Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Putting It All Together!

On our last day at Shedd, Ken summarized the week with three main points:

1. Get to know your animal.

Ken believes that animal training can be enhanced by having a good relationship with your animal. Certainly, knowing what does and does not motivate the individual in front of you will make your job easier, but Ken also wants to ensure that each animal he cares for has a good life. Relationships promote this.

Of course, relationships are not required for good training. In these cases, you will need to know about the individual’s species. Like most other folks in the zoological world, Ken works at Shedd because he values conservation. Training allows the public to learn more about species they would otherwise not have contact with; good experiences may spur these people to consider animals as a whole when they make decisions, whether that’s about funding research, habitat destruction, or hunting laws.

As an unrelated side note, training can also help wild animals. Ken told us about how behaviorists were able to manipulate the environment to facilitate Condor breeding at a time when there were only 19 left in the world. He shared a fascinating video on remote training the Stellar Sea Lion to help facilitate research on why the population was declining. And my favorite story- how he was part of a group that trained dogs to find sea turtle eggs after the Gulf oil spill. In three days, ten dogs were able to find 29,000 eggs, which were relocated so the babies would have a better chance of survival.

2. Continue to expand your knowledge.

It follows that getting to know your animal, whether individually or as a species, depends on you as the trainer continuing to learn. One way to do this is through research. Whether you conduct it or simply read the final report, we all benefit from it. But there are many ways to learn, and you should find a way that makes sense to you, whether that’s through books, seminars, or videos. Networking is another great way to continue to learn; share ideas or visit their facilities, classes, or simply observe them in a training session.

The knowledge needed to be a good trainer is not limited to learning about animals, though. Learn about people, too. Many people become animal trainers because they don’t like interacting with other humans. This is unfortunate, because in my opinion, the best trainers are the ones who can share their knowledge with others. Ken recommended reading books such as 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Bringing out the Best in People, The Power of Nice, or Whale Done!.

3. Practice and gain experience.

Finally, training is a skill that you must practice. Simply knowing a lot does not mean that you are a good trainer. You have to do. Train your pets to do silly tricks, simply to improve your skills. Work with other animals, whether you are helping a friend or volunteering at a shelter.

Sara is an animal.

You can also play training games where one person acts as the animal and the other as the trainer. We spent several hours doing this on our last day at Shedd, and it was eye-opening. We experimented with adding cues, creating behavior chains, and using No Reward Markers. When it was my turn to be the animal, even though I knew that I was being trained, I was so confused. This quickly turned to frustration, and I never did complete the task in the time allotted. I left the exercise absolutely impressed that my dog has learned anything at all from me!

And thus concludes the Shedd Animal Training Seminar Series! I had the most wonderful time at this seminar, and would highly recommend it to anyone. Getting to go behind the scenes, watching training sessions, and interacting with exotic animals was amazing. Best vacation ever.

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Problem Solving

Problem behaviors in animals can vary widely; beyond aggression, which we’ve discussed in previous Shedd Seminar installments, behavior problems can range from inappropriate elimination to fear to resource guarding to a trained behavior simpy falling apart. Ken said that when solving problem behaviors, you should have some kind of system in place to ensure that you aren’t missing something. The particular system doesn’t matter so much as the fact that you use one that makes sense to you.

Don’t have one? No problem! Ken shared his five-step plan to solving problems. And the most important steps are the first three; most problem solving fails because people don’t spend enough time creating a solid plan before they try to implement it.

This picture has nothing to do with the post. I just like it.

Identify the Problem

It might seem obvious that the first step is to identify the problem, but this is not as easy as it sounds. Behavior is complex, with many parts, and often only certain parts need fixing. Break it down. Look for patterns. Ask others for their feedback (what do your kids, baby-sitters, housekeepers, friends, etc. think?). Write a thorough description, including what the behavior looks like. How is the animal misbehaving? What are they refusing to do or doing wrong?

You also need to accept responsibility. Labels often get in the way of finding solutions; they become excuses that trainers feel absolves them of responsibility. In turn, this makes it harder to fix. One way to do this is to shift your thinking. Instead of trying to figure out what’s wrong with the animal, ask yourself why you can’t train the animal.

Determine the Cause

There can be many, many reasons that a problem behavior begins. Although knowing the cause may not help you solve the problem, sometimes there is a very simple fix, so it’s worth trying to figure out. Ken presented a systematic method (developed by Desmond and Laule) that can help trainers look for the causes of a problem. There possible categories are: Environmental (weather, facility changes, prop changes), Social (dominance/submission, aggression from another animal, competition for resources, sexual activity), Psychological (boredom, superstitious behaviors, genetic issues), Physical (health, changing abilities in vision or muscles, illness), Trainer (skill level, attitude, emotions), Session Use (length, frequency, pacing), and Regression (which is a normal part of learning).

Consider the Balance of Reinforcement

Every problem has two ways of looking at it. On one hand, a desired behavior may not be happening if it is being punished. On the other, an unwanted behavior can be reinforced. These usually aren’t things the trainer is doing (and when it is, the trainer probably isn’t doing it on purpose). Often, the environment, including other people or animals, contributes to this.

Think about the problem in terms of what you would like the animal to do. Then make two lists: things that reinforce the behavior and things that punish it. Increase the reinforcers, and decrease the punishers. Doing so should tell you a lot about what motivates your animal. (Three big contributors to an animal’s motivation: the animal’s desire to control their environment, their selfishness/the “what’s in it for me?” question, and past consequences to their behavior.)

Develop and Implement a Plan

Only after you’ve completed the previous three steps can you move on to developing a plan. Keep in mind that you will need to evaluate your priorities as you do this; if the behavior was easy to change, you probably would have already done it. Often, changing a problem behavior requires, well… change. Are you willing to sacrifice something (time, energy, money, etc.) in order to solve the problem? If not, the problem may be difficult or even impossible to solve.

But if you are, you can develop and implement a plan. There are many ways to approach an undesirable behavior. Ken cited Karen Pryor’s book “Don’t Shoot the Dog” as a nice summary of the options. These include “shooting the dog” (where you give up on the animal entirely), using punishment (which always has possible undesirable side effects), using negative reinforcement, extinction protocols, putting the behavior on cue (this is not suited for all problems), training an incompatible behavior (teach a specific behavior that the animal can do instead of the problem behavior), shaping the absence of a behavior (anything except the problem behavior is reinforced), or change the motivation.

Constant Monitoring

Problem behaviors may be gone, but they are never forgotten. You can’t “untrain” an animal; the neural pathways are always in the animal’s brain, meaning there’s always a risk the problem will come back. Watch for any early signs that the problem behavior is reemerging and address it immediately. Good records can help with this process.

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Turner and Tompkin’s Rules on Aggression Reduction

In my last Shedd post, I shared some general rules on aggression. Today, we’re going to look at the rules of aggression reduction. These were originally formulated by Turner and Tompkins, and Ken expanded on them. Hopefully I’ve attributed everything correctly! Also, just as a side-note, I have changed the presentation order slightly.

