REPTILES AND RESEARCH

Folklore Husbandry and Welfare Concerns

By Ellie Hills and Liam Sinclair

Folklore husbandry within reptile keeping is a term that was first brought about by Kevin Arbuckle in 2013. It describes methods or supposed "best practices" which are unevidenced, pseudoscientific, convenience and ease-led opinions, given and passed from one keeper to another. This is when a keeper carries out a practice with no other justification other than "it's always been this way" or another opinion-led response with little substantial evidence or reasoning. Behavioural scientist Temple Grandin refers to this as “bad practice becoming normal”. It’s something that sees animals fall into the pitfall of suffering, under the guise of folklore husbandry.

Examples of folklore husbandry in goldfish

There are many beliefs we have about species of animals that have little to no basis. A classic would be that goldfish have a ‘three-second’ memory. This was used to justify the keeping of these fish in tiny, unfiltered bowls of water with nothing in terms of stimulation. It didn’t matter because the fish could not form memories, this has now been disproved by science to show they can demonstrate long-term memory functions. There are many (some quite shocking) studies on goldfish memory testing including alcohol and electric shocks, all proving they were able to learn.

Example of folklore in seahorses

Seahorse monogamy is an excellent example of misinformation. Often, people think of these strange creatures as romantic who choose a partner for life. Some species have been proven to show monogamy over many pairings such as dwarf seahorses ( Hippocampus zosterae ), but these habits do not reflect in all species within the genus. When seahorses were first studied, the scientists concluded after one breeding season that they bred monogamously throughout their lives. When kept in captivity within groups, all pairings remained the same and never swapped ‘partners’. However, this was simply untrue for the vast majority of seahorse species or pairings.

Male seahorses work out a social hierarchy and the dominant and largest male pairs with the largest female. In captivity, the pairs never change because the individuals never change in dynamics, creating a false social system and perpetuating this information. In a study looking at 14 male Western Australian seahorse (Hippocampus subelongatus), 8 paired with the same female and 6 paired with a different female. Very quickly, information that is appealing, convenient or misunderstood and told to us is accepted as a whole truth and not part of a picture with many other factors being involved.

Reptile folklore husbandry

It is easy to quickly come across folklore in the reptile and amphibian community if you browse on the internet or look within social media groups. Statements such as “reptiles are sedentary”, “snakes should not have UVB”, and

“snakes feed and grow better in smaller enclosures” can all be disproven with scientific research.

Folklore is unfounded and contradicts evolution. Can they survive in a minimalist enclosure? Yes. Surviving, however, is not thriving. It doesn’t matter how many years a practice has been in place. Animals should be provided with enrichment, an enriched environment and opportunity to express a range of natural behaviours . These include basking or soaking in water, which are fundamental to an animals’ wellbeing.

The feeding of day-old chicks has been thought of as a poor diet and unsuitable for many species such as royal/ ball pythons. Arbuckle (2010) compared day-old chicks' nutritional analysis to two different species of rodents (mice and rats). The paper found that day-old chicks were a suitable diet. There is also the connotation that they are an addictive prey item and will cause snakes to refuse other prey items. There is no data or evidence for this statement except perhaps individuals being stubborn in preference.

How do we formulate new husbandry practices?

There can be no denying that folklore husbandry has allowed us to keep reptiles alive through the years. Through trial and error, many species have been bred in captivity. When there is no other alternative, folklore serves its purpose. This does not mean this is where the learning stops. Evidence-led husbandry is the ‘gold standard’ and something to aspire towards. This involves finding evidence not only for the practice but against alternatives.

If in doubt, use natural history to formulate husbandry. Previously, it was thought that the provision of UVB to nocturnal species was detrimental. Now it is common practice as it has been shown to be beneficial.

Take away message

Robert Mendyk was quoted to say “the expression that’s what we’ve always done may be the five most dangerous words in the zoo lexicon, as it promotes stagnancy and complacency by discouraging scrutiny and evaluation of one’s practices”. Although this refers to zoo’s, it can certainly be applied to the reptile and amphibiankeeping community. Change is hard for people to accept. However, to provide a gold standard in keeping, we must always look to improve, where we can - ever learning and evolving as a community.

Herpetological husbandry has made leaps and bounds over the last century. Our knowledge of captive management and biology has advanced greatly. Captive care such as lighting (UVB) and equipment (for example, thermostats) have rapidly modernised helping with many successes in lifespans and reproductive achievements. Despite this, there are still those who turn their backs on the current scientific data and rely on non-evidence-based care practices. Justified with personal anecdotes, general misconceptions about biology, tradition and folklore subpar practices continue. These practices have direct consequences on the health and well-being of the reptiles they care for.

For a full list of academic references, please visit reptilesandresearch.org