To improve the welfare of nonhuman animals under professional care, zoological institutions are continuously utilizing new methods to identify factors that lead to optimal welfare. Comparative methods have historically been used in the field of evolutionary biology but are increasingly being applied in the field of animal welfare. In the current study, data were obtained from direct behavioral observation and institutional records representing 80 individual animals from 34 different species of the order Carnivora. Data were examined to determine if a variety of natural history and animal management factors impacted the welfare of animals in zoological institutions. Output variables indicating welfare status included behavioral diversity, pacing, offspring production, and infant mortality. Results suggested that generalist species have higher behavioral diversity and offspring production in zoos compared with their specialist counterparts. In addition, increased minimum distance from the public decreased pacing and increased offspring production, while increased maximum distance from the public and large enclosure size decreased infant mortality. These results have implications for future exhibit design or renovation, as well as management practices and priorities for future research.

为了在专业照料下改善非人类动物的福利，生态机构正在不断利用新方法来识别导致最佳福利的因素。比较方法历史上已用于进化生物学领域，但越来越多地应用于动物福利领域。在当前的研究中，数据来自直接的行为观察和机构记录，这些数据代表了食肉目34种不同物种中的80只动物。检查数据以确定各种自然历史和动物管理因素是否影响了动物园中动物的福利。表示福利状况的输出变量包括行为多样性，起搏，后代生产和婴儿死亡率。结果表明，与专科动物相比，通才动物在动物园中具有更高的行为多样性和后代产量。此外，与公众的最小距离增加会降低步伐并增加后代产量，而与公众的最大距离增加和较大的围栏尺寸会降低婴儿死亡率。这些结果对未来的展览品设计或装修，管理实践和未来研究的重点都有影响。