Handling and Training of Wild Animals: Evidence and Ethics-Based Approaches and Best Practices in the Modern Zoo

There is an ethical responsibility to provide all animals living in human care with optimal and positive well-being. As animals living in zoos and aquariums frequently interact with their human caregivers as part of their daily care routines, it is both relevant and essential to consider the impact of these interactions on animal well-being. Allowing animals to have choice and control in multiple areas of their lives, such as by providing opportunities for them to voluntarily participate in their own care through, for example, positive reinforcement training, is an essential component of good animal well-being programs. This review aims to describe evidence-based approaches, ethics, and best practices in the handling and training of the many taxa held in zoos and aquariums worldwide, drawing from work in related animal care fields such as laboratories, farms, rescue, and sanctuaries. The importance of ongoing animal well-being assessments is discussed, with a particular focus on the need for continued review and refinement of processes and procedures pertaining to animal training and handling specifically. Review, enquiry, assessment, evaluation, and refinement will aim to dynamically support positive well-being for all animals.

Fish Behavior for the Exotic Pet Practitioner

Interpreting fish behavior is an important component of providing veterinary care. There are over 28,000 species of fish and while only a handful are commonly encountered by exotic pet and public display veterinarians, there are still hundreds of species to consider. Three models-natural history (species typical modal action patterns), medical (disease state), and learning experience (classical and operant conditioning)-are useful for taking an actionable, holistic approach to interpreting behavior. Models help clinicians formulate appropriate differentials, ensuring they do not exclusively consider disease, particularly in unfamiliar species.

What's in a Click? The Efficacy of Conditioned Reinforcement in Applied Animal Training: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Simple Summary

Conditioned reinforcement, for example, clicker training, has become increasingly popular in recent decades. Hence, questions about the effectiveness of the conditioned reinforcer have become prominent in the animal training arena. This article summarizes the scientific literature on conditioned reinforcement in applied animal training settings (e.g., homes). It was found that dogs and horses were the most frequently studied animals. Clickers and food were the most often used training stimuli. Effect size analysis found a medium effect of clicker training. The literature reviewed here shows that conditioned reinforcement is an effective approach to change animal behavior; however, sizable information potentially related to its effectiveness was not clearly reported in the studies (e.g., food preferences). Although this review fills in a gap in the literature, it also points to the need for more research to further the understanding of conditioned reinforcement phenomena.

Abstract

A conditioned reinforcer is a stimulus that acquired its effectiveness to increase and maintain a target behavior on the basis of the individual’s history—e.g., pairings with other reinforcers. This systematic review synthesized findings on conditioned reinforcement in the applied animal training field. Thirty-four studies were included in the review and six studies were eligible for a meta-analysis on the effectiveness of behavioral interventions that implemented conditioned reinforcement (e.g., clicks, spoken word, or whistles paired with food). The majority of studies investigated conditioned reinforcement with dogs (