Handbook of Primate Husbandry and Welfare covers all aspects of primate care and management both in the laboratory environment and in zoos. From the welfare and ethics of primate captivity through to housing and husbandry systems, environmental enrichment, nutritional requirements, breeding issues, primate diseases, and additional information on transportation and quarantine proceedings, this book provides a completely comprehensive guide to good husbandry and management of primates. Designed to be a practical field manual, the authors present the material using lists, tables and illustrations to clarify best practice.
Representative species are covered - from marmosets through to macaques
One of the first books dedicated to the care of primates in captivity
Written by authors with many years of experience working with primates
Suitable for those working with primates in either laboratories or zoos
Preface vii
Acknowledgements viii
1 Primates: Their characteristics and relationship with man 1
What is a primate? 1
Primate characteristics 3
Why are primates special? 6
Ethical considerations of animals in captivity 8
Legal considerations 11
Further reading 12
2 The physical environment 15
Considerations in accommodation design 15
Indoor/outdoor/combination facilities? 22
Environmental conditions 24
Waste management 29
Further research needed 29
Further reading 30
3 Staff management and health and safety 33
Selection of staff 33
Training of staff 33
Health and safety issues 33
Lone working 41
Employee security 41
Further reading 41
4 Nutrition 43
Natural feeding ecology 43
Diet formulation and processing 45
Energy requirements 45
Carbohydrate, protein and fat 46
Minerals and vitamins 48
Water 49
Supplements 50
Different life stages 51
Hand rearing of infants 55
Further reading 57
5 Physical well-being 59
Assessment of physical health 59
Quarantine programme 67
Health-screening programme 68
Common infectious diseases 73
Husbandry-related diseases 89
Sedation of primates 92
Further reading 92
6 Psychological well-being 99
Strategy for psychological well-being 99
Environmental enrichment 100
Assessment of psychological health 111
Further reading 112
7 Training of primates 115
Why train primates? 115
Sociality and psychological well-being in primates 116
Primate behaviour 120
Modification of behaviour 121
Further reading 128
8 Breeding 129
Group systems and sizes 129
Primate fertility 132
Natural suppression of fertility 134
Reproductive cycles 137
Artificial control of reproduction 138
Pregnancy diagnosis 139
Parturition 139
Lactation and weaning 141
Breeding lifespan 143
Selection of breeding males 144
Further reading 145
9 Sourcing and transporting primates 149
Background 149
Transportation 152
Provision during transport 157
Post-move monitoring 158
Further reading 160
Index 163
