Animal residents of Walt Disney World receive holiday gifts too
Everyone loves unwrapping presents, including the animal residents of Walt Disney World Resort, who received gifts as enrichment activities.
This year, the western lowland gorilla family troop at Disney’s Animal Kingdom was given specially wrapped Christmas presents, both as a form of enrichment and as a treat since the presents contained snacks like oats, popcorn, currents, and carrots. Since gorillas are natural foragers, these holiday gifts encourage natural behaviors like lifting, opening, and searching the packages for their favorite foods.
But the gorillas don’t get all the fun. Every animal at Walt Disney World Resort receives enrichment geared to their species, ranging from 3-D-printed feeders for primates and motorized balls for cheetahs to recycled water coolers themed to look like tree stumps.
To encourage natural hunting behavior, Disney gives lions warthog-shaped ice sculptures that spark their curiosity and promote stalking, pawing, biting, and clawing. To make the sculpture as realistic as possible, it includes a coat of mud from the park’s warthog habitat so it not only looks like a warthog but smells like one.
Throughout the year, enrichment activities for Disney World’s animal residents encourage natural behaviors, which allows animal care and behavioral husbandry teams to evaluate the animals’ mental and physical health.
Click here for more information about the animals at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
