Zoo Atlanta
June 13, 2023
Hello my name is AJ. He is one of the members of the horseshoe care team. Our team cares for giraffes, ostriches, bonteboks, warthogs and rhinos here at the Atlanta Zoo. Today he wanted to talk to you about one of the most important aspects of good animal care: positive reinforcement training. At the Atlanta Zoo, we use best practices in operant conditioning and positive reinforcement techniques to train a variety of behaviors that allow animals to participate in their care.
Considering that dogs are trained by giving them treats every time they “sit”, it is a good example of the concept of positive reinforcement. When we start a training session with an animal, it can choose whether or not to participate, and if it does, it can receive a reward of its choice. Otherwise, there is no negative impact. It’s truly a win-win approach.
Most of the behaviors animals here at the Atlanta Zoo know are behaviors that serve the purpose of helping us care for and stay healthy. For example, it was recently shared with great excitement that the zoo’s female Southern White Rhinoceros, Kiazi, is pregnant. With a gestation period of up to 18 months, it is important to continuously monitor calf health and calf development. Our team successfully trained her to voluntarily participate in an ultrasound so that the zoo’s veterinary team could monitor the progress of her pregnancy. She is now being trained to voluntarily draw blood so that the veterinary team can check her physical condition and hormone levels. in terms of blood. Isn’t it lovely?!
These training projects not only help animals by improving their care and health, but training is also a great tool for human enrichment. All animals need physical and mental stimulation throughout the day. When we participate in training activities with animals every day, they are able to solve problems, exercise and enrich their day. Just as some people are enriched by doing puzzles, training new behaviors allows animals to solve the puzzles of what we are asking. But clearly, training a giraffe to step onto a block to clean its hooves can take much longer than doing a 1,000-piece puzzle.
We hope you enjoyed learning a little more about the Atlanta Zoo’s Positive Reinforcement Training Program. As animal husbandry professionals, our ultimate goal is to get the job done and give our animals the best day every day. See you in Savannah!
AJ T.
Keeper II, Mammal