Utah’s Hogle Zoo celebrates Halloween with special enrichment activities for its animals

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Utah’s Hogle Zoo celebrated Halloween today by providing some appropriately themed holiday enrichment activities for their resident animals.

You may have seen other videos of animals in zoos being given pumpkins and other treats this spooky season, and animals at Utah’s Hogle Zoo got to join in on the fun.

Enrichment is a term used to describe activities that zookeepers provide animals, giving them chances to learn, explore, and showcase natural behaviors. Enrichment helps increase the animals’ physical and mental activity, as well as their natural behaviors, which makes them healthier and happier.

Enrichment is something that contributes to positive animal wellbeing, and it’s fun for us humans to watch too, especially when the zookeepers get creative.

Utah’s Hogle Zoo provides five types of enrichment activities: sensory, feeding, manipulative toys, environmental, and behavioral/social. Many of the Halloween enrichment activities from today were feeding enrichment, giving them puzzle feeders and other different methods of food presentation. You can learn more about enrichment at the Hogle Zoo on their website here.

Bactrian camel

The resident camel was given a puzzle feeder in the shape of an oversized piece of candy corn! The camel seemed to enjoy the treats and chewing on the feeder itself.

Black-footed cat

The zoo’s black footed cat was given its very own miniature haunted castle, complete with paper ghosts and a paper jack-o-lantern.

Cape porcupine

The cape porcupine was very curious about some tasty pieces of pumpkin, carved with grinning jack-o-lantern faces.

Cougar

One of the zoo’s cougars seemed to hog the enrichment all for themself, diving into the witch’s cauldron to get the treats inside.

Meerkat

The meerkats were enriched by a pumpkin shaped paper box and a jack-o-lantern for them to inspect, climb around in, and maybe nibble on.

Sand cat

Looks like the sand cat had a spooky tunnel with a meal inside of it, but like all cats, the sand cat played with their food before eating it.

Snow leopard

The snow leopards were given pumpkins, and you can see them rolling them around and eventually eating them.

Southern white rhino

The southern white rhino was given a jack-o-lantern to enjoy and an adorable haunted house, wishing her a very happy Halloween.

Tortoise

The tortoise had a treat of a pumpkin shaped box alongside its usual meal.

Zebra

It looks like the zebra had to share this jack-o-lantern and mini haunted house with the southern white rhino!