UCP Animal Management Students Return to Whipsnade for Advanced Practical Training

Another trip to ZSL Whipsnade Zoo provided Higher Education Animal Management and Welfare students from University Centre Peterborough with another outstanding opportunity to practice core industry skills, focusing on animal welfare, training and global conservation projects.

Students began the day at the Whipsnade farm, where they observed a fascinating ferret training demonstration, gaining insight into the principles of operant conditioning applicable across various species.

The focus then shifted to animal enrichment, a crucial aspect of modern animal care. Working collaboratively, the learners designed and constructed a fantastic, festive papier-mâché fireplace. This creative piece of enrichment will later be filled with meaty gifts and presented to the park’s lions to encourage natural foraging and interaction behaviours for Christmas. Students also gained practical experience in exotic animal husbandry by assisting with the feeding of the critically endangered Visayan warty pigs.

The day concluded with an inspiring and important talk from Fish Curator, Alex Cliffe. He shared details of an exciting and complex conservation project focused on the Mexican pupfish, a species currently classed as extinct in the wild. This session offered unparalleled insight into the profound impact of zoo-led research and reintroduction programmes on global biodiversity efforts.

This visit rounded out the students’ practical induction, providing essential, hands-on insight into enrichment, training, husbandry, and the critical global conservation work that defines the modern animal management and welfare sector.