Posted on December 1, 2022November 29, 2022 by Jack Roberts

December Gift Giving

Holiday and end-of-year donor support tips

The holidays are upon us and we’re thinking about gift-giving to friends, family, and pets. The good news is many people like to donate to their local zoo, animal shelter, and rescue facility. It’s also a time of end-of-year giving for tax purposes. Maybe you’re making a wish-list of items your facility needs for the 2023 season. But how to get the message out there to friends and donors? Here are some effective methods for easily getting the word out in time for holiday giving.

Social media

Instagram, Facebook, and other social media outlets are an ideal way to let people know they can give animals a holiday gift. Simply create a holiday post that links to your donation page on your facility’s website.

Support for specific animals

Many people like to support their favorite animal. Some are fans of primates while others love otters or canines. Animal shelters appeal to small animals like dogs and cats. Large animal rescues, depending on their focus, will have horses, pigs, alpacas, and other types of large animals. You can create multiple social media posts, using a variety of animal-specific images and products, to let your donors know how to support their favorite animal.

Get specific with your wish list

One of the most effective ways of communicating your needs is with a wish list. Share it on your website, by email or at the facility. Make a list of products and explain how they enrich the animal’s lives. Show an image of the item and animal that benefits from the enrichment product. Feel free to use our product images, like for this Cylinder.

Don’t shy away from a little creative marketing

Slogans like “Giving gifts is for the birds” may seem a little corny, but it resonates with animal-lovers. Tell a story that helps donors identify with the need.

“Some of our animals’ favorite toys are ones that roll, wobble and are just fun to pounce on or chase. These items are important for the animal’s physical and mental well-being, but they wear out over time. Help us replenish our animals’ worn-but-well-loved toys!”

You can also reinforce your facility’s goals and the importance of enrichment products for animal well-being:

By purchasing a present for Your Facility’s Name, you help our animal keepers/caregivers/veterinarians provide a happy life for the animals.

Be sure to explain that:

These products support research, help refurbish our animals’ habitats, and provide toys that enable animals to express their natural behaviors through play.

In-person events

If your facility has a holiday open house, use that opportunity to share your wish list and animal’s needs. It’s a great time to show worn-out enrichment toys and explain how important new ones are to the animals.

Otto Environmental is dedicated to helping you care for the animals in your care by providing high-quality animal enrichment products and systems. We wish you a happy holidays and look forward to serving you in the new year.

Posted on November 3, 2022March 21, 2023 by Jack Roberts

Using Chewable Toys for Habitat Enrichment

It’s no secret animals want to lick, chew and taste things they find in their habitat.

This behavior comes from natural curiosity, self-comfort, and for entertainment. Chewable enrichment products are popular with animal care professionals because they’re easy to use and the animals love them. But there is growing concern about hazardous contaminants found in some plastics. A recent research paper published in Environmental Science & Technology, focused on the toxicity of everyday plastics used in consumer products.

While this area of investigation is on-going, there is an important take-away. Most of the chemicals in common plastics aren’t locked into the polymer. The chemicals can be transferred to liquids or volatize into the air. Chemicals can be ingested through the mouth and inhaled. Unfortunately, many chewable enrichment products are manufactured under questionable conditions.

Otto Environmental offers a variety of chewable toys that are manufactured in the United States.

The polymers used to manufacture the products have been evaluated by Cornel University’s Animal Health Diagnostic Center. Lab results indicate the products are free of pesticides, heavy metals and other organic compounds of concern. You can rest assured our enrichment products are safe for your animals.

The Zoy Enrichment Device is an Otto Environmental exclusive!

Made in the US, the Zoy entertains a wide range of animals. Medium to large dogs, wolves, swine, and primates are fans of the Zoy. The device has an open loop for grasping, tugging and biting. The flat section is made for chewing and can handle the most-aggressive gnawing.

zoy gallery on white background — The Zoy

Chewing and licking provides mental and tactile enrichment, but animals get bored with the same old toys. Keep chewers, like primates and dogs, happy with the Zigg.

