Meerkats are highly social mongoose relatives from southern African semi-arid habitats. Their sentinel behaviour, cooperative breeding, and large group social dynamics make them engaging zoo residents with specific welfare requirements.
Meerkat welfare in zoos centres on social group management and thermal provision. The reproductive suppression that dominant females exert on subordinates through chronic stress hormones means that subordinate females in well-established groups experience ongoing physiological stress — a welfare cost that is inherent to their social system but can be minimised by ensuring subordinate animals have adequate resources and retreat options. Group size and composition require careful management: groups that are too small lack the social complexity meerkats naturally inhabit; groups that are too large may develop damaging intra-group conflict. Thermal management is critical — meerkats are native to semi-arid southern Africa and cannot tolerate cold or wet conditions for extended periods. Exhibits must provide multiple heated shelter options. Enrichment that engages sentinel behaviour — varying the timing and location of feeding, introducing novel scents and sounds — and foraging drives — buried food, live invertebrates — capitalises on their naturally engaging behavioural repertoire.