Airlite Cardboard Bedding supports natural behaviors at The Downtown Aquarium – Denver
A transition from “welfare” to “well-being” is underway in the animal care world, and the Downtown Aquarium-Denver is fully on board with the approach.
“The paradigm is shifting to be more holistic and looking at what’s best for an individual animal and the species,” says Paige Shallcross, the Aquarium’s Curator of Birds and Mammals. “That’s versus only thinking about the animal’s welfare.”
The distinction is important. Welfare, in any context, refers to basic needs being met. Well-being is a broader concept that encompasses quality of life, happiness, physical, mental and emotional health. For animals, it goes beyond clean, safe environments to include encouragement of natural behaviors – like digging, scenting or building nests.
Accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the Downtown Aquarium-Denver is home to numerous species and thousands of animals that include a handful of land-dwelling species. Its quest to provide well-being for all led to the discovery of Airlite Premium Cardboard Bedding a few years ago.
Animal Enrichment Activities
Thanks to its dust-free and super absorbent properties, Airlite Cardboard Bedding has been a foundation of healthy environments for horses, livestock and pets for many years. It appealed to the Aquarium team for those and additional reasons. Made of clean, pre-consumer cardboard, Airlite supports enrichment behaviors for several of their star residents.
Their African Crested Porcupine, Zuri, is provided Airlite to encourage her natural digging behaviors. Two Sumatran Tigers hone their scent marking skills by tracking various scents applied to the bedding. One area of Airlite might be scented with a sweet perfume, while another will have a musky scent. The activity also encourages them to scent mark themselves, a behavior they would do in their native habitat.
“Tigers are apex predators,” Paige explains. “They use their sense of smell to hunt, especially at night. Their sense of smell is so strong they can pinpoint where a spot has been marked by an animal urinating or defecating on it. Allowing them to use their sense of smell keeps their skills up.”
The main reason for providing enrichment behaviors is to keep animals happily engaged in activities they would naturally do in the wild. Sometimes, visitors are lucky enough to see the animals demonstrate these behaviors, but they are set up 100% for the animals’ benefit. “Enrichment is not about entertainment,” Paige says. “It’s about what’s best for the animals. That involves making every single day exciting and variable.”
North American river otters use Airlite, along with wood wool, to build their beds. The Binturong (aka “Bearcat”), the African Serval and a Linnaeus’ Two Toed Sloth use it as their litter box, where Airlite’s excellent absorbency keeps their habitats clean and dry.
Cardboard Bedding Meets High Standards
The Aquarium is always on the lookout for materials that will enhance their animals’ lives, but everything new is carefully evaluated by veterinarians and staff before introduction. “We pay attention to whether it’s safe for the animals, how they are going to use it – which sometimes involves trial and error,” Paige explains. “Cleanliness, cost-effectiveness and sustainability are all important considerations in this process, too.”
Airlite Cardboard Bedding meets all those criteria. Having never been through the consumer waste stream, Airlite’s cardboard pieces are free of inks, dyes, chemicals and contaminants. The layers of paper that comprise Airlite’s pieces have structural durability that equates to cost-effective long life. And the carbon-rich material makes for great composting after its long life with the animals.
Compared to other animal keeping substrates – like hay or straw – Airlite Cardboard Bedding is “easier to keep clean and fresh,” Paige explains. Having a simple and effective way to keep habitats clean contributes significantly to their animals’ well-being. “It’s all part of finding better ways of holistically caring for our animals. How can we interact with them, how can we elicit those natural behaviors, etc. It’s all about looking at their well-being from a big picture standpoint.”