What’s a Zigg? The Zigg has a bumpy textured surface that satisfies the need to chew, without causing damage to teeth and gums. The polymer is chewable but can stand up the aggressive biting and gnawing. Primates especially enjoy exploring the irregular surface with their hands and mouth.

zigg enrichment device for animals — The Zigg

Our exclusive Z2 enrichment chew toy provides a loop handle and two chewable balls on either end.

Large primates will carry the Z2 around and use it to have a relaxing chew during a rest period. It’s also a great toy to toss around with canines.

The Zyro is a smaller enrichment product that is easily rolled, tossed, and chewed by lab and zoo animals. Lab animals such as mice, rats, hamsters, and rabbits require chewable enrichment and benefit from the Zyro. The Zyro is a comfort toy or chew device for smaller primates, small canines, and other curious animals including ferrets and rabbits.

zyro enrichment device gallery on white background — The Zyro

Our US-made animal toys are durable, safe, and suitable for lab and zoo animals, even pets. They’re an effortless way to enrich your animal’s cage or enclosure. Otto Environmental chewable products help calm animals in transport, when settling animals into an unfamiliar environment, or anytime you want to give your animals a fun, chewable toy.

Posted on October 27, 2022October 27, 2022 by Jack Roberts

Creating Habitat Enrichment with Ladders, Rafts, and Hammocks

Periodically changing your animal’s environment creates new experiences that stimulate mind and body.

Physical and cognitive enrichment counter “under-challenge” situations where animals become bored. Research suggests that when animals learn to “conquer” a new challenge, it results in better emotional health and less stress. Marian Stamp Dawkins (Dept. of Zoology, University of Oxford) notes that when animals are prevented from performing desired activities, abnormal and sometimes harmful behaviors come to the surface. Cage biting often leads to mouth damage. Birds may scratch about or fight with other birds. Elephants rock back and forth.

Adding enrichment items that mimic vines, trees, and perching areas stimulate animals to explore their environment, exercising mind and body. It is not necessary to “remodel” your animal’s habitat to keep them engaged and healthy.

Here are a few time-tested enrichment devices that are easy to install and work with a variety of animals.

The Tirezan Primate Swing was developed for monkeys, apes, and orangutans. But we found other animals like Pandas and Koalas find the Tirezan appealing. The natural rubber tire hangs from three stainless-steel chains. The polypropylene upper deck prevents the chains from getting tangled and makes it easy to hang the Tirezan from a tree or other mount.

Smaller primates like Tamarins, Marmosets, Gibbons, and Macaques love to hang and swing from the Dream Swing. Made from sturdy, high-density plastic, the Dream Swing can take rough play and multiple primates climbing aboard. The swing is 16” wide and comes with an 18” stainless-steel chain for hanging. You can even add Hanging Snack Balls to add food-based enrichment. Small primates enjoy moving about above-ground, much like their behavior in the wild.

The Collapsible Ladder provides small primates an elevated place to climb and explore. The 1” PEX plastic rungs are easy to grasp with paw or claws. You can hang the ladder between posts, trees, or attach it to a wall. Need a longer ladder? Just join two ladders together with the clasps. The ladder also works well with larger parrots as a perch.

Rest time is not time wasted, animals need a comfy and secure location to nap or lounge.

The Banana Hammock is a favorite among ferrets. The soft fleece and pouch-like hammock creates the ideal bedding and social meeting place. Large animals need a sturdy hammock that can handle the weight and wear caused by heavy animals. The Aussie Dog Borneo Hammock is three meters in diameter. Made of rip-stop canvas, the Borneo Hammock will support large primates, bears and other heavy carnivores.

Mammals like otters, seals, sea lions and other pinnipeds enjoy gathering on a raft or just lazing in the sun. The Aussie Dog Seal Float provides a stable raft made of rip-stop webbing and a stainless-steel frame. The smaller Otter Float with mirror appeals to otters but also attracts seabirds.

We offer many more swings, ladders, and rafts, in a variety of materials and sizes for just about any animal in your care. If you need enrichment ideas, please contact us.

Posted on October 19, 2022October 19, 2022 by Jack Roberts

Lab Animal Enrichment & Impact on Research Outcomes

Traditionally, laboratory animals were kept in “bare bones” environments. The idea was to simplify the experiment and eliminate as many variables as possible.

