Two basic questions arise in zoo animal feeding: Should zoo animals be fed according to their original habitats as much as possible? Zoo lions could then eat live hares, for example. Or is it more important that zoo animals eat as balanced a diet as possible and that their nutritional needs are met with a special mixed feed? The “natural” feeding method is contrary to the Swiss Animal Welfare Act, according to which prey animals must not be exposed to inhumane conditions and fed alive. In the case of mixed feeds, we now know that most of the natural products available to humans, such as fruits, vegetables, grains or farm animal meat, cannot be compared to the food that wild animals find in their habitat. The lecture presents a new approach that takes into account species-appropriate feeding methods and animal welfare-appropriate living conditions for prey animals.