![]() Cats young and old learn behaviors that help animal care staff evaluate their health, including opening their mouths, showing their paws, getting up on a bench and laying down in practice to receive a vaccination. Instead, natural enrichment, such as tree branches and logs, make for extra-large scratching posts.Įnrichment can also involve animals socializing with their keepers as part of their daily training. Keepers have placed metal and wood collars around the oaks and pines to prevent the cats from climbing or damaging the trees. They also seem to enjoy shredding and playing tug-o-war with them. Once stuffed with hay or food, these items entice the cats to use their natural behaviors to extract the treats. Keepers often recycle cardboard boxes and burlap sacks by turning them into enrichment items for the cats. Visitors can touch a used boomer ball (a huge, nearly indestructible ball) complete with teeth and scratch marks and listen to the cats’ vocalizations. Check out a video about scent enrichment. Keepers will often add scent enrichment, including pumpkin spice, to the cats’ quarters to keep their environment interesting. Keepers provide the cats with enrichment - enclosures, socialization, objects, sounds, smells and other stimuli - to enhance their well-being and give them an outlet to demonstrate their species-typical behaviors. During the swim test, keepers stand guard and gently guide cubs in the right direction. Therefore, animal care staff want to make sure that if a cub finds itself in that situation, it knows how to pull itself out of the water and onto shore. It is possible that a cub could be knocked into the moat by a parent or sibling while playing. A Safe Place to Call HomeĪll lion and tiger cubs born at the Great Cats exhibit must undergo a swim reliability test and prove that they are able to keep their heads above water, navigate to the shallow end of the moat and climb onto dry land. The North American porcupine, black-tailed prairie dog and Patagonian mara habitats are located just across Olmsted Walk from Great Cats. ![]() ![]() On hot days, the cats - and Sumatran tigers, in particular - may choose to take a swim! Online visitors can also catch a glimpse of the lions on the Lion Cam, sponsored by Macy's. Visitors may catch a glimpse of the cats patrolling the edge of the moat. Three outdoor habitats are home to the Zoo’s lions and tigers. Some of the top predators on the planet live at the Great Cats exhibit, including African lions and Sumatran tigers. At each habitat, visitors can learn about the cats’ characteristics, including social structure, hunting, reproduction and the Smithsonian's National Zoo’s efforts to care for and conserve these species.
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