Thursday Abstracts

​A BINTURONG AS A PROGRAM ANIMAL?
A CASE STUDY

Amanda Daly, Pamela Jones, Beth Schaefer, Houston Zoo,
​Natural Encounters Department


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In 2007 the Natural Encounters team at the Houston Zoo acquired a female binturong for the department presentation animal program. In developing a management plan for this animal, the Natural Encounters team found that, aside from some anecdotal reports, there was not a great deal of information available on the free contact training of binturongs as presentation animals. Very few zoological institutions were able to share how their program had been developed and maintained. Consequently, our process was based largely on trial and error. The development of a structured training program with clearly defined protocols has been vital to the long term participation of our binturong in animal presentations. Development of such a program is strongly recommended when utilizing such a high profile species. The Natural Encounters team would like to share information on the challenges and ultimate successes of our program as a tool for others.
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THE UNSINKABLE BISMARCK: THE CHALLENGES AND BENEFITS OF OBTAINING A PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED CALIFORNIA SEA LION

Jessica Jenkins,
​Denver Zoo


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In fall of 2008, through a relationship cultivated with the Pacific Marine Mammal Center (PMMC), we were presented with an opportunity to take in a special needs sea lion.  Bismarck, as he was named, was blind in one eye and had no rear flippers when he was received by PMMC.  As his health improved, he also showed exceptionally appropriate social behavior toward numerous incoming and outgoing pinnipeds. Denver Zoo reviewed his medical records and sent staff out to see Bismarck and his behavior around the other pinnipeds, and elected to bring him back to Denver.  Staff faced many challenges when beginning to develop his training program. Building trust through positive techniques and being conscious of his physical challenges were vital to his success.  Typical training methods had to be revised to help Bismarck succeed and build his confidence around his trainer. Staff developed a husbandry program and began incorporating him into the group of harbor seals and California sea lions, and he has now become a very positive element for the zoo and the collection.  He helps bridge our connections to individuals with different needs, strengthen our program, and bring many smiles to the Denver patrons. He has become an ambassador for his species and visitors have shown a new found enthusiasm for these incredible marine mammals. Bismarck’s participation in current shows and demonstrations, including Dream Night, has had a positive effect on our visitors experience and our abilities to communicate to the public the needs of ocean conservation.
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OUR OUT OF SIX ISN'T BAD - DEVELOPING AN ENRICHMENT DOCUMENTATION SYSTEM THAT ENCOMPASSES FOUR COMPONENTS OF THE SPIDER MODEL

​Heidi Hellmuth, Christine Olarte, Smithsonian's National Zoo


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The Association of Zoos and Aquariums accreditation standards require that institutions have a formal written enrichment program, and recommend that it include the components of the SPIDER model – setting goals (S), planning (P), implementation (I), documentation (D), and refinement (R).  In the past, enrichment documentation at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo consisted primarily of noting enrichment activities on a calendar – which meets the basic documentation (D) requirement, but is mainly an exercise in ‘busy work’ that doesn’t help animal care staff move their enrichment program forward.  To remedy this, a new enrichment documentation system has been developed that includes setting goals (S), documentation (D), and evaluation (E); and which includes real-time graphs so that animal staff can track their enrichment efforts and refine (R) their program on a regular basis.  This goal-based enrichment documentation and evaluation system was designed in Microsoft Excel, and it is currently being beta-tested in several animal areas so that it can be utilized and modified as needed before implementing it institution-wide.  The spreadsheet and its development will be discussed, and examples from real-time use during beta-testing will be reviewed.
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TRAINING A VOLUNTARY
INTRAMUSCULAR ANESTHETIC INJECTION AND INTRADERMAL TUBERCULOSIS TEST ON A HAMADRYAS BABOON

Kelsey Wyckoff,
​America's Teaching Zoo


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America's Teaching Zoo at Moorpark College houses a wide variety of exotic wildlife, which includes a solitary 9 year-old Hamadryas Baboon. The female baboons' primary form of human interaction is between her and two trainers and one staff member. She is worked through protected contact only and has over forty behaviors in her repertoire. In August, two circumscribed masses were found on her chest. Anticipating the need to anesthetize the animal, the decision was made to train an intramuscular injection into one of her quadriceps. The animal was successfully induced 2 months later. Simultaneously, an intradermal injection for a tuberculosis test was trained and performed over her left areola. These behaviors were trained to decrease the stress level of the animal and to promote participation in her own health care. The details of training these behaviors through operant conditioning and desensitization, and the continuation of them for years to come, as well as the unique challenges of training a baboon will be described in this presentation.
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​​REDUCING FEAR WITH SYSTEMATIC DESENSITIZATION: AN ALTERNATIVE STRATEGY FOR MANNING RAPTORS

