Housing and care of monkeys and apes in laboratories: adaptations allowing essential species-specific behaviour (2002)

Rider, E. L., Timmermans, P. J. A.

Abstract

An animal is not a survival machine but a genetically programmed organism. A machine 'survives' longest if it is maintained properly but not used. An animal, however, needs to use the functions that evolved for its survival, in order to keep those functions from decay and deterioration. Whoever deliberately chooses a species because of its specific properties, in his own interest should be expected to take care that these properties remain unimpaired. The purpose of this review is to develop recommendations for adaptations of housing and care from our knowledge of the daily behavioural activity of monkeys and apes in natural conditions and in enriched laboratory conditions.