The effect of increasing dietary fibre on feeding, rumination and oral stereotypies in captive giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis)

Many captive giraffes perform oral stereotypies, in particular tongue-playi ng, licking of objects (including conspecifics) and vacuum chewing. Typical ly, the diet of these large ruminants irt captivity consists mostly, of foo d concentrates, which are consumed rapidly and do not provide stimulation f or their long, prehensile tongues. In the wild, browsing requires extensive use of this organ but in captivity material upon which to browse is limite d. Consequently, vacuum activities, such as mock leaf-feeding behaviour, an d stereotypies may develop. Rumination is also a major component of a giraf fe's behavioural repertoire. It is essential for proper digestion, but may also be connected with non-REM sleep. inadequate opportunities for ruminati on may also contribute to thc development of oral stereotypies. In this stu dy of captive giraffes, we examined the effect of increasing dietary fibre on the time spent ruminating and feeding and the extent to which oral stere otypies were performed Two giraffes of different age, sex and sub-species w ere studied at Paignton Zoo Environmental Park. Dietary fibre was increased by the addition of coarse meadow hay to their existing diet. Following the addition of hay, time spent feeding did not change significantly but there was a significant increase in the time spent ruminating and a significant reduction in time spent performing oral stereotypies hy both giraffes, sugg esting that ornl stereotypies may be connected with rumination rather than feeding. Stereotypic behaviour is generally accepted to be an indicator of sub-optimal welfare. Thus, the reduction in this behaviour by the simple ad dition of coarse fibre to the diet can be interpreted as enhancing the welf are of these animals.