Andy Hall,
​Falconer


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While raptors have been trained and worked with for thousands of years, some of the 'traditional' training strategies are highly intrusive and can lead to unwanted behaviors and illness.  Additionally, some species have been considered difficult to train due to excessive fear, illness, or aggression during and after the manning process.  In some situations, such as in educational facilites, overall time is less of a constraint than the actaul daily hands-on time.  On the other hand, in falconry the overall time from acquisition to hunting in the field should be as short as possible to maintain the motivation to hunt.  The author has used systematic desensitization instead of flooding as the primary counter-conditioning strategy to overcome th fear of captivity and people and overcome many of the challenges of manning.  Operant conditioning is also used to a much greater extent than in 'traditional' manning.  This paper will discuss elements and challenges of manning raptors and how choosing a strategy based on intrusiveness will affect the results of your training.  A discussion on the effects of stress will lead to a continuum of manning strategies based on the level on intrusiveness.  Skills and knowledge of raptor body language and training techniques that contribute to successful training will be introduced and demonstrated through a case study of a ferruginous hawk trained for falconry.
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THE AVERSIVES SPECTRUM

Angi Millwood* & C.Thad Lacinak,
​Precision Behavior


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It has become politically incorrect for animal trainers to admit to any use of positive punishment or negative reinforcement in modifying the behavior of the animals entrusted to them. However, a cursory review of any behavioral psychology text book and an honest assessment of any training program readily substantiates that aversives remain as constant in applied settings as they are ubiquitous in the unapplied, “natural” world. Enhancement and advancement of animal training standards is best achieved through critical and honest analysis of the techniques applied by everyone in our profession. Denying the presence of aversives leaves positive-reinforcement-focused trainers vulnerable to arguments posited by force-focused trainers and by the public, rapidly becoming more fluent in training methods via media exposure.  Once a truly honest dialog about behavioral modification techniques is established, open discussion about the severity of aversives can be undertaken. For example, the role that aversive severity plays in both the effectiveness of changing behavior and in generating side-effects can be analyzed and assessed. That would be more effectual than the current climate in which all aversives are lumped together. Not all aversives are created equal. In fact, there is a wide continuum of aversives. It is fundamental that every animal training professional understands fully the methods they enlist to elicit or to suppress behavior. Armed with an accurate outlook, trainers can make decisions regarding the techniques they use and how they represent themselves, their institutions, and our field to the public.
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EFFECTS OF PREDICTABILITY ON FEEDING AND AVERSIVE EVENTS IN CAPTIVE RHESUS MACAQUES (Macaca Mulatta)

Daniel H. Gottlieb, Kristine Coleman,
Brenda McCowan,
Animal Behavior Graduate Group,
​University of California, Davis


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Captive animals experience many routine husbandry activities on a daily basis.  The anticipation of these events can lead to stress, regardless of whether the events are positive or aversive.  Previous research suggests that making routine events highly predictable will decrease stress and improve welfare.  However, some studies have found conflicting results regarding the effects of predictability on welfare. Thus, it is imperative that we empirically test the effect of increasing predictability on welfare before implementing new practices for a given species.  Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) are the most commonly used non-human primates in bio-medical research.  The specific goal of this study was to identify whether increasing the predictability of daily feeding and aversive events could decrease stress in captive rhesus macaques.  This study was conducted at the Oregon National Primate Research Center, where current routines were modified in a way that varied predictability.  Positive and aversive events were made either temporally predictable, where they occurred reliably at the same time daily, or signaled predictable, where they were preceded by a distinct event-specific signal.  Decrease in stress was evaluated by a decrease in both abnormal and displacement behaviors.  Our results showed that both feeding and aversive events were less stressful when made temporally predictable. In contrast, events were not always less stressful when preceded by a signal, which may have inadvertently increased stress for some events. This finding may be due in part to reliable signals that were already in place at the institution before the experiment took place.
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THE SUCCESSFUL TREATMENT OF DIABETES IN A STRIPED HYENA THROUGH OPERANT CONDITIONING

Steve Venne, Kim Pike,
Denver Zoo


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In March of 2010, a striped hyena at the Denver Zoo was diagnosed with severe acute diabetes mellitus. The striped hyenas are housed in a facility built and designed in the middle 1960s.  Although this facility has been modernized through the years, several challenges persist including limited access to animals in many regular use area, caging that presents reinforcement challenges, and limited space. Area staff used a variety of training skills and creativity to design a program to maximize the ability to condition the animals for basic husbandry.  This includes but is not limited to shifting and follows, stationing, body and limb presentation, tactiles (with objects), weighing, and an open mouth behaviors.  This basic husbandry program facilitated imperative care and life saving medical treatment of severe diabetes in this striped hyena.  This presentation will review a brief animal history, the implementation and application of solid husbandry basics, teamwork, and how simple  behavioral husbandry techniques applied well by animal and veterinary staff led to successful treatment and resolution of diabetes in a striped hyena.
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