Multidisciplinary approaches and assessment techniques to better understand and enhance zoo nonhuman animal welfare

Nonhuman animal welfare is a complex concept that encompasses an animal's biological functioning, emotional states, and opportunities to experience a natural life, including the performance of natural behaviors. Further, animal welfare can be viewed as quality of life from the perspective of the animal and thus must consider the animal's subjective experiences. Therefore, assessing and enhancing animal welfare should include multidisciplinary, scientific ventures that strive to create a complete picture of how animals' bodies and minds respond to both aversive and pleasant situations. Practical assessment of animal welfare should include outcome-based measures from the animal that provide information about the individual's welfare as well as resource-based measures that can help identify causes of or risk factors for poor welfare. Increasingly, scientists are examining the emotional states of animals as well as the impact of pain, pleasure, and consciousness on animal welfare. This article discusses approaches such as preference testing, instrumental learning, examination of space and resource use, and qualitative assessments of animal welfare that might be useful and practical for assessing and enhancing welfare in zoo settings.