Enrichment keeps the minds of our residents active and happy! It is a daily requirement that we ABSOLUTELY need volunteers to help with.....it's very time consuming and the caregivers often run out of time during their daily chores.
NOTE: there is a lot of walking involved with enrichment. If it is too much for you, please talk to Jen or Shane and we will help you brainstorm some solutions.
There is an enrichment calendar on the computer in the enrichment room. A new one for each month is loaded onto the computer. Choose the tab for the day of the month. The enrichment activity for that day for all farmed animal areas is listed. There are spaces to type in your initials when you've done an activity (mandatory) and a note section. You can use this to type in if you did a different type of activity, if you see a negative reaction to an activity, or anything else of note.
Please note: using produce for enrichment is limited in order to avoid doubling up by Caregivers or Volunteers. Only substitute produce in for a listed activity if necessary and make sure you note it in the online calendar.
We have some documents below that describe enrichment for different species and at the very bottom, a link to some videos of different enrichment activities.
A couple of reminders:
- Please clean and disinfect any surfaces you touch after you are through. This includes emptying the sink drain basket.
- If you have time to cut produce, there is always a need, especially for pigs & birds. If there aren't containers labeled and filled with whole produce in the fridge, just radio a caregiver to help get you started! The cutting sizes are on laminated sheets.
- NOTE: any items you take into the yards for enrichment (bags, toys, etc.) are to be picked back up and cleaned or thrown away BEFORE you leave for the day. Let's not make more work for the caregivers! Exceptions: pinecone feeders in bird yards can be left overnight.
- If you go into a bird yard and see old pinecone feeders or other enrichment still hanging up, please remove them and wash the items (pinecones can be thrown away).
DOCUMENTS:
How to Make Popsicles for the Animals
Goat/Sheep Enrichment Overview
VIDEOS:
