And How Do You Know?

"And How Do You Know?"

Beth Miller, a senior animal care specialist for the Chicago Zoological Society, engages Merlin, one of the bottlenose dolphins at Brookfield Zoo, during a care session.  Credit: Chicago Zoological Society

You could put the emphasis on each word in that sentence, and the meaning would still be roughly the same - and equally important.  How do we know what?  How good an animal's welfare is in a zoo or aquarium.  How well cared for they are.  How happy they are.  This is especially pertinent with animals that are at the center of a lot of attention, like Toki/Lolita, the Miami Seaquarium orca.  Some people say that it's obvious that she's unhappy and doing poorly there.  Others say that it's obvious that she's well cared for and doing fine.  Both sides are convinced that the other is misinformed and/or hopelessly biased.

How can something be so obvious to different people drawing the opposite conclusions?

Cetacean Welfare

To help answer the question, over forty organizations - zoos, aquariums, universities - are working together on a new scientific study to quantify the welfare of cetaceans (whales and dolphins) under human care.  Granted, the study is being carried out by facilities which already have these animals, which means that they're likely coming at this from a place of already suspecting that they can provide the best welfare (or, at least, from not being philosophically convinced that there is no way that whales and dolphins can be well cared for in a zoo setting).  By trying to back up answers scientifically, however, there is a better chance of viewing aspects of whale/dolphin welfare on a continuum, which means that it's possible to better identify what aspects of their care make the biggest difference for their wellbeing.  Enclosure size?  Social group?  Relations with keepers?

Hopefully, this ongoing study will help us better understand the quality of life that we are giving cetaceans in aquariums.  It may lead some facilities to decide that they can no longer meet those needs and phase cetaceans out of their collections.  It may lead others to make substantial changes to how they are caring for their animals.  What matters the most is that any changes that result will be driven by science and a desire to provide the best possible care for the animals