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3. General Care and Psychological Well-Being
Pages 31-46

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From page 31...
... It is important to recognize the great diversity, not only among major taxa but among species within a single genus, and to acknowledge that diversity in designing animal-care programs. Once the species characteristics have been identified, consideration should be given to individual differences in temperament, developmental history, sex, and age and to the fact that behavioral competence of many nonhuman primate adults depends on early experience.
From page 32...
... , whereas other species, such as pygmy marmosets, can survive only in relatively narrow temperature ranges. Regardless, primates housed outdoors should be protected from environmental extremes in ways that are appropriate to their species, age, disease status, and acclimatization.
From page 33...
... Individual caging also minimizes wounding due to fighting. However, some animals that previously exhibited normal behavior in social settings develop atypical patterns of activity, including self-wounding, when kept in individual cages for an extended period (Bryant and others 1988)
From page 34...
... To complicate matters, rapid habituation to manipulable objects has been noted in individually housed rhesus monkeys, whereas socially housed animals continued to manipulate objects for months after initial exposure (Novak and others 1993)
From page 35...
... In any case, the facility staff has the obligation to monitor these events closely and to intervene in order to prevent serious injury to the participants. Decisions as to when and how to intervene require a considerable knowledge of the species, the particular social group, and effective techniques for dealing with serious aggression.
From page 36...
... Excessive time hiding in physical structures -- such as visual blinds, tunnels, barrels, and boxes -- can also indicate that active intervention is required. Social instability might be an indication that the environment lacks stimulation needed for species-specific behaviors and that enrichment is needed.
From page 37...
... Provision should be made for easy removal of individual animals if fighting occurs and for ready access to animals for protocol purposes or husbandry routines. The safety of facility personnel should also be a driving force behind SOPs or enclosure design for routine husbandry procedures.
From page 38...
... Corrals might require spot cleaning of feces if heavily populated; otherwise, the sun should desiccate the waste products sufficiently. Wooden structures, such as perches and tree limbs, introduced into a cage need to be replaced as they become worn.
From page 39...
... Some primates require a diet relatively high in protein, although excessive protein might lead to kidney problems in some night monkeys (Aotus)
From page 40...
... Injuries due to excessive force are of particular concern in the handling of small animals such as squirrel monkeys and marmosets. To reduce the stress of physical or chemical restraint, many primates can be trained for routine procedures (Reinhardt 1997d)
From page 41...
... When animals are to be handled or restrained, technicians and researchers should wear distinctive clothing, such as a different-colored laboratory coat or clothing other than what is worn for routine feeding and watering, behavioral observation, research, or any other daily activity. Although the animals might still recognize the individuals participating in the activity, the distinctive clothes separate this somewhat invasive situation from all other daily routines.
From page 42...
... A single male and a single female typically bond in some species, such as indris, mongoose lemurs, night monkeys, titis, gibbons, and siamangs. Most of the callitrichid monkeys also appear to be monogamous under captive conditions, but their social system in the wild is more flexible than that of the aforementioned species (see Chapter 6)
From page 43...
... As a general rule, primates are good parents; however, as with other animals, including humans, some primates either reject their infants or encounter conditions that prevent proper infant care. Fostering or hand rearing is then possible, but providing for an infant's physical needs is far easier than providing for its social needs (Fritz and Fritz 1982, 1985)
From page 44...
... . Whereas protective clothing does not preclude forming individual relationships between animals and personnel, the use of a standard uniform , with minimal individual variation, hinders individual identification.
From page 45...
... It is also a time of stabilization, permitting animals to adjust to changes in their physical and social environment, e.g., relocation from a native environment to sudden confinement or less-dramatic changes, as from one captive environment to another. Stresses associated with such moves are usually associated with various modes and distances of transportation, unfamiliar caregiver personnel, new surroundings and caging, different types and availability of food and water, and frequently repeated testing and sampling procedures.
From page 46...
... Whereas such hospitalization is not as great a change as experienced by newly arrived quarantined animals, suggestions concerning maintaining ties in quarantined animals will still apply. Very young animals might need to be removed with their mothers or some familiar companion to reduce the stress of isolation, even if the second animal requires no treatment.


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