Animal Welfare Assessment Transfers Checklist Our Animal Welfare Commitment The believes that consideration of an animal s welfare must include its physical, physiological and mental state and that good animal care implies good health and well-being. This philosophy extends to those animals which are transferred from the TCSA zoos to third parties. This document provides an assessment of the animal welfare conditions available for any animal transferred from the TCSA zoos to private zoos and persons. This assessment is required for all transfers to parties which are not accredited by ARAZPA or other zoological member associations. The TCSA will ensure sound animal management practices by ensuring the following Five Freedoms are provided for all animals to be transferred to other parties. The TCSA will assess prior to transfer of any animal that the Five Freedoms of Animal Welfare are available at the receiving zoo or premises to all animals transferred from its zoos. 1. Freedom from Hunger and Thirst By ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour. 2. Freedom from Discomfort By providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area. 3. Freedom from Pain, Injury or Disease By prevention and by rapid diagnosis and treatment. 4. Freedom to Express a Healthy Range of Natural Behaviour By providing sufficient space, proper facilities and an appropriate environment and social context. 5. Freedom from Fear and Distress By ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering. 1
Address Premises / Facilities Checked: Name or Owner or Operator: Trading name: Licence number: Animal(s) to be transferred: TCSA Staff member undertaking the assessment: Name: Position: Date: 2
Institutions or persons to which animals are transferred from the TCSA zoos must meet the following conditions under the TCSA Animal Welfare Charter: 1. Freedom from Hunger and Thirst By ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour. Demonstrate appropriate maintenance and presentation of enclosures and animal husbandry with an understanding of hygiene, particularly in regard to facilities, equipment and food. Animal diets and food presentation must be of a quality and quantity suitable for each animal s nutritional and psychological needs. Records of all diet formulations must be maintained and followed, be available to staff and reviewed as required. Veterinary or other relevant specialist advice must be sought to assist in the formulation of animal diets. Where browse is provided it should be on the basis of the individual requirements of animal species, based upon dietary and behavioural requirements. Food must be stored, prepared and transported in a manner that ensures appropriate quality. Food and drink must be provided to animals in a manner that takes account of the species biology and ensures that every animal kept in an enclosure has adequate access. Feeding methods must be safe for animals and staff. Where controlled feeding by visitors occurs: it must be safe for the animals and visitors, it must be with suitable food, provided or approved by the operator, the quantity supplied per day must be managed and controlled to avoid over-feeding, it must not compromise good nutrition and it must not encourage inappropriate animal behaviour. 3
Animals must be provided with sufficient fresh drinking water daily to meet each animal s requirements. Comments:.. 2. Freedom from Discomfort By providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area. Provide for the known requirements of each species. All animal enclosures must meet the needs of the animal, including social, psychological, physiological and behavioural needs. Shelter sufficient to enable each animal to gain protection from wind, rain and extremes in temperature, allow sufficient access to shade and to allow the animal to perform essential behaviours. Enclosures must be able to provide appropriate: safe containment, temperature regimes, ventilation, lighting (both levels and spectral distribution), noise levels. Animal enclosures must comply with relevant, taxon-specific ARAZPA guidelines or legislated standards for animal management and display. All animal enclosure areas (both on- and off-exhibit) must be kept clean and in good repair. Comments:.... 3. Freedom from Pain, Injury or Disease By prevention and by rapid diagnosis and treatment. All animals must be monitored sufficiently to enable daily assessments of health and wellbeing. 4
Demonstrate that animals within the collection are made safe within reason from the transmission of disease from, or predation by, wild animals. Must have access to a suitably qualified veterinarian for the animal collection at all hours. A disease prevention program must be in place for the all animals on the premises. A veterinarian must be responsible for, or actively involved in, the treatment of all sick and injured animals. A veterinarian must be responsible for, or actively involved in, the supervision of quarantine premises. A veterinarian must establish documented procedures for storage and handling of veterinary drugs where held in the institution. A veterinarian must be responsible for supervising, or be actively involved in, administering all drugs. Where an animal death may indicate potential health risks to other animals or to staff and visitors, a post mortem examination must be carried out on the dead animal. Such a post mortem examination must be conducted by a veterinarian and the results documented: indicating likely cause of death and identifying significant risks to the health of other animals or to staff and visitors. Records must be kept on: preventive medicine; clinical medicine and surgery, pathological findings from ante-mortem testing, results of post mortem examination and testing. Must have and follow a documented quarantine policy for all newly arrived animals. Written, formal procedures for quarantine must be available to all staff working with quarantined animals. 5
Must be able to provide, when needed, designated holding facilities suitable for the quarantine of newly arrived animals. Must have separate isolation facilities appropriate for the treatment of sick or injured animals. Must ensure standards of hygiene are maintained appropriate to minimise the risk of disease transmission amongst and between staff, visitors and the animal collection. Hygiene standards must include consideration of the personal hygiene of staff, as well as hygiene within animal enclosures, animal treatment rooms, quarantine facilities and areas used in the preparation of food and drink. Suitable facilities and cleaning agents must be readily available, along with supplies of water and the appropriate safe means to apply them. All waste material must be removed from animal enclosures daily to avoid unhealthy accumulation of these substances, unless a particular aspect of the animal s behaviour or biology, or size of the enclosure, necessitates less frequent removal. Comments:..... 4. Freedom to Express a Healthy Range of Natural Behaviour By providing sufficient space, proper facilities and an appropriate environment and social context People caring for the animal must understand the basic biological, behavioural, nutritional and environmental requirements of the animals in their care. Where possible, animals must be displayed in social groups appropriate to meeting their psychological, biological and behavioural needs. Where appropriate, must implement behavioural enrichment programs to promote species-appropriate behavioural opportunities. 6
Comments:..... 5. Freedom from Fear and Distress By ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering. Husbandry routines are always performed in a manner as to minimise the stress on the animal. All animal enclosures (whether for display, treatment, holding, isolation or other purposes) must be sufficient to ensure that they will contain the animals appropriately and are safe for the animals, the staff attending them and the visitors. Must demonstrate that animals within the collection are made safe within reason from the adverse attention of visitors. Equipment for animal capture must be in good working order, appropriately stored, well maintained and available to authorised, trained personnel at all times. Animals must be handled only by, or under the supervision of, trained personnel. A sufficient number of appropriately trained or experienced personnel must be available at all times to effect the safe capture or restraint of animal(s). The means to transport animals safely within the premises must be available. Where contact between animals and visitors is promoted, the animals concerned must be assessed and selected for their suitability for such interaction, monitored and treated humanely and with respect at all times. Where contact between animals and visitors are promoted, or visitors allowed unimpeded proximity to animals, member institutions must comply with the ARAZPA Guidelines for Animal Contact Areas. 7
Comments:..... References: ARAZPA Accreditation Program. May 2005. General Standards. Publ. ARAZPA Executive Office. World Zoo and Aquarium Conservation Strategy. June 2006. Ed. Olney, P.J. S, Building a future for wildlife. Publ: WAZA Executive Office 8