Aardwolves are insectivorous hyenas with highly specialised diets and nocturnal habits. Their welfare in captivity depends on meeting these unique biological requirements.
Aardwolves are among the more challenging zoo species from a welfare perspective because their natural diet is nearly impossible to replicate at scale. The shift from tens of thousands of termites per night to commercial substitutes represents a fundamental change in both nutrition and behaviour — termite foraging is highly stimulating and occupies most of the night. Zoos that hold aardwolves successfully use nocturnal house designs, scatter feeding, and insect foraging puzzles to promote natural behaviour and reduce stereotypies. Population sizes in zoos are very small due to these difficulties.