First, and possibly most importantly: stop aggression before it starts. It’s much harder to stop aggression than to prevent it because the animal has practiced the behavior. Ken told us that aggression can also be highly reinforcing to animals, making it a behavior that is easily learned. For example, if your dog is afraid of men, he might bark and lunge at them. If the men then go away, your dog may come to see barking and lunging as a strategy that worked to reduce his fear.

Aggression is possible: multiple animals and a baby in the area.

Next, understand which scenarios might lead to aggression. This allows you to be prepared for potentially dangerous situations instead of being caught off guard. Ken shared a number of examples from his work: when an animal has a hard time separating from the group it lives with, frustration resulting from numerous incorrect responses to a cue, when only one animal in a group is being fed, the use of punishment/aversive control resulting in displaced or redirected aggression, a change in what causes an animal to get reinforced, the disruption of sexual activity (especially when the animal is in season/in heat), and pushing an animal too far or too long during training. Keep in mind that the scenarios leading to potential aggression will vary not only by species, but by individual as well. Know your animal!

Now you need to learn to recognize the precursors to aggression. Every animal will warn you before they are aggressive. If yours doesn’t, either you don’t know what to look for or the precursors have been punished. Each species will show these precursors differently. For example, birds tend to have dilated pupils. Dolphins have wide eyes prior to aggressing. Cats hiss and dogs growl. Dolphins will make a chuffing noise. Elephants will flap their ears. In addition, each individual will be unique in the precursors they tend to display. If there are multiple people working with an animal (such as in a family or a shelter), making a list so that everyone knows each animal’s precursors can be very helpful.

Both Turner and Tompkins as well as Ken agree that using DRO or DRI (or another appropriate technique if these fail) is a great technique for reducing aggression. DRO stands for Differential Reinforcement of Other behavior, while DRI stands for Differential Reinforcement of Incompatible behavior. These techniques are basically very sophisticated ways of redirecting an animal. Although Ken acknowledged that they may reinforce the precursors, he feels that aggression is too serious and too dangerous to not interrupt. In addition, in his experience, it is very rare to reinforce precursors to the point that they significantly increase; precursors tend to be more reflexive than consciously chosen behaviors. But even if you do increase them, it’s still better than allowing the aggression to occur.

Finally, it is highly recommended that you keep records. Doing so gives you something to fall back on if the aggression re-emerges. It will help you remember what worked and what didn’t so you don’t repeat ineffective interventions. This is especially important in zoological facilities since staff turnover means that knowledge will be lost, but it can be helpful for pet owners whose memories tend to fade over time.

There are other options, of course. Although DRO is the most commonly used method in the zoological world, the right technique really depends on many factors, including the specific animal, the trainer (and her skill level), and the specific situation.

The bottom line is that something needs to be changed, and there are only four ways to do that (Ken attributed this list to Jean Donaldson). You can change the consequences for the animal’s aggression (operant conditioning). You can change the association an animal has with whatever it is acting aggressively towards (classical conditioning). You can change the animal’s access to the thing eliciting aggression (management). Or, you can change the animal’s brain chemistry (medication).

For more information on Ken’s thoughts about treating aggression in dogs, please see this post from 2011: http://reactivechampion.blogspot.com/2011/03/clicker-expo-2011-chicago-ken-ramirez-29.html

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: General Rules About Aggression

Ken spent some time discussing aggression in animals, which he defines as “any unwanted agonistic behavior.” There is a bit of a grey area here, I think; while most people would not consider a cat catching and killing a mouse to be aggressive, to the mouse, it most definitely is. Still, there are some general rules about aggression that seem to hold up regardless of who is discussing it. Where applicable, I have cited the researcher (and year of their published work) whom Ken credited for the rule.

First, most (if not all) animals have some degree of aggression in their repertoire (Lorenz). It’s just normal for animals to be aggressive in order to protect themselves (for example, if they are ill) or their young. Aggression may also be used to determine social hierarchies or who gets access to food or mates. However, Ken was quick to tell us that this does not mean that we shouldn’t take aggression seriously, nor that we shouldn’t try to modify it.

Animals who have the opportunity to aggress will do so more often (Johnson, 1972). Ken told us that most zoo keepers would never even consider engaging in free-contact with lions (no barriers between them) because lions who have the opportunity to be aggressive often are.

An animal who has been food deprived will aggress more readily than an animal who has adequate provisions (Staddon, 1977). This is part of the reason that Ken is so adamant that all animals under his care gets its full rations regardless of whether or not they perform well in training.

The use of punishment or aversive control will cause aggression (Kazdin, 1984). Not only can frustration yield aggression, but it’s also important to note that pain can cause an instinctive aggressive response.

Aggression can also be shaped by accidental reinforcement (Skinner, 1963). It is easy to understand how this might come about; if a dog growls at another dog because he is too close, and that dog goes away, the aggression was successful. Aggression can also be shaped deliberately.

Finally, animals respond more favorably to a consistent environment, so trainers should use caution to condition changes slowly and positively (Turner, 1999). I think this last point is especially important to remember; although we often want quick fixes and miracle cures, the results are ultimately better and longer-lasting when we are patient.

Ken cautioned us that this list is not meant to be all-inclusive. There are likely other general rules about aggression that were either not covered or that scientists are in the process of discovering even as I write this. Although I do not have any references to cite, I would say that in my experience, once an aggressive action enters an animal’s repertoire, it’s always there. The animal may not use that response as the first, second, or third choice, but it can always crop up again. This is why I’m so careful with Maisy, even though she’s basically normal these days.

What about you? Are there general rules you’d add to this list?  

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Other Advanced Concepts

Picture is unrelated. But awesome.

There are four more advanced concepts that Ken discussed. Each is interesting, but there’s not quite enough material to flesh out separate posts. So… here’s the quick run-down.

Recall

It surprised me that Ken put a recall (which he defined as a behavior that requests an animal to return to “station”) as an advanced concept. After all, every puppy or beginning class I’ve seen teaches “come!” I think the reason Ken classifies it this way is twofold. First, he considers it a safety behavior, either for the trainer or the animal. And second, he outlined a number of errors that novices often make when teaching a recall.

Really, the errors people make with the recall all boils down to one thing: reinforcement. Ken said that a recall should be reinforced often and well. He recommended practicing it daily with your animal. If you use a recall in an emergency situation, you should always reinforce the behavior, preferably with a high-value item. And finally, he noted that novice trainers often use the recall only when the animal has done something wrong, or when good things are going to end (like when you call your dog to come at the dog park and then leave).

Behavior Chains

A behavior chain happens when the completion of one behavior cues the start of the next. Each subsequent behavior reinforces the previous one. Ken discussed two types of behavior chains, technical chains, where the trainer gives ONE cue and the animal then performs a series of behaviors, or common chains, where the trainer gives a series of cues, but there’s only one reinforcer at the very end.

There are two ways to teach a behavior chain. With back-chaining (which is the preferred method) the last step of the chain is taught first, and then the trainer teaches backwards to the first step. This is more reinforcing for the animal because he is always moving towards something he knows well. Forward-chaining (teaching the first behavior, then the second, and so on) also works, but there are usually more errors.

It is best to teach each individual component of the chain successfully. Each should be maintained separately as well. Ken shared that the animals that are the most successful at learning chains are ones who have learned about reinforcement variety because they already know that a behavior can be reinforcing.

