Animal Welfare and Birds

Achieving and maintaining high standards of animal welfare is critical to the success of zoo, aquarium, and conservation programs. Recent efforts signify considerable progress of zoo-based welfare science with more research being published on a wide range of topics. While research is filling knowledge gaps, the vast majority of published reports represent mammals with only a small percentage involving birds. This chapter introduces welfare topics focused on avian species. The definition of welfare, legislation, and oversight within zoo and aquarium professional organizations is introduced. Major factors critical to welfare in birds, including enclosures, social groupings, environmental enrichment, human-animal interactions, species selection, nutrition, flight restriction, and health status are discussed. Computer-based welfare assessment tools that allow for evaluation of avian welfare on a continuum as well as physiological behavior and markers provide useful methods to evaluate where welfare is good and where there is room for improvement. Future efforts and research in zoological institutions should focus on representing a broader species distribution, which should include increased efforts toward avian welfare to ensure the advancement of avian care, conservation, and welfare.