Zoochosis: what it is and how it appears in captured animals

Zoochosis, also known as Repetitive Abnormal Behavior in animals (ARB for its acronym in English), is one of the consequences of the use of the latter for human entertainment. This is a behavior pattern that has been observed in captive animals, especially large mammals.

In this article we will see what zoochosis is and what are some of its main causes and consequences.

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What is zoochosis?

Different species of animals are frequently used for the entertainment and leisure of humans. Environments such as zoos or circuses they represent only some of the most common and at the same time most negative activities for the animals themselves and their ecosystems.

Both visual and written records of captive animals have shown that, sooner or later, those who live in captivity deal with frustration and a series of unusual behaviors in their environments natural. Despite the fact that it is an increasingly widespread phenomenon, the latter seems to cause such surprise that

it has been necessary to transfer a term from human psychopathology to emphasize the negative causes of captivity in animals.

Said term is that of “zoochosis”, which has been described as a phenomenon apparently derived from psychosis, or analogous to it. Ultimately, this means that zoochosis is a type of mental disorder that animals develop in captivity.

The foregoing, however, has not been scientifically systematized, because experiences of psychosis have a subjective component important for its description (not just observable); that makes it difficult to transfer them directly to animal behaviors.

In any case, the term zoochosis has been useful to study and make visible the negative consequences that life in captivity has on different animals. It is currently part of the colloquial language where psychology converges with ethology and animal rights activism.

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Stereotyped behavior in animals

For its part, Abnormal Repetitive Behavior, or rather, stereotyped behavior, has been associated in both humans and animals with restrictive environments (Lewis, 2007). This is why zoochosis has also been described as a form of stereotypical behavior of animals living in captivity and that accounts for the serious obstacles that these environments represent for their development.

Stereotyped behavior, as well as other behavioral manifestations, have been especially observed in captive elephants, bears, gorillas, tigers, giraffes, and killer whales.

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Main causes and behavioral manifestations

As we have seen, zoochosis or stereotyped behaviors in animals is attributed to life in captivity. More specifically, some of the elements that have been proposed as causes of zoochosis are lack of space, which in turn causes lack of privacy, physical exercise and mental stimulation.

The final consequence of the above is usually self-mutilation and other self-destructive behaviors (Adamiec, 2014). Likewise, walks or walks have been observed that follow the same route without apparent functionality; rotating and repetitive neck movements; immediate and repeated vomiting after eating; head banging against the wall; excessively violent behaviors, both to other animals and to humans (Stephen, 1993).

After analyzing the specific case of elephants in different American zoos, Dick (2016) tells us that limited space creates distinct and severe impediments for elephants to develop in a naturally active way. For example, in their natural environments, elephants can travel up to 50 miles in a single day, which they cannot do in captivity.

Containment and prevention strategies

Continuing with the case of elephants, Dick (2016) analyzes how some zoos contain animal behaviour. Under the argument that the elephants "behave badly", some of them use hooks, whips or wood. Likewise, some entertainment offers to the visitor include carrying out car washes made down the trunks of elephants, spray water with their trunks on cars, and go on horseback rides (pp. 3-4). The same author analyzes the difficulties to feed them and to facilitate their reproduction, as well as the strategies to capture them in the wild.

Other strategies used within zoos to control the behavior of captive animals are the use of medication, specifically anxiolytics and antidepressants, although conditioning techniques are also used (Elisha, 2017).

Finally, there are different and increasingly more groups that have spoken out against life in captivity, for example, through through laws focused on animal rights, and on evaluating or denouncing the living conditions that different zoos. In some cases there is a plea for improving these conditions, and in others for the return of the animals to their natural environment. Likewise, the creation of pedagogical strategies that show the negative consequences of using animals for entertainment, and as a consequence, their presence in circuses has been prohibited in several countries.

Bibliographic references:

• Elisha, b. (2017). What is zoochosis?. Worldatlas. Retrieved August 9, 2018. Available in https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-is-zoochosis.html.
• Dick, R. (2016). The use of elephants in leisure and its negative effects. Illuminare: a student journal in recreation, parks and leisure studies. 14(1): 1-9.
• Adamiec, A. (2014). Sustaining Biodiversity. APES. Retrieved August 9, 2018. Available in http://harborside.kusd.edu/projects/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/anna-adamiec-.pdf.
• Lewis, M., Tanimura, Y. and Lee, L. (2013). Animal models of restricted repetitive behavior in autism. Behav Brain Res. 176(1): 66-74. doi: 10.1016/j.bbr.2006.08.023.
• Stephen, S. (1993). Join the fight to stamp out zoochosis. Column In The Sun, Baltimore, Md. Retrieved August 9, 2018. Available in https://search.proquest.com/docview/406825295?accountid=15292.