Keep Going Signals (KGS)

A KGS is a signal that tells the animal that he is on the right track. It’s encouraging feedback that literally says “keep doing this and I’ll reinforce you!” It’s technically a tertiary reinforcer- that is, it’s a signal that a secondary reinforcer is coming (and thus, a primary). It’s sort of the way you get a poker chip that can be traded in for money which can then be used to by an actual reinforcer, like food.

Most people don’t purposely train them; they tend to happen along the way naturally. That said, you can purposely teach them by introducing them as a secondary reinforcer and then approximating longer periods of time before giving the primary. Interestingly, Ken said he doesn’t use them; he just doesn’t need them.

End of Session Signals

An end of session signal tells the animal that the training session is done and there will be no further opportunity for reinforcement. While it might be helpful to let your pet dog to stop bothering you, Ken pointed out that he doesn’t particularly want a 700 pound animal realizing the (fun!) session is over and thus refusing to let the trainer leave. That can be dangerous. In fact, the staff at Shedd are pretty careful that they don’t create an accidental signal that might lead to chaos, like picking up a bucket of fish and walking away.

That doesn’t mean you should use them. Ken simply doesn’t think they are important enough to argue about. If what you’re doing is working, great.

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Aversives, Punishment, and You!

I don’t know why, but I always enjoy discussions on punishment. In ways, it feels like a “forbidden fruit.” I very rarely use punishment with my dog or my clients’ dogs, and if you try to discuss it- even theoretically- online, it can cause a lot of controversy. So my opportunities to talk about it are rare.

During the Shedd seminar, Ken talked about the advanced concepts of punishment, negative reinforcement, and aversive stimuli. These are three distinctly different concepts that are often confused, misused, and misunderstood. Still, the definitions are quite simple, and if you plan to use any of these techniques, you really do need to understand them.

An aversive stimulus is something that the animal wants to avoid. There is no definitive list of what makes something aversive; each animal will have different feelings about this. For example, some dogs hate being squirted in the face with water, but Maisy thinks it’s AWESOME.

A reinforcer is anything that increases the behavior it follows. Positive means something was added to make that behavior increase, while negative means something was removed. A negative reinforcer happens when something is removed, and as a result, a behavior increases in the future. This can happen for two reasons. First, the behavior may increase due to avoidance; an aversive isn’t actually applied, it’s simply threatened. The animal acts in order to prevent it from happening. Or, the behavior may be the result of escape. This happens when the aversive is actually applied and the removed with the desired behavior occurs. But either way, negative reinforcement is at play. It’s important to note that negative reinforcement can work and be both humane and effective if it’s done correctly.

A punisher is something that decreases the behavior it follows. This, too, can come in the positive or the negative variety. One way punishment can be used humanely is through deprivation; a reinforcer is withheld (negative) so that the animal will not perform the incorrect behavior again (punishment). Ken pointed out that this is why it’s so important to have multiple reinforcers available because this allows you to withhold certain reinforcers without depriving the animal of his full diet.

With that said, you really do need to know your audience when you use these terms. A trainer will punish a behavior; she wants a particular action to stop. But the public tends to punish the animal. That is, the punishment happens well after the fact, such as grounding a child for a bad report card or putting someone in jail for a crime they committed. In both cases, the actual behavior is so far removed from the consequence that it’s probably not being affected much.

So, while Ken does use punishment, he does not use it as the public understands it.

Ken talked about the use of conditioned punishers, as well. These are things that become aversive by association. Just as a clicker is a conditioned reinforcer because it predicts good things, there are also things that will predict bad things.

A delta signal, which is a warning to the animal that an aversive is about to be applied, can sometimes be used as a last chance to get things right. “Stop doing that or else,” it tells the animal. Your mom using your full name can be a delta signal; it tells you that you need to stop pulling your sister’s hair or face her wrath. The problem with deltas is that it can be very easy for the emotional trainer to escalate the use of punishment.

Ken also told us that a no reward marker acts as a punisher. This is the opposite of a bridge; it marks the moment when a behavior is wrong so the animal won’t do it again. These are typically quite mild, but can still cause frustration in the animal. So, while a skilled trainer can use no reward markers effectively and humanely, Ken thinks the potential for misuse is high.

I think my favorite part of this section was Ken’s discussion on how trainers use punishment versus how the public does. I appreciated the focus on behavior, not whether the animal is being “good” or “bad,” “cooperative” or “stubborn” (a word that always makes me crazy).

But what do you think? Anything intriguing here?

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Advanced Concepts in Reinforcement

Okay, gang, I’m back with the Shedd Animal Training Seminar recaps. It’s been awhile, but thankfully I left off at a pretty good breaking point because we’ve come to the section on advanced concepts.

Ken defined advanced concepts as those that require experience in order to apply them. This is any training that ventures past the basics of “reward behaviors you want and ignore the ones you don’t.” You know you’re ready to start dabbling in some of these concepts when you understand training theory well enough to know when to ask for help (seriously. All good trainers get in over their heads sometimes) and you have some good mechanical skills (able to use a marker with good time, able to deliver reinforcers efficiently and effectively).

That said, just because YOU are ready to use an advanced concept does not mean that your animal (or your human client) is ready for the concept. So you also need to know when it’s appropriate to use one of these concepts, and when to stick with the basics.

A great example of this is the concept of defining criteria for a behavior. In the early stages, we think of behavior as a black-or-white kind of thing: either the behavior was 100% correct, or it was wrong. Except… there IS a gray area in training. This happens fairly often when a behavior is still in training, especially when you’re shaping a behavior with a series of approximations. Sometimes the animal gives you something you weren’t looking for or expecting, and you need to make a quick judgment call about whether or not to mark it.

With that out of the way, let’s talk a bit about when Ken considers reinforcement to be an advanced concept.

Being sprayed by a water bottle is a secondary reinforcer for this dolphin.

One situation in which using reinforcement requires an experienced trainer is when a secondary reinforcer is being used. Also called a conditioned reinforcer, this is something that the animal is taught to value. The most common example is a clicker or marker, but it’s anything that any animal will accept as a reinforcer. Secondary reinforcers can be indispensable when an animal is sick and is refusing to eat but you need to give them medications or reward them for a behavior.

Ken notes that your relationship to the animal is critical when you’re using a secondary reinforcer; while a kiss from your significant other may be welcomed, a kiss from your boss probably won’t be. For a more in depth discussion on secondary reinforcers, please see this post. http://reactivechampion.blogspot.com/2011/08/ken-ramirez-seminar-non-food.html

Another reinforcement technique that Ken considers to be an advanced concept is the use of variable reinforcement. Ken likes to look at reinforcement schedules simply. Instead of all the technical terms like CRF, FI, FR, VI, VR, etc., he tends to see them as either continuous and consistent or variable and intermittent. Of course, he readily agrees that understanding the technical terms can be helpful, but said that most of the time, it really isn’t necessary in most situations.

Variable reinforcement happens when an animal does not get a reinforcer for each and every behavior. It’s often used in training because it makes a behavior more resistant to extinction. This allows you to have the animal do a number of behaviors for only one reinforcer. However, it does need to be carefully introduced or it can lead to frustration in your animal.

