International Giant Otter Studbook Husbandry and Management

When indoor and/or outdoor enclosure land to water ratios offer smaller land proportions
than recommended or/and land/floor surfaces are not nearly entirely covered with soft
loose natural substrates (including appropriate depths, types, and qualities) or provided
with sufficient size deep digging areas as recommended, the following problems will occur.
Some essential innate terrestrial behaviors, that are among the most important activities
that giant otters need to perform to maintain their mental/behavioral health and normality
as well as to promote successful cub-rearing and adjustment to new/unusual situations,
can/will not be carried out to their full extent or at all. As a result, otters can not carry out
their behaviors in a normal and healthy way as compared to captive otters held in the
recommended conditions. They, as a result, can develop mental/behavioral health
problems (in addition to the abnormalities) and their ability to successfully rear cubs and
adjust to new/unusual situations can also be adversely affected or significantly impaired.
The more inappropriate the provisions, the greater the resulting problems and
abnormalities. As well, zoo visitors will not benefit, in an educational or enjoyable way, when
otters are not carrying out their behaviors in a normal healthy manner. Note: in addition to
unsuitable land to water ratios, other inappropriate land and water area designs and
locations can cause the land area to become inappropriate and worsen the aforementioned
conditions.
Substrates, deep digging areas, and land to water ratios (i.e. enough land area) as
recommended are the most important husbandry provisions needed to prevent
mental/behavioral health problems and abnormalities and to improve and maintain otter
health and normality if such problems have developed. This type of husbandry practice
alone can help otters that have developed problems, because of continual exposure to
inappropriate enclosure conditions, to return to a very significantly improved or
completely healthy state. Giant otters have recovered from even the most severe unhealthy
behaviors (i.e. stereotypical behaviors, very dulled/lack of alertness, attentiveness, and curiosity
etc.) in this way. As well, those recovered animals, who encountered new/unusual situations
after their rehabilitation, had the ability to successfully adjust to these situations without
abnormally elevated or excessive levels of negative responses as they had shown before
recovery. They exhibited the behaviors that a behaviorally healthy otter would display during
such a situation when housed in appropriate conditions. Such furnishings and designs as
aforementioned are necessary to promote successful cub-rearing and adjustment to
new/unusual situations and maintain behavioral/mental health and normality in typical
daily circumstances. (New/unusual situations include when otters are moved to new locations,
housed in quarantine or temporary holding areas, introduced to unfamiliar animals, or
anesthetized etc.. ) Visitors, viewing otters carrying out their behaviors in a healthy normal
manner, will also be provided with an enjoyable and educational experience. The other
recommended land and water area locations and designs and locations for nestboxes, dens
and areas for natural underground dens should be provided as they also affect the quality
and appropriateness of the enclosure land (including sleeping areas) and how effectively
the land can be used. These include the provision of plentiful land/floor area bordering and
extending away from the water’s edge, water area contour lines as recommended, no more land
area exposed to water edges than recommended, and nestboxes, dens, and areas for underground
dens located a sufficient distance away from the water’s edge. The other recommended
natural furnishings, such as bamboo stands ("man-made" or/and live growing), large logs,
leaf piles etc. should be provided as well. See Chapter 2 Sections 1-2 and 4-5 for necessary
land area designs, locations, and furnishings.
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