However, with declining experimental reproducibility rates in human trials (only 1 in 9 drugs entering human trials will succeed), there is a growing suspicion that the low rate of translation from animal research to human outcomes may be related to animal welfare in the trials.

Regarding this dilemma Dr. Joseph Garner, associate professor for the comparative medicine department at Stanford noted “In my opinion, [the problem] fundamentally boils down to the quality of science being done in the initial discovery work with animals, and it’s inseparable from animal welfare.”

Otto Environmental understands the need to enrich the lives of lab animals for their welfare and success in trials. We’ve designed these easy to implement enrichment products to help improve your animal’s welfare in the laboratory environment.

The Rat Loft is a stainless steel is a hanging platform provides a “hangout” for rats and mice. For instance, they may climb onto the ledge or nestle under it. The Rat Loft is available as a solid platform or a perforated ledge and is autoclavable for sanitation.

Small rodents like to retreat to dark, safe spaces. The Jerboa Nesting Box is ideal for mice, rats, gerbils, jerboas, hamsters, and moles. The box has an inner divider that creates a separate space for nest building. Additionally, the lid has a stainless-steel hinge allowing for easy access to the box.

Adding complexity to your animal’s environment improves health and development. The Stainless Steel Hanging Mirror is an interesting “shiny object” that intrigues curious animals. The all-stainless construction is smooth, rugged, and easy to clean.

Mice and other rodents thrive when they have things to explore and nibble. The Mouse Relaxer provides tactile, visual, and audible stimulation. All types of rodents love to lick, grasp, and rattle the stainless-steel bead chains. Just hang it from a cage bar.

mouse relaxer enrichment device — Mouse Relaxer

It’s no secret small rodents like mice and gerbils love to crawl through tubes. However, a cardboard tube will get chewed up in minutes. Our 3” Stainless-Steel Rodent Tube can’t be shredded! The 3” x 3” tube won’t rust and is autoclavable. The 4” Rat Round Rodent Tube is larger (4” x 6”) and suitable for rodents of any size including large rats. Small rodents like mice and mole rats will enjoy our 2” x 4” Mouse Round and Mouse Square stainless-steel tubes. All tubes have smooth, safe edges.

Boredom creates stress in rabbits. The Rabbit Relaxer is a larger version of the Mouse Relaxer. Mount the relaxer on a cage bar. Rabbits like to rear up on hind legs to investigate this enrichment tool.

Edible Enrichment is a key component for creating a positive primate habitat. One product, The Spin-A-Snack Primate Enrichment System (PES), is a rotating polycarbonate feeder that dispenses interesting foods like peanuts, seeds, and popcorn. The Spin-A-Snack is compatible with the PES system.

Posted on August 25, 2022September 8, 2022 by Jack Roberts

Enrichment Tips & Toys for a Happy, Healthy Big Cat

healthy big cat playing with enrichment toy

Keeping lions, tigers, cheetahs, leopards, and other big cats emotionally and physically healthy has always been a challenge.

Studies and experience prove habitat enrichment is an effective antidote to stress, nipping, and boredom. When the habitat is sufficiently enriched with items the cats like, you’ll see less pacing and prolonged sleeping behavior.

The Aussie Dog Big Cat Bungee is perfect for enclosures with limited height.

For instance, the bungie has a D-ring for easy attachment. The soft tail and blue color keep lions and tigers interested and occupied in a temporary pen or permanent enclosure. Smaller and young cats will love the Aussie Dog Small Cat Sam.

It’s no secret cats like to roll and bite a ball.

But big cats need a large, tough ball that is fun and durable. Our 31” Polyethylene ball is designed to be clawed, rolled, and bit by your cats. The ball is available in a variety of wall thicknesses and color options. Tough enough for all weather play.

Big cats require a variety of enrichment items to satisfy curiosity and prevent stereotypic captive behavior. The Otto 46” box is made of sturdy polyethylene and can be modified to hold meat treats and olfactory stimulants. In addition, it even floats in water. We also offer a 48″ x 20″ x 8″ box that is easy to modify for your cat’s habitat. The boxes are available in many colors and wall thickness options.

Tigers enjoy the water, especially in summertime. Keep your cats active with the floating rectangular 47” box.