Although there are many ways to introduce a variable schedule of reinforcement, Ken shared how the Shedd staff do it. First, every new trainer AND every new animal begins with a continuous, fixed schedule of reinforcement. They will provide a variety in the types of reinforcers, though. Then, they condition and establish secondary reinforcers (see the post linked above for more details on this). Next, start using your secondary reinforcers so that they are not always followed by a primary reinforcer. Finally, use other well-established behaviors as a reinforcer. This entire process generally takes four to six weeks with an experience trainer AND an experienced animal. With a naïve trainer and animal combo, it can take several years.

There is one more advanced concept in regards to reinforcement that Ken discussed: negative reinforcement. However, I decided it makes more sense to present it with the seminar summary on aversives and punishment. Keep an eye out for the next installment in the Shedd Animal Training Seminar series!

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Preventing Boredom

People sometimes criticize zoos for having habitats that are small and boring. They feel bad for the animals, worried that they don’t have enough to do. This is a valid concern; zoo animals do sometimes show stereotypic behaviors like pacing, which is why Ken spent time telling us about what the Shedd does to provide variety for the animals in their care.

Training

Training is a wonderful way to provide interesting experiences for an animal. Not only does it give it something to do, it provides social interaction and mental stimulation. Ken believes that this is one of the most important reasons for training zoological animals (and domestic pets, too!).

In addition to training an animal regularly, the sessions can be set up to provide variety for the animal. That is to say, the training sessions should not all be the same. Obviously, you can work on different behaviors, but you can also change up where the session is held, the length of the session, the speed at which you train, who is working with the animal, and who else is around (either other animals or humans), but not participating in the training.

The reinforcement process can provide a lot of variety too; not only can you provide different types, numbers, and sizes of reinforcers, but you can also switch up the reinforcement schedule. Secondary reinforcers can also provide a lot of interest.

Finally, don’t forget about informal sessions- having regular “play” sessions in which a trainer interacts with an animal can be incredibly valuable. These are interactions that are not contingent on the animal’s behavior (beyond the rules needed for safety), and can be the animal’s choice in what to do.

Enrichment

Enrichment is about helping to make an animal’s habitat species-specific. That is, it should allow the animal to engage in more natural behaviors, and make their home interesting. Having multiple habitats can provide variety for the animal, and the Shedd does a nice job of providing their animals with a number of different locations in which to live.



This penguin has a number of objects to stimulate interest.



But even if there is only one habitat, there is a lot that can be done to prevent boredom. Environmental conditions can be changed: the amount of sunshine/lighting can vary, the temperatures can be changed, and different substrates can be provided. For water animals, water currents can be adjusted to provide interest.

The way the habitat is configured should allow the animal to engage in species-appropriate behaviors, whether that is climbing, jumping, running, or swimming. Habitats can also be rearranged, moving items around to provide new stimulation.

Social interactions should be considered. The Shedd will sometimes have all of their animals of a particular species living together, and sometimes they will separate them into smaller groups. They will also switch who is in each group on a regular basis.

Enrichment devices or toys can also provide a great deal of interest. Simply providing a variety of different, rotating toys for the animals to explore can do a lot to prevent boredom. Food-dispensing objects can be used at meal times. Items with different colors, sizes, textures, and smells are encouraged.

A Word of Caution
At this point, Ken cautioned that animals need to be okay with variety. If they have lived a very sterile, regimented life, too much variety can be actually be stressful. Ken encouraged us to introduce variety slowly in order to help the animal get used to it.

That said, variety and consistency are not contradictory concepts. Consistency is often hailed as important, especially for anxious or reactive animals. Ken pointed out that consistency is meant to give the animal security and confidence, while variety gives it a reason to be engaged in its environment. He compared it to a game. The rules remain the same, but there are different leagues, teams, and players.

What About Our Pets?
Preventing boredom is important for our pets, too. Pets that are bored often find ways to entertain themselves, and often in ways that we humans don’t particularly care for. Barking, chewing, and digging are great examples of problem behaviors in dogs. The solution, of course, is to provide them with some kind of enrichment.

Ken’s principles can be applied to our dogs. Whether you participate in dog sports or just teach them silly tricks, regular training can be a great way to help provide interesting activities for our dogs. We can also switch up how, when, and what we feed them. Rotating their toys is helpful, as is bringing home interesting objects and encouraging them to explore. Take them new places, even if it’s just a different route on the daily walk. Be creative!

What do you do to provide new experiences for your dogs?

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Introducing New Animals

It's inevitable: whether you work in a zoo or you own pets, there will come a time when a new animal arrives on the scene. And when it does, will you leave the introductions up to chance, or will you do something to help ease the transition for everyone? If you know anything about Ken Ramirez, you probably know that he's very methodical and systematic about how he does things, and new animal introductions is no exception.

The very first thing that happens with every new animal at the Shedd Aquarium is a quarantine period. This is especially important for wild-caught animals (at the Shedd, their wild animals are rescues), who may be harboring disease or parasites. This is a wise thing for pet owners to do, too, especially if the animal being introduced was a stray, but even if they weren't. Fleas and worms are sneaky, and can infiltrate even the most responsible owners' homes.

Next, the Shedd staff have some pre-introduction tasks. Without other animals present, the new animal is allowed to explore the habitats it will be living in. This will increase the animal's comfort with its new surroundings. The staff will take the time to observe the animal's explorations to ensure that they know where to find things like food, water, and hiding places, and if necessary, help them fully investigate their new home. They will also introduce the concept of gating so that the animal can be easily separated in case things go wrong.

These penguins can live together peacefully thanks to careful introductions.

Animals will then “meet” the other animals by being placed in a nearby or adjacent enclosure that gives all of the animals visual, olfactory, and/or audible access to one another. This allows for a measure of safety while the animals get acquainted. The Shedd staff will observe the interactions to make predictions about potential problems. If necessary, they will make the introductions more gradual. The staff will also feed all of the animals near each other (but with barriers between them) to promote general positive feelings about each other, taking special care to reinforce calmness and acceptance.

Animals who have had prior training, such as those who are “on loan” from another zoo, will get some additional introductions. The trainers will have the new animal and an existing animal work together cooperatively. For example, they may both be asked to target the same item. Reinforcement is contingent on both animals being calm and accepting of the other.

The Shedd staff also keep in mind that every introduction is unique. Everything from the the species, the individual animal, the habitat's size or layout, and the trainers themselves can affect how the introductions go. As such, the staff take care to have contingency plans on what to do if things go wrong, and they constantly monitor and assess the situation to see if problems arise.

One problem that sometimes comes up is aggression between two animals, and whether or not you should let the animals “work it out” on their own. If you separate the animals every time there is aggression, they won't learn how to live together. What's worse, once reunified, the animals often show aggression again, as if they'd never met before. On the other hand, if an animal is at risk of serious injury or death, separation is necessary. Because this is such a difficult matter, the Shedd staff pay a lot of attention to creating good introductions. Their goal is always for introductions to go as smoothly as possible, reducing the need to separate animals.

