What is enrichment? Enrichment is when one provides stimulating and challenging environments, objects and activities for animals.

Enrichment can take many shapes and forms. From providing enrichment within the environment the animal is in, like tunnels and mazes, to specialised feeding enrichment activities. At home, you might put treats in a treat ball for your dog. Your dog then has to manoeuvre the ball around to get the treats out. Or you could hide treats and get your dog to use his incredible sense of smell to find them. Easy enrichment for your hamster is to build a maze with a reward at the end. Enrichment is basically using an animal’s natural behaviour to keep it stimulated and active.

Here at the Aquarium, we provide enrichment for animals in various ways. Some, like the octopus, on occasion receives “toys”. Others, like the rockhopper penguins are allowed to explore behind the scenes.

Some of the fish like to move stones and gravel around their exhibit. We provide them with stones and rocks and we move the gravel around so that they can keep busy with arranging things the way they like them. Through enrichment we encourage the fish and other animals to do what they would do naturally.

An easy way of providing enrichment is by feeding in different ways – hiding food, or placing it in slow-release containers, or providing something familiar that turns out to hide a surprise!

This video shows what happens when we do an enrichment feed in the tropical exhibit:

Find the tropical exhibit in the Indian Ocean Gallery, and buy your Aquarium tickets here.

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