Understanding the natural history and individual history of an animal is the first step in developing a training program for a particular animal. These questions about natural history, individual history, staffing and facility design are meant to assist in compiling information about the animal to be trained. This list is not an exhaustive list, but the answers to these questions can be used as a tool to enable a keeper to identify and develop the most appropriate goals and training methods for a particular animal.

  1. What is this animal’s previous history? Was this individual parent-raised or hand-raised? Does this animal have any behavioral problems or behavior peculiarities? Has this animal been trained to perform any previous behaviors? Describe the cues, criteria, bridging stimuli, reinforcements (both food and non-food), and reinforcement schedules that are used. If possible, describe techniques that were used to train previous behaviors. The answers to these questions will provide the keeper with some guidance in selecting the most appropriate training goals and training methods for an individual animal.
     
  2. Does the species inhabit primarily arboreal, terrestrial, or aquatic environments or does it switch between them at times? This answer will provide the keeper with an idea of how an animal moves through its environment, where it is most comfortable, and some potential constraints in selection of behavior to be trained (e.g., a tree kangaroo [arboreal animal] may be more easily trained to station off the ground).
     
  3. How does the animal behave in response to changes in temperature and weather? What is the optimal temperature for this animal? This answer will provide the keeper with an understanding of what these behaviors  look like (i.e., responses to cold, heat) and allow keeper to interpret and respond appropriately to the animal’s behavior.
     
  4. In the wild, when is this species most active (diurnal, nocturnal, crepuscular)? Are there times of the day when this animal seems most receptive to the keeper? When the animal is most active and receptive to the keeper may be the best time to train, especially at the start of your program. As the animal becomes more consistent in its behavior and responsive to the keeper, the session times can be manipulated.
     
  5. What does it look like when this animal is comfortable/calm? What do fearful behaviors look like in this species? How does this animal respond when stressed? This answer will help the keeper to be able to interpret the animal’s behavior and react appropriately. A situation where this understanding is most helpful is when a keeper is habituating an animal to new stimuli. Knowing what the animal looks like when stressed, frightened, or calm will allow the keeper to be able to make judgments about whether an animal is ready to move to the next approximation in a training process.
     
  6. What are its primary sensory modalities (e.g., sight, sound, smell)? Answers to this question can help keepers in the selection of their cue, bridge, target and other training tools by making the most appropriate choices for a species. (e.g., an auditory cue may be more effective for a rhino [with relatively poor eye sight] than a visual cue). In some cases, habituation/desensitization may be necessary when introducing a new cue. Some auditory cues or visual cues may be frightening to some animals.
     
  7. Is the animal naturally social or solitary in the wild? Is the animal managed in a social group or as an individual? What are this species’ primary social behaviors and what do they look like (e.g., aggression, courtship, affiliative behavior)? Can the animal be easily separated from the social group? How does the animal behave when separated? How does the rest of the group behave when that animal is separated? Understanding the social structure and how the keeper fits into the structure can assist the trainer in understanding and responding appropriately to a variety of responses by that animal and in the selection of different training techniques. For some animals, training them with other animals will increase their comfort level and possibly facilitate progress; for other animals, having conspecifics with them could cause distractions and possibly slow down their progress.
     
  8. How does this animal currently respond to its caretaker (both during keeper-solicited interactions and outside of planned interactions)? To new staff members? To veterinarian? To visitors/guests/strangers? Is there any noticeable reaction to a particular gender (men vs. women)? Understanding how an animal currently responds to the keepers and other people that work within the area can provide information on how you can leverage the relationship that currently exists in your program. If an animal has a positive relationship with caretakers, this may assist in achieving some goals. Some relationships may first need to be built in order to make progress in training a particular behavior.
     
  9. What does the species feed on in the wild? How does this species procure and process its food? What is this individual animal’s normal diet? What are the food items that seem to be the most desirable to this individual? What is the feeding routine for this animal? Understanding how an animal responds to food and how it processes food can assist keepers in interpreting and responding appropriately to the behaviors that the animal displays. Knowing what food items are more favorable can provide insight into what food items may make good positive reinforcement.
     
  10. What is the animal’s primary function in the collection (e.g., breeding, exhibition, or educational programs)? What is this animal’s normal daily routine? What are the routine husbandry procedures that are desirable for this animal to be able to do? Knowing the primary function the animal has in the collection can assist keepers in developing appropriate behavior goals and utilizing the most appropriate training techniques. Animals whose primary function is breeding may not be great candidates for some training methods that require a lot of hands-on work. Knowing the daily routine can help keepers determine what behavioral goals would be good to train to have the animal cooperate with day-to-day care. Knowing what the animal’s routine is can assist the keeper in understanding what the animal’s expectations are and where those expectations can assist in achieving a training goal and where those expectations may hinder achieving a goal.
     
  11. Are there any medical conditions common to this species that need to be monitored? Could training facilitate this monitoring? What procedures are necessary for an annual exam? Does this individual animal have any medical problems or area on the body that is particularly sensitive to touch? How often will procedures need to be done (e.g., daily insulin injections verses yearly vaccine)? The answers to these questions will assist the keeper in developing husbandry goals, train behaviors that potentially could allow medical procedures to be performed with out relying on heavy restraint and immobilization, and create program goals that are responsive to individual animal’s needs.
     
  12. Are there specific pieces of equipment/facility design considerations that are necessary to perform procedures? Describe all aspects of the equipment (what does the equipment look, sound, smell, feel like?). The answers to these questions can allow the keeper to prepare for any additional training approximations that are necessary. These approximations could be related to the facility and/or be necessary for habituation to equipment used for a procedure (e.g., if an animal is being trained to accept an ultrasound procedure, training should involve habituation to the equipment and personnel that will be present for the actual procedure).

Facility Considerations (Many facilities have not been constructed with our training goals in mind. Questions 13-17 can assist in developing a facility design or facility modification that facilitates a training project, or the development of a training plan that takes the facility design into consideration.)

  1. Is there a space that is safe for the keeper, veterinarian, and animal to interact? Is this a space that the animal can have easy access to?
     
  2. Does the design of the facility cause encroachment into the animal’s personal space? Some animals may initially be very sensitive to the close proximity of a keeper. If the initial training is done in a space that the animal is more comfortable, the training may be more successful. Eventually, sessions usually can be moved to other areas.
     
  3. Does the facility allow animals to be easily separated from one another or moved easily?
     
  4. Is the location of cage furniture a hindrance/help to the training process?
     
  5. Is the facility designed in such a way so that an animal has the opportunity to habituate to potentially frightening areas or equipment (e.g., acclimate to squeeze chutes, working panels)? Are there ways to limit unpredictable distractions (e.g., high traffic areas)?

Staffing considerations (Questions 18-20 can assist in the development of a staffing plan that will support your training program.)

  1. Who will be doing the training? How many people does it take to do a training session? How often will the training sessions take place? When will the training sessions occur?
     
  2. How will the staff be trained and how will new keepers be integrated into the training team?
     
  3. In addition to the staff in the area, will additional assistance be necessary for the training (veterinarians, veterinarian technicians, or interns)? If so, how often?

Any other considerations?

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