Nutritional research in zoos has transformed the health and welfare of captive animals, with species-specific diet development reducing deficiency diseases, obesity, and metabolic disorders.
Nutrition is a foundational pillar of animal welfare that received insufficient attention in early zoo history. The shift from intuitive feeding to evidence-based nutritional management has produced measurable welfare improvements across zoo taxa. Animals maintained on species-appropriate diets have better body condition, healthier teeth and bones, more normal reproductive function, and longer lifespans than those fed inadequate historical diets. The integration of nutritional enrichment — delivering food in ways that stimulate natural foraging behaviours — adds psychological welfare benefits to the nutritional ones. Continuing research into wild dietary ecology remains important for improving captive nutrition as new species enter conservation breeding programmes.