Hyenas are highly intelligent, socially complex carnivores whose welfare in captivity depends on understanding their unique social structures, communication systems, and cognitive needs — requirements that zoos have historically underestimated.
Hyenas present genuine challenges for zoos that wish to provide good welfare. Their complex social hierarchies mean that inappropriate groupings — wrong sex ratios, forced pairings, or inadequate space — can lead to chronic conflict and stress. Their intelligence and natural activity levels require substantial enrichment and space. Many hyena exhibits are too small to allow the animals to express their natural ranging behavior, and their vocalizations and activity patterns are often misunderstood by keepers unfamiliar with their social signals. Well-managed hyena exhibits that provide appropriate social groups, large naturalistic spaces, and cognitive enrichment can house these animals reasonably well, but this requires specialized expertise that not all facilities possess.