Case Study: Impact of Ambassador Animal Educational Programs on Adrenal Activity

The current case study explored the impact of the number of participants and the ability to contact (touch) during educational programs on the adrenal activity of ambassador animals (n = 3 individuals) of different species. Adrenal activity was monitored using both glucocorticoid metabolites and the ratio of glucocortoid:dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) metabolites examined through daily fecal samples. Results suggest there were no significant differences in adrenal activity when comparing program to non-program days. The ability to contact the guinea pig during the programs resulted in a significant increase in glucocorticoids but not the glucocorticoid:DHEA-S ratio. The ability to contact the tamandua and binturong did not significantly alter adrenal activity. Increasing from one to five participants resulted in a significant decrease in the glucocorticoid:DHEA-S ratio for the tamandua but did not significantly impact glucocorticoid levels. The number of participants had no impact on glucocorticoids or glucocorticoid:DHEA-S ratio for the binturong or guinea pig. Implications for the design or modification of ambassador programs as well as the need for future research are discussed.