Wild For Life

I am joined by Maria Franke, Manager of Welfare Science at the Toronto Zoo, on today’s episode to discuss how the Zoo monitors and studies animal welfare for its species. Animal welfare is always the number one priority. It uses a holistic approach that includes monitoring the physical, mental, and emotional status of the animals with a focus on quantitative data. Maria discusses how animal welfare at the Zoo is a collaborative effort and how the new Outdoor Orangutan Habitat will help to monitor the species’ welfare and allow comparisons of welfare between indoor and outdoor habitats.

I sit down with Sonia Hojka, who is a Zoo Keeper at the Zoo, to discuss the biology, behaviour, ecology, and conservation of the ring-tailed lemurs. We chat about some interesting facts about the primates including how they like to cuddle, how they use their tails, and how the females are leaders of the troops - and what that means for reproduction!