With only 200+ individuals, every kakapo receives individual veterinary attention and welfare monitoring through one of the world's most intensive wildlife management programmes.
Kakapo welfare monitoring is unprecedented in wildlife management — each individual's health, weight, behaviour and reproductive status is tracked continuously. Disease events including aspergillosis receive individual veterinary treatment. Breeding supplements improve female body condition for successful nesting. Chick rescue during difficult breeding seasons involves intensive hand-rearing with welfare protocols designed to minimise imprinting. The programme demonstrates that intensive individual welfare management can underpin species recovery.