Small social mammals including meerkats, mongooses, and prairie dogs present specific welfare challenges in zoos related to their complex social structures and behavioral needs.
Social small mammals in zoos face welfare challenges from limited group sizes, inadequate burrowing opportunities, and visitor disturbance. Meerkat groups in zoos are typically smaller than wild groups, preventing the complex sentinel and foraging cooperation that defines meerkat social life. Prairie dogs without space for extensive tunnel systems cannot express fundamental behavioral drives. High visitor traffic creates chronic alertness in species with evolved predator vigilance systems. Good welfare requires naturalistic substrates, appropriate group sizes, and visitor management.