IQ Zoo and Teaching Operant Concepts

Bihm, Elson M.; Gillaspy, J. Arthur; Lammers, William J.; Huffman, Stephanie

doi:10.1007/bf03395725

Cited by 6 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…By the 1950s, the Brelands moved their business to Hot Springs, Arkansas, where they held a tourist attraction known as "IQ Zoo", intended as both an entertaining and educational experience [25,35]. The Brelands also continued to train animals for coinoperated acts and other revenue-generating ventures (see Figure 2), as well as suggesting the use of naturalistic exhibits and visitor-focused learning opportunities within zoos and similar settings [36][37][38][39].…”

Section: The Emergence Of Reward-based Zoo Husbandry Training Practicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Animal Training, Environmental Enrichment, and Animal Welfare: A History of Behavior Analysis in Zoos

Fernández

Martin

2021

JZBG

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The modern zoo has been associated with two major behavioral welfare advances: (a) the use of training to increase voluntary husbandry care, and (b) the implementation of environmental enrichment to promote naturalistic behaviors. Both practices have their roots in behavior analysis, or the operant conditioning-centered, reward-based approach to behavioral psychology. Operant conditioning served as the foundation for the development of reinforcement-based training methods commonly used in zoos to make veterinary and husbandry procedures easier and safer for animals and their caregivers. Likewise, operant conditioning, with its focus on arranging environmental antecedents and consequences to change behavior, also provided a framework for successful environmental enrichment practices. In this paper, we outline the key individuals and events that shaped two of the cornerstones of the modern zoo: (1) the emergence of reward-based husbandry training practices, and (2) the engineering of environmental enrichment. In addition, we (3) suggest ways in which behavior analysis can continue to advance zoo welfare by (i) expanding the efficacy of environmental enrichment, (ii) using within-subject methodology, and (iii) improving animal-visitor interactions. Our goal is to provide a historical and contextual reference for future efforts to improve the well-being of zoo animals.

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Section: The Emergence Of Reward-based Zoo Husbandry Training Practicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Animal Training, Environmental Enrichment, and Animal Welfare: A History of Behavior Analysis in Zoos

Fernández

Martin

2021

JZBG

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“…Modern animal training procedures are linked to two major events: (1) Skinner's discovery of shaping, or the differential reinforcement of successive approximations to a target response (Peterson, 2004;Pierce & Cheney, 2013;Skinner, 1951), and (2) the creation of a field of Applied Animal Psychology by Keller and Marian Breland and based on Skinner's operant conditioning principles (Bailey & Gillaspy, 2005;Bihm et al, 2010;Breland & Breland, 1951). It was the latter development that propelled the field of animal training into a modern era, with the Brelands training a wide variety of animal species for commercials, coin-operated fair/zoo acts, and public shows (Curtis, 1957;Gillaspy et al, 2014;Yin, 2012).…”

Section: A Brief History Of Modern Animal Trainingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Training as enrichment: A critical review

Fernández¹

2022

Anim. welf.

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Husbandry training and environmental enrichment are both important advancements associated with current behavioural welfare practices. Additionally, the use of training procedures has been proposed as a form of enrichment, with the implication that training can produce beneficial behavioural welfare results. This paper examines the concept of training as enrichment through three distinct ways training procedures could enrich: (i) training facilitates enrichment usage; (ii) training modifies interactions, conspecific or otherwise; and (iii) training expands behavioural repertoires. Within each category, the paper focuses on past research that provides empirical support for training functioning as enrichment, as well as related areas of research that provide additional evidence. Previous studies support the claim that training is enriching, with additional research necessary to better understand how prevalent and under what conditions training procedures function as enrichment. Future training research should examine these potential enrichment effects, including methodology that allows for comparisons to traditional enrichment, the use of welfare diversity/variability indices, and the effects of learning on trainers and trainees alike.

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Section: A Brief History Of Modern Animal Trainingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Training as Enrichment: A Critical Review (Preprint)

Fernández¹

2021

Preprint

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Husbandry training and environmental enrichment are both important advancements associated with current behavioral welfare practices. Additionally, the use of training procedures has been proposed as a form of enrichment, with the implication that training can produce beneficial behavioral welfare results. This paper examines the concept of training as enrichment through three distinct ways training procedures could enrich: (1) training facilitates enrichment usage, (2) training modifies interactions, conspecific or otherwise, and (3) training expands behavioral repertoires. Within each category, the paper focuses on past research that provides empirical support for training functioning as enrichment, as well as related areas of research that provide additional evidence. Previous studies support the claim that training is enriching, with additional research necessary to better understand how prevalent and under what conditions training procedures function as enrichment. Future training research should examine these potential enrichment effects, including methodology that allows for comparisons to traditional enrichment, the use of welfare diversity/variability indices, and the effects of learning on trainers and trainees alike.

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IQ Zoo and Teaching Operant Concepts

Cited by 6 publications

References 7 publications

Animal Training, Environmental Enrichment, and Animal Welfare: A History of Behavior Analysis in Zoos

Animal Training, Environmental Enrichment, and Animal Welfare: A History of Behavior Analysis in Zoos

Training as enrichment: A critical review

Training as Enrichment: A Critical Review (Preprint)

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