Whatever Floats Your Goat: Kong Toys Impact on Sedentary Behavior in Goats ( Capra hircus )?
Wildlife Ecology and Management Cherish Zimmerman
Domesticated adult Fainting goats ( Capra hircus ) are commonly housed in petting zoos because they allow for close interactions with people and can be fed easily by children and adults. During the summer of 2025, I worked as an intern at the Wisconsin Rapids Municipal Zoo and zoo personnel had noticed that two adult female goats exhibited low activity levels, spending most of their days resting. My objective was to increase activity for these individuals. I designed a behavioral enrichment program using Kong dog feeding toys and hypothesized that activity would increase when the Kong was introduced to the goats. I created behavioral activity budgets before and after introducing the Kong. I observed each animal for 10 minutes and recorded behaviors every 30 seconds. I used a Chi-Square Goodness of Fit analysis to determine if activity increased while the Kong toys were present in the goat enclosure. I also monitored behaviors for 10 minutes after Kong toys were removed. The results demonstrated a noticeable increase in activity levels when the enrichment items were present, indicating that Kong toys effectively encouraged movement and behavioral changes. This outcome suggests that simple enrichment strategies can positively influence the welfare and activity levels of Fainting goats in captivity. Potential for future research may explore whether this increase in physical activity correlates with improvements in physiological outcomes such as milk production.
Advisors: Shelli Dubay, Ph.D. Jason Riddle, Ph.D.
Subject Area: Wildlife
Type: Poster
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Jim and Katie Krause CNR Student Research Symposium
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