Enrichment is a cornerstone of zoo animal welfare but its effectiveness must be systematically evaluated against welfare indicators rather than assumed.
Zoo enrichment has sometimes been deployed based on intuition rather than evidence. Systematic welfare assessment - measuring whether enrichment actually reduces stereotypic behaviour, lowers cortisol, and increases behavioural diversity - is essential to ensure resources are invested in genuinely effective enrichment. The goal is improved welfare, not enrichment for its own sake.