Diet Implementation
All foods should be weighted in order to provide exact nutritional requirements, rather than counting the food items (20).It is also important to avoid the use of cooked, starchy foods as they can be detrimental to the animal's health (20) as they contain more readily available sugars than raw produce (11). It is vital to monitor individual feed intake in order to adjust the diet to the individuals, increasing or decreasing requirements as necessary. However it is important to change amounts across the diet so as to ensure nutritional requirements are still being met (20). Different types of biscuits should be rotated, and offered throughout the week to maintain optimum consumption however different products may contain different nutritional components and therefore should be carefully selected (11). |
According to recommendations, orangutans should be offered 14% of their diet as nutritionally complete primate biscuits and the remaining 86% as produce. They can consume 1-2% of their body weight each day.
Orangutans need a high fibre diet, with significantly higher proportions of raw and leafy green vegetables than fruit. Adjustments should be made based on animal body condition, health, activity level, reproductive status, growth stage, and intake however too much food should never be offered (20). Those primate feeds which have been formulated for new world primates could be detrimental to the orangutan's health as they contain high vitamin D concentration, and should always be avoided.
Orangutans need a high fibre diet, with significantly higher proportions of raw and leafy green vegetables than fruit. Adjustments should be made based on animal body condition, health, activity level, reproductive status, growth stage, and intake however too much food should never be offered (20). Those primate feeds which have been formulated for new world primates could be detrimental to the orangutan's health as they contain high vitamin D concentration, and should always be avoided.
Diet Management
Due to current climate conditions and changes, and costs, the availability of required foods may be low. The centre should work with local communities to supply these foods (20). It can be easy to exceed mineral requirements and therefore supplementation of vitamins and minerals should only take place if a deficiency is known. Nevertheless, those nursing infants who cannot have access to sunlight would benefit from extra vitmamin D to encourage appropriate bone growth and development (11). In order to ensure that all individuals receive appropriate nutrition, a small amount of extra food should be provided when feeding a group. Some of which should be left over after the feeding period. Food presentation should also provide enrichment. Produce should be cut into different sizes and shapes, or occasionally left whole. The smaller pieces allow for scatter feeding (20) while the whole pieces could potentially encourage the use of other areas of the enclosure. If infants are present, the pieces should be made considering the chance of choking (20). In order to encourage natural foraging, nuts and seeds should be provided in moderation due to their high fat content, and scattered around the enclosure (11). Food should be stored in a clean, dry environment, away from that of carnivores to avoid contamination.
It is vital to keep diet records, especially notes on any changes and the direct reasons for this. It is suggested that the diet be kept on an easily accessible white board, so that all keepers have access to it and it can be easily modified (20).
Benefits
A better diet composition can lead to many benefits, like improved psychological well-being, encouragement of natural behaviours, weight-loss, increased time spent feeding, increase activity budgets, etc. Physiological health is expected to improve via the reduction of sugar and the increase of fibre in the diet. It can also improve cholesterol levels and metabolic syndrome. The reduction of available fruit and the increase of available browse should reduce regurgitation behaviours and increase elevated space use. Dietary changes could also be beneficial for the economy and educational aims of the zoo. Individuals who are inactive or performing strange behaviours could potentially discourage visitors or encourage misconceptions about the animal's natural behaviour (17). Nevertheless further research needs to be done.