Colobus monkeys require highly specialized care in captivity due to their unique digestive physiology. Meeting their needs challenges zoos to provide appropriate nutrition and social housing.
Colobus welfare failures in zoos have historically resulted from applying general primate husbandry to a specialist folivore. High-fruit diets cause bloat, digestive upset, and liver pathology. The challenge of providing adequate browse year-round in temperate climates is real but solvable through seasonal planning, dried browse, and horticultural partnerships. Behavioral welfare requires enclosures tall enough for arboreal locomotion and social groups that include multiple adults. Their thumblessness means enclosure design must accommodate their specific gripping style. Regular fecal scoring guides dietary assessment.