And it’s easy to bite and carry around, even in the water. The Otto 22” box makes a great “throne” for your cats. It provides a comfortable resting place in the shade or in a temporary enclosure. The Otto Cylinder can be used anywhere but really shines in the water. The hollow polyethylene cylinder has safe, smooth edges. It can be rolled, tackled, and bit in the water and on land. Cylinders are available in several sizes for large and small cats.

Experience shows that effective enrichment devices result in natural behavior. The Lion Sam 2 Bungie Toy is hung from a tree or other overhead mount. Tigers, lions, and other cats love to bat and bite the ball and tail. They’ll tug and pull the Lion Sam bungie as it “fights back”, stimulating hunting behavior.

The Jingle Ball is a favorite at zoos because it provides big cats with auditory stimulation in addition to the challenge of rolling and biting the ball. The bells are safely sealed inside the tough polyethylene ball. Visitors will enjoy seeing and hearing the cats playing with the Jingle Ball. The Jingle Ball is available in 18-36” diameter and comes in a variety of colors including bright blue and translucent.

The key to successful big cat habitat enrichment is to experiment with a variety of enrichment tools. For example, an Ocelot may like one toy while a panther will prefer a different color or shape. Try several products to find out what your cats like.

Posted on August 18, 2022September 12, 2022 by Jack Roberts

Keeping Your Pigs Happy and Healthy Through Habitat Enrichment

Keeping Your Pigs Happy and Healthy Through Habitat Enrichment

Swine are naturally curious and thrive in social groups. Pigs spend about 75% of their time exploring their surroundings by rooting, biting, pushing and sniffing objects in their environment. If their living space is not interesting, the pigs become bored. This leads to undesirable behavior like biting, tail nipping and fighting. Habitat enrichment solves the problem of boredom and unsafe behavior. Enriching your pig’s enclosure is easy with these time-tested swine enrichment products.

The EasyFix Luna 142 has been tested at universities and swine environments throughout the world. The Luna 142 consists of 12 food-grade rubber spikes. Pigs can safely chew the spikes and push the LUNA around the piggery or play area. Four sizes are available for piglets, weaners, finishers, and sows.

Pigs like objects that that can be chewed, licked, and pushed with the snout.

The Pig Bite Ball on a Spring is designed to be mounted on the floor or wall. Pigs love to bite the plastic ball, but there’s more! The spring provides a challenge by “fighting back” when the pig pulls and pushes the ball.

If you want to hang chewable balls above your pigs, our Biting Balls are the perfect solution. Made from tough polyurethane, Biting Balls stand up to the roughest play. Installation is easy. Biting Balls have a stainless-steel connecting pin making it simple to attach to a chain or rope. Biting Balls are available in 2” and 3.3” diameter sizes.

Stop tail nipping with the Bite Block. Designed to be suspended from a chain, the Bite Block allows pigs to bite at “tail level” instead of nipping at their pen mates.

Research shows pigs fare better when their environment is enriched with objects pigs enjoy exploring. The Animal Farm is a wall-mounted entertainment center packed with sights, sounds and textures for pigs to explore. It rattles, rolls, bounces, and even has a refillable treat dispenser.

Finishers, sows, and other hooved animals benefit from suspended toys, like our EasyFix Astro 200. Hang the Astro 200 at eye level. Hooved animals will bite and pull the rubber legs instead of neighbor’s ears and sides.

Enrichment Products Should be Swapped Out Periodically

Enrichment products should be periodically swapped out to prevent boredom. For example, The Pig Bite Moon and Pig Bite Star provide interesting shapes that enrich any hooved animal environment. Designed to be hung from the stainless-steel chain, the Pig Bite Moon makes it easy to keep your animals entertained. These are great additions to the Animal Farm.

Happier Pigs Eat More

Happy pigs have better feed conversion, so be prepared for hungry piglets. The Easy Pan Feeder dispenses starter food. The circular design, sturdy materials and easy use make it the favorite feeder around the world.

Our enrichment devices are proven to keep pigs occupied and entertained. This translates into improved mental and physical health. Whether your animals are living in a lab enclosure, zoo enclosure or farm, our enrichment devices will improve your pig’s environment and result in less aggression and a healthy social environment.