Have you ever introduced a new animal into your household? What did you do? Was it successful? I'd love to hear if you have any tips- or words of caution!

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Training Multiple Animals

While one-on-one training is ideal, it’s not always possible. Maybe you need multiple animals for a trick, maybe you’re working with a mom whose baby is too young to be separated from her, or maybe you’ve got highly flock/herd oriented animals who just don’t do well when apart from its cohorts. Whatever the case, sometimes training multiple animals at once is a necessity.

As with many training questions, the answer to how to best set up a session with more than one animal depends on many factors. The species, the size of the group, and the trainer’s experience level all matter. And, Ken said, one of the most important considerations has to do with social situations. Although dominance is something of a dirty word in the dog world, it does exist, and it’s important to understand who is currently at the top of the social structure and whether or not that’s in flux. Understanding the current social situation will help you be more successful. For example, a lower-ranking animal will be extremely hesitant to perform a behavior that requires it to be in close proximity to a higher-ranking one. It could even provoke a fight, which would definitely wreck your training session for the day.

When training in a group, Ken encouraged us to find a way to most closely replicate an individual session. Physical separation is the easiest way to do this; animals could be brought out of an adjoining enclosure one by one. If this is not possible, spatial separation may be another viable option. To do this, two trainers are required. One occupies the group (by feeding them, usually), while the other works with an animal a short distance away. If this won’t work either, then the next option is to use stationing.

A selection of name targets used by Shedd staff.

Stationing is when an animal goes to and stays at a designated spot. Stationing can take several different forms. In location specific stationing, the animal will go to a specific place in its habitat, such as under a tree or next to a boulder. Position specific stationing is very natural to animals; it requires them to take up a position relative to others in the group. In other words, they always line up in the same order, regardless of which habitat they are in. Name targets are used to direct the animal to a particular place. Shedd uses colorful shapes, and many of their animals know to look for the shape they’ve been assigned and station there. Choice is a more informal type of stationing in which the animal needs to follow certain guidelines but has more control over the details. For example, the group may be required to assemble in front of the trainer, but can choose where to stand in relation to one another. Finally, shuffle stationing is where each animal chooses a spot on their own, and then moves to a location as specified by the trainer.

The type of stationing you use will depend on the group and your goals. For example, location specific stationing is often used for meal times. Position specific stationing is frequently used during training sessions.

A common question people have about group training is how to avoid bridging confusion. How will each animal know if the bridge was meant for it or not? Ken recommended having multiple bridges for each animal, which means that you will need to teach each animal several bridges separately before you bring them together as a group. Although we often think of bridges as audible (a click or a whistle), Ken suggested having tactile bridges (a tap on a particular body part) and visual bridges (pointing distinctly in the animal’s face or a thumbs up) as well.

Another group bridging problem occurs during unison behaviors. If there are three dolphins leaping into the air, and two get it right but the third doesn’t, the trainer needs to decide whether or not to give the bridge. There are two ways to approach this. You can make the bridge group-contingent. This requires all of the animals to do the behavior correctly in order to get the bridge and subsequent reinforcement. This is particularly useful when competition between two animals is causing one to fail. The other option is to not give the bridge, but reinforce the animals that were correct. Of course, this only works if the behavior is “self-terminated” (ie, ends on its own and not continued or repeated until bridged).

The last thing Ken encouraged us to consider when training a group of animals is the concept of fairness. Animals are very aware of whether or not they are receiving your attention or food… and if someone else is receiving it instead! What’s more, he believes that animals will question why they should bother to pay attention to you if you aren’t paying attention to them. Animals need to be taught how to share your attention (and food!), so Ken encouraged us to recognize that during a group training session, all of the animals are doing something. Whether it’s simply staying at their station or waiting their turn, all animals should be reinforced equally. The ultimate goal is to avoid competition, so you’ll need to set up your sessions well. Know your animals and your goals.

Although this is just a very brief look at a pretty complex topic, I hope it gives you a starting point the next time you find yourself faced with the need to train more than one animal at a time. And if you often train multiple animals, join the conversation! What have you done to make your job easier?

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Husbandry Training

In the most general sense, “husbandry” refers to the careful management of animals using the best scientific knowledge and principles, but usually when zoological professionals use the term, they mean the animal’s participation in medical care. This makes husbandry a type of cooperative behavior on the animal’s part.

There are many types of husbandry behaviors. At the more passive end of the spectrum, the animal simply tolerates or allows the human to touch its body. It gets progressively more difficult as the animal learns to accept tasks that restrict its movement or ability to escape. The animal can also become an active participant in its care by presenting particular body parts to be worked on. 

This dolphin is a willing participant in dental exams thanks to husbandry training.

Husbandry training is important for several reasons. First, whether the animal is tolerating the task or actively participating in it, the human involved will be safer than if the animal was forced to do it. Second, there is far less stress for the animal if it knows what to expect and how it should react. And finally, and perhaps most importantly, the animal will be healthier because it will receive more regular medical care.

We saw a lot of videos of husbandry training during the seminar. From a tiger allowing its teeth to be brushed to an elephant putting its foot through a hole so its feet could be trimmed to animals voluntarily getting on a scale, it’s clear that there is a wide variety of tasks that can be accomplished. We also got to see husbandry training in action as Ken worked with Ty the sea lion on a voluntary blood draw behavior.

I was struck by how slowly Ken moved through the steps, but he told us this was important because husbandry behaviors are typically uncomfortable or even painful for the animals. As a result, it’s vital to take your time and use very small approximations towards the final behavior. He also said that the trainers take care to practice the behaviors in a fun way hundreds of times for every one time it’s used in real life.

For behaviors that can’t be practiced “as is” in a fun way (such as a blood draw), the trainers will do many types of touches in the same context. Sometimes the animal will be tickled, or slapped lightly, or touched with a small ball, or tapped. This teaches the animal that the touch will feel different every time. Since they understand the structure of the behavior, they are far more willing to tolerate the occasional needle stick.

I definitely think we don’t do enough to prepare our dogs for husbandry tasks, whether it’s participating in a vet appointment or being groomed. Our dogs are often physically restrained to get shots or have its temperature taken, and while they are generally tolerant of all of these behaviors, force isn’t necessary. A little bit of training can go a long way towards making such things more tolerable for the animal. While we can’t prepare the animal for every possibility, we can make routine tasks like getting the toe nails clipped or tooth brushing more tolerable.

Ken told us that if you’re going to train your animal for a husbandry task, the most important thing to do is to find out exactly what needs to be done. Ask lots of questions of the vet or groomer to find out what they will need the animal to do. Ken told us a great story about preparing an animal for an eye exam, only to be surprised on the big day by learning that the lights would need to be turned off. The trainers hadn’t included that step in training, and it proved to be a challenge.

Other possible errors? Looking for a quick fix or using the medical behavior before it’s completely trained. While you might be able to get the behavior once, you probably won’t get it again. Don’t limit future possibilities by rushing through training. Likewise, don’t push the animal beyond what it has been trained for. “Just once more” or “just a little longer” is likely to backfire, wrecking all your careful work.

