that way and what was successful or not), your pet deserves no less. Enrichment is a great way to help your pet express a natural behavior in a way you find acceptable. Scratching up your furniture is generally deemed unacceptable for a house cat, but scratching is a completely normal and healthy behavior for a cat to express (stretches muscles, helps with claw maintenance, and is a territory marker). Thank goodness there are a multitude of cat scratchers to choose from so you can easily find one that your cat likes and that goes with your decor! It's a win-win for everyone.
Every species has different natural behaviors. If you have a more exotic pet, make sure you have researched how their wild counterparts function out there. Is there some behavior you could help your pet express that you didn’t realize? Same would go for dog breeds. The different breeds were created to perform different tasks. Dogs bred for hunting rodents (terriers) generally love to dig since that’s where their prey are. Huskies and malamutes were created to pull sleds so they love to be running and active. These are all things to consider when creating enrichment.
These sled dogs from my honeymoon absolutely LOVED their job!
A lot of enrichment does surround feeding time. Presenting food in an interesting way usually makes it a sure bet that you pet will interact with it. Beyond food and puzzle toys, there are so many options! Just going to a different park with your dog counts! Introducing them to some different scents can be great for dogs and cats. Training is a form of enrichment! Truly, the only limit is your own imagination. Enrichment does not have to be expensive either. While there are plenty of fancy doo-dads you can purchase that are great, you can also DIY the heck out enrichment! Cut some holes in a container and put their food in it. Fold up some toilet paper rolls with treats inside. There are literally websites dedicated to homemade enrichment things.
Even if it’s a little bit scary, it’s still enrichment!
One cautionary note is to also consider safety when designing enrichment opportunities for your pet. If you are looking at toys or things involving food: is the food safe for them? Are they likely to ingest the non-edible components of this and will that create a blockage? Do I have a high-value trade ready to go if this doesn’t go as planned? Always supervise your pet the first few times you give them something to make sure they use it safely. If you are taking them somewhere: Do I have a strong recall behavior in place? If other animals will be present, are they safe to interact with (behaviorally/medically)? Is there a water element and is my pet safe around water? Enrichment gone wrong has at best led to very expensive veterinary bills, and at worst, death.
Tiber always enjoys exploring at Garden of the Gods!
This should be a fun task that helps you enjoy time with your pet more or that allows your pet to have healthy outlets for behavior you may otherwise find undesirable. Remember, enrichment is meant to improve the quality of our pets’ lives, and in turn, that improves our own!