It’s also important to remember that medical behaviors are never fully trained. Always continue to reinforce the animal for calm, cooperative behavior. Along those same lines, don’t make assumptions about what the animal likes. Since medical procedures are usually uncomfortable, awkward, or painful, you need to make it worth the animal’s effort to participate.

Possibly the most important message I took away from my week at Shedd was that I don’t do enough to help my dog feel better about routine tasks, and that there’s plenty I could do to make things easier for her- especially when it comes to something like nail clipping (she hates it!) What about you? Is there a husbandry task your dog could be trained to do? Or maybe you’ve already worked on helping your dog feel better about certain things. I’d love to hear about it.

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Cooperative Behavior

One of the most important things we can teach an animal is to cooperate with us humans. This is especially important for animals in zoological settings because the animals are often large and/or dangerous; being trained to work with the human keepers makes things safer and less stressful for everyone involved.

There are many types of cooperative behavior, and today we will look at what Ken considers the most important. These are the behaviors that allow us to successfully manage the animals in our care, and if there is anything that I took away from my week at the Shedd, it’s that we do not do enough to help our pets understand how to work with us in everyday situations.

Targeting

Targeting can refer to a number of different behaviors. In its most basic form, it simply means touching a specified item, but it can be much more complex than that. Some examples include touching different types of items, touching the target for an extended period of time, following a target, targeting with various body parts, touching multiple targets simultaneously, or going to a remote target away from the trainer. Targeting is possibly one of the most versatile behaviors taught to an animal because it can serve as the foundation for teaching the other cooperative behaviors.

Stationing

With stationing, an animal goes to and stays at a designated location. This may be a specific location (as in Leonard Lion sits by the big rock, Lucky Lion sits by the tree stump, etc.), or it may be a position relative to the other animals (Leonard always lines up to the left, then Lucky is next to him, etc.). This behavior is particularly useful during group training sessions or at meal times as it lowers the competition between animals.

A to B Behaviors

A to B behaviors refers to the idea of moving from one location to another. This can be done for reasons of safety. For example, a keeper may want to enter an enclosure without getting rushed by an excited animal. By teaching an animal to move from an area near the doorway to another spot, the keeper can enter in a safer manner. These behaviors differ from stationing in that there isn’t a set location for the animal to go to.

Gating and Separations

When an animal “gates,” it moves through a threshold (such as a doorway or gate) from one area to another. While this is closely related to A to B behaviors, it specifically refers to moving from one enclosure to another. This is important because zoological settings often have multiple areas for animals to live in. For example, at Shedd, we saw Ty the sea lion in four different areas over the course of the week. Having Ty be a willing participant in moving from one place to another allows him a great deal of variety, which prevents boredom.

In addition to gating, Ty also had to separate from the other sea lions. This is an important concept for animals typically kept in groups, such as the dolphins or beluga whales. The animals need to be comfortable leaving their group behind in order to participate in medical procedures or individual training sessions.

Tactile Behaviors

This beluga whale is comfortable with human contact. Also: SQUEE!

 Tactile work involves desensitizing the animal to being touched by humans. Since most zoological animals are wild animals not used to human contact, this work is a vital precursor to medical behaviors, either trained or untrained.

Tactile behaviors can be taught in a number of ways. The animal can habituate to human contact, which means that it happens passively without much thought from the trainer. The animal can receive basic desensitization, in which the trainer systematically increases the amount of exposure below the animals fear threshold. Counter-conditioning can be actively pursued by reinforcing acceptance of the human’s touch. Finally, the trainer can use flooding, which is an intense form of habituation in which the contact happens at full intensity and the animal is expected to “just deal” with it. Flooding is useful when there is no other way to teach the animal to accept human contact, but since it can result in learned helplessness, it shouldn’t be used routinely.

So, how can we use these concepts to help our dogs be more comfortable in the human world? Well, we can teach a dog to target our hands with their noses. Following a hand target can help a dog move through a difficult environment- something that can be especially useful for a reactive dog to focus on! We can teach a dog to go to a mat or a crate, which helps keep him out from under foot while we greet guests at the door or change baby’s diaper. And helping a dog feel comfortable being touched will make grooming and vet visits so much easier.

There are tons and tons of examples of ways we can help our dogs develop more cooperative behaviors. I’d love to hear how you’ve used these techniques with your dog! I hope you will comment with your experiences.

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Outside the Session

How much do you train your dog? How often? I’ve asked many people this question. Some say that they train for an hour every evening. Others say they train for one minute out of every hour that they are awake. Personally, I train very little. When I’m working on a goal- preparing for a trial, maybe- I will train for 5 to 10 minutes, 3 to 4 days a week. In the last two months, I’ve done exactly one formal training session, and it lasted about 60 seconds.

And yet, I’m training all the time. Even on our thrice-daily walks I have a pocketful of treats so I can reinforce behaviors I like. It’s just that I usually don’t have a specific goal in mind. This is what Ken described as the difference between formal training and non-formal interactions. Even the most dedicated of trainers will spend more time interacting with their animals in a non-formal situation. After all, even at an hour a day of training, that still leaves 23 hours of unstructured time.

The truth is, every interaction we have an animal has some type of value- hopefully reinforcing- and animals learn outside of formal training sessions just as readily as inside them. I think most of us understand this at some level, but what I loved about the Shedd experience was learning how the staff use this to their advantage. They actually have what Ken calls passive training sessions, where the staff simply spend time with the animals in their care.

We got to see this demonstrated with their Magellanic Penguins. The trainers didn’t show off any behaviors, and they didn’t demonstrate the science behind training. Instead, they brought the penguins into our classroom solely to observe how the penguins acted when around strangers. Did they play with their toys? Look for food? Curiously inspect their surroundings? Not only were we excited to get up close and personal with these amazing animals, but the trainers were able to gain some valuable information.

More importantly, though, non-formal interactions are often when the most bonding occurs. Although training sessions can and do contribute to relationships, the time we spend interacting with our animals with no pressure and no expectations has the biggest impact. At the most basic level, relationships are simply about being together with no strings attached. For me, these informal moments are the most important part of my day. I cherish walking through the woods with my dog at my side, the way she flops down exhausted after a good play session, and the quiet moments late at night where she lies pressed up against my side.

What about you? What non-formal things do you do with your dog that makes you happy?

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: What to Do When Your Animal is Wrong

Ken is unabashedly in favor of positive reinforcement when training. I am too, and in fact, I think most people see the value in using positive reinforcement for training. But people often struggle with what they should do when the animal they are training is wrong, or does something they don’t like. Some people will argue that the only way to deal with incorrect responses is through the use of punishment- after all, it decreases behavior, right?



Ken Ramirez

 Well... yeah. Punishment, aversives, negative reinforcement… it all works. Ken acknowledges this freely. However, he adds that using these approaches can be fraught with pitfalls and often have unintended consequences, especially when done by novice trainers.

To a certain degree, Ken agrees with the advice “reward what you like and ignore what you don’t.” He also acknowledges that there are behaviors that simply cannot be ignored- like aggression. Thankfully, there are many ways to deal with problem behavior. That said, if you’ve come across a behavior that can’t be ignored and you can’t figure out several possible solutions, the situation probably requires skills that are more advanced than you have. And that’s fine! Animal training is something that even the experts continue to learn about, and consulting with others is standard practice.

Ken’s go-to method for dealing with incorrect responses is something called the Least Reinforcing Stimulus or Scenario (LRS). An LRS is designed to deal with unwanted behavior without causing frustration for the animal. It is deceptively simple: to implement an LRS, you provide a completely neutral response for a short period of time, followed by an immediate opportunity for the animal to earn reinforcement. Of course, an LRS is a bit more complicated than that, so let’s take a look at it in more depth.

First, like everything in training, timing is important. The LRS must be implemented immediately so that the animal understands which behavior was incorrect. A poorly timed LRS will likely frustrate the animal, and what you’re looking for is a calm acceptance from the animal.

Next, the LRS should be brief. In general, when an LRS is used, it will probably last from 3 to 5 seconds. Of course, this length may vary. It needs to be long enough that the animal notices an interruption in reinforcement, but not so long that you upset the animal. For trainers and animals that have a relatively fast rhythm going in training, the LRS can be quite short. For slower trainers and animals, the LRS will need to be longer. We saw this playing out in the daily sessions we watched; the sea lions were quite quick, and their LRS might only be a second or two. On the other hand, the lizard we saw was much slower, and his LRS needed to be longer as a result. That said, do not be tempted to extend the length of the LRS beyond what is strictly needed. The LRS should be the same length despite how “bad” the mistake was. It is not a time-out procedure.

One of the most important features of the LRS is that it should be a completely neutral response. This means that you should refrain from having an emotional response (no scowling or grumbling, for example). However, you do not need to freeze. An LRS works because it is an interruption in the flow of reinforcement in which you simply don’t respond to the animal. If you’re looking at the animal, continue looking at it. If you’re looking away, continue to look away. The only exception to this is if what you’re doing is reinforcing.

Finally, you need to provide the animal with an immediate opportunity to earn reinforcement after the LRS. Because you don’t want to cause frustration, the best way to do this is by offering the animal a different, easy behavior. Ken tends to use targeting because that’s such a strong behavior for the animals and trainers at Shedd alike, but any behavior that the animal knows well will work. Ken will then do a few other behaviors before asking for the behavior that the animal failed at earlier.

Astute readers will have realized that the LRS is really meant for an animal with prior training (because there needs to be at least one fallback behavior), and with whom you have a relationship (so that you know how long the LRS should be). It will also only work when the animal is participating in the process. You can’t use an LRS with an animal that’s disengaged from the training process because it won’t notice that you’ve interrupted the reinforcement process.

The LRS, while simple on the surface, really does work. It’s been proven both practically and scientifically. It is, technically, the first step to extinction, so it can take a bit of time. Many positive reinforcement trainers do the LRS quite naturally; I know I’ve done them, but not because I knew that’s what I was doing. Having some knowledge about them definitely helps me understand how to implement them better.

What about you? Do you use an LRS, or something similar? This is an admittedly new concept to me, so I’d love to hear about others’ experience with it.

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Getting Behavior

So far, we’ve learned that Ken prefers to use positive reinforcement when training behaviors, and that he finds the use of a bridging stimulus to be very helpful. But we haven’t talked about how he gets the behavior he wants to bridge and reinforce, so let’s do that today! The first thing you need to know is that while some trainers will use only one or two methods to the exclusion of all others, Ken uses what works. The method that he chooses will depend on the animal and the behavior.

As an interesting side note, while the concepts were familiar to me, Ken uses some different terminology than I’m used to. Indeed, the words that zoological trainers use differ from things we say in the dog world. As a lover of words, I actually found this fascinating. For example, he uses the word “shaping” differently than we do in the dog world; for Ken, “shaping” simply means training. Each of the techniques he discussed can be broken down into small increments, and he will reward each successive approximation regardless of what technique he’s using… which is shaping. Just not the way we dog people typically think of it.

Targeting

Targeting is probably the most common technique used in the zoological setting, mostly because it is incredibly useful for teaching husbandry tasks. (Ironically, it’s probably the one I use the least with my dog, although I have found it incredibly helpful when I’m trying to learn a physical skill myself.) Targeting involves teaching the animal to touch an object with a body part, either briefly or for an extended duration. For example, a dolphin may be taught to touch its nose to a colored shape, or a sea otter may be taught to grab a plastic buoy with its paws.

Scanning
Sometimes called capturing in non-zoological settings, scanning is where the trainer watches for the animal to perform a desired behavior. When the animal does- for example when a dolphin jumps in the air or a beluga whale spits water- the trainer reinforces the animal at the exact moment the behavior happens. As you can imagine, the use of a bridging stimulus is incredibly important here. Scanning is also sometimes called free-shaping, as the trainer will capture a first step toward the behavior and then gradually increase the criteria.

Baiting
Baiting is also known as luring, and it can be a controversial method. Baiting is done by using food to elicit the desired behavior, and if not done well, can create animals and trainers who are dependent on the use of food to complete the behavior. We actually saw some baiting in action when Ken was working to teach Tanner the sea lion to go in the water on cue. He would give the cue (swim!) and then toss a fish in the water. While it is very useful- especially for novice animals and trainers- Ken said it’s typically not his first choice for a lot of behaviors. Still, he rarely says “never” to a training technique.

Environmental Manipulation
I love environmental manipulation; it can make things so easy sometimes. This is simply the process of arranging things in the environment so that the desired behavior is the only or the most likely option for the animal. It obviously won’t work for every behavior you want, but when it does, it’s genius. What could be better than setting the animal up for success and giving the trainer the opportunity to reinforce the behavior?

Modeling
This technique, sometimes called molding, is more common in the dog world than zoological settings. Modeling is where you physically manipulate the animal’s body into the position you want (like when a trainer pushes a dog into a sit), and as you can imagine, tends to be either physically impossible or incredibly dangerous with zoo animals. Still, Ken refused to discount it entirely, citing Koko the gorilla as an example. Koko’s trainers taught her sign language by manipulating her fingers and hands into each word, something they could have never targeted, captured, or lured into happening.

Mimicry
This is not a common method of training as it requires a fairly sophisticated animal who understands that it should copy what another animal is doing. Although Ken has done some work around mimicry, it is not widely used. A similar concept is social facilitation, in which an animal learns to do something from another animal. This is typically accidental, such as when a dog learns to bark at passers-by from another dog.

Abstract Learning
Abstract learning is a complex method of learning. This is where two ideas are combined to create a new concept. It happens often with humans, such as when we attend lectures, but is not common in the animal world, although it does happen with cognitive researchers. Alex the Parrot is an excellent example.


This list is certainly not all inclusive. There are other ways of training animals, but these were presented as some of the most common methods. I initially learned through the use of baiting/luring, and appreciate it as a technique. I also do a fair amount of scanning (both capturing and free-shaping). What about you guys? Which technique do you use the most? Are there techniques you’ve used that aren’t listed here? I’d love to hear about your experiences.

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: A Bridge to Better Behavior

Ken Ramirez was clear: using reinforcement is the best way to train an animal, and reinforcement is most effective when it is inherently enjoyable and provided immediately. But providing reinforcement quickly can be challenging, especially when the animal is performing at a distance. How can you get a fish to a dolphin when it’s in the middle of arcing through the air or a piece of meat to a dog who is performing an agility obstacle 20 feet from you?


This Shedd trainer uses a whistle bridge for the Aracari.



Well… you can’t. But you can bridge the gap between the time the animal performs the behavior and the time it gets the reward. This is done through the use of a bridging stimulus, or bridge for short. This terminology, while occasionally used in the dog world (we usually say “marker” or even “click”), is widespread in zoological training programs, and you have to admit, it’s a descriptive word. A bridge is a signal that tells the animal, “I like what you just did, and I’ll give you a reinforcer as soon as I can.”

Using a bridge is not essential to animal training- learning will take place whether or not you use one- but it does have several advantages. It is obviously useful when you just can’t deliver that fish fast enough. It can assist with precision by helping the animal identify exactly what part of the behavior it just performed is being reinforced. Was it the height of the jump? The size of the splash? The way it turned its head while mid-flight? The bridge provides clarity. And bridges work neurologically because they’ve been classically conditioned to signify that a reinforcer is coming.

If you choose to use a bridge (and Ken would argue that you should, at least some of the time), there are three things you need to do. You need to choose an effective bridge, you need to teach it to your animal, and you need to be proficient in using it.

When you select something to use as a bridge, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, and possibly most importantly, you need to use a bridge that your animal can perceive. Obviously, an audible bridge is useless if the animal cannot hear it, but you also need to make sure that it is unique to the environment so that it can be distinguished from other sounds. For example, a bridge that sounds like a telephone, doorbell, or microwave beep may not be a good choice for our pets.

The bridge should be practical: if it’s too hard to use, you will either struggle with it (and impact your timing, observation, or other critical training skills), or you’ll stop using it entirely. Most zoological trainers use a whistle that they can hold in their mouths because it leaves their hands free to do other things. Similarly, the bridge should be easy to replicate so that every time it’s used it sounds the same (this is especially important if there are multiple trainers working with the same animal).

And finally, the animal should have no prior negative association to the bridge. Although you can desensitize an animal to a sound they dislike, your training will be better off in the long run if it you don’t need to go through this process, especially considering animals can sometimes have a spontaneous recovery of the negative association.

Teaching the bridge to an animal is a fairly straightforward process. Pairing the stimulus (a whistle, a click, a flash of light, etc.) with a reinforcer repeatedly will result in a Pavlovian type response: the animal perceives the bridge and automatically expects that the reinforcer will come next. We dog trainers do this when we “load the clicker” by doing the click-treat repetition over and over again. Teaching the bridge is usually a pretty quick process. Dogs tend to figure out the click-treat association within five minutes or so. The Shedd staff tend to be a bit more methodical about this introduction, but even so, the animals in their care readily pick up on the bridge.

If the animal you are working with doesn’t figure out that the bridging stimulus predicts a reinforcer is coming, you should look at why. Is the timing off? If too much time elapses between the bridge and the reinforcer, the animal may not be able to make a clear connection. Likewise, if the reinforcer comes at the same time as the bridge or even before, the connection will be tricky or even impossible for the animal to understand. Or maybe the item you are using isn’t truly a reinforcer. Perhaps your dog doesn’t like beef because it makes him feel sick. Or it’s possible that the bridging stimulus you’re using has a negative association you aren’t aware of.

Finally, you need to be proficient at using the bridge. Can you physically operate it, and do so without excessive fumbling? Personally, I find i-clicks easier to use than box clickers (and I have friends who find the reverse to be true). You also need to make an effort to practice your timing skills. Ken showed us a variety of training games: you can train a human friend to do a simple task. You can bounce a ball and click every time it hits the ground (or bounces off a wall). Or you can enlist a friend to play “hand games”- the friend holds up one or more fingers at a time, and you click when they hold up only one, or only when it’s their index finger. Improving your timing will improve your training.

Once you’ve chosen an effective bridge, taught it to the animal, and are satisfied that you can use it well, you’re all set to bring out better behavior in your animal. In my next post, I’ll tell you about the different ways the Shedd staff do this. But for now, I’d love to hear from you. Do you use a bridge (or maybe more than one)? Why or why not? If you do, what bridge(s) do you use? Please comment with your experiences!

Shedd Animal Training Seminar: Basic Operant Conditioning

In the last hundred years or so, science has learned a lot about animal training. In fact, we have learned so much that Ken stated definitively that training is a technology. That is, the laws of learning are always true, no matter what species we are working with. In that sense, training can be compared to the laws of gravity: no matter what you drop, it will fall downward. Of course training, like gravity, can be influenced by outside factors. If you drop a pen during a tornado, it may fly sideways or appear to hover in the air, but that’s not because gravity has ceased to work. Likewise, the laws behind training are still at work, even when the results are unexpected.

The laws of learning have been broadly grouped into two main categories: operant conditioning and classical conditioning. Ken focused on operant conditioning not only because it is more easily observed and understood by beginners, but also because operant conditioning depends on the animal to think and make choices. Classical conditioning works on a much more instinctive level, and does not result in animals who are actively participating in the training process.

Now, if you’ve ever been to a basic training seminar- or even read a book on the topic- you’ve probably been exposed to the four quadrants. Despite this almost universal approach to explaining the basics of training, Ken didn’t even mention them. This was by design; not only are the quadrants a bit difficult to wrap your brain around at first, but it is also somewhat unnecessary.

What you really need to know about the laws of learning can be summed up in Thorndike’s Law of Effect: behaviors which result in a satisfactory outcome will be repeated, while those that result in discomfort will not. Or, to put it simply, behavior is a function of past consequences.

Consequences come in opposing pairs:
Reinforcing or Punishing
Positive or Negative
Unconditioned (inherent) or Conditioned (learned)
Proximate (immediate) or Distal (in the future)


Beluga whale receiving reinforcement. Photo by Kate Mornement.



Ken believes that the best consequences are the first of every pair; it is far better to have positive reinforcement which is immediate and inherently satisfying. And of all of those consequences, the most important is the use of reinforcement, no matter what form it takes. If you reinforce the behaviors you like, Thorndike’s law tells us that you will see more of those behaviors, which is the ultimate goal of training.

There are three main things to keep in mind when using reinforcement. First, you need to be sure that what you are not mixing up the idea of a reward with reinforcement. Rewards are things we provide that we believe will be an incentive to perform a behavior, but that may or may not actually be something the animal finds desirable. For example, most people consider chocolate to be a great reward, but it gives me headaches, so I would not change my behavior to get some. Second, while inherently reinforcing consequences like food are best, we can certainly teach animals to enjoy and even work for things like petting or praise. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the timing of reinforcement is the key to successful training; reinforcers should be given as soon after the behavior as possible. Reinforcing in a timely manner with a low-value item will yield better results than poorly timed reinforcers, even if they are very highly desired.

In future posts, we will discuss some of the questions that arise when considering these pairs of consequences: How do you ensure that your timing is good? How do you teach an animal to enjoy something so much that it can be reinforcing? How do you elicit the behaviors you want… and what do you do when the animal doesn’t do what you want? And if you have specific questions about the basics of operant conditioning, please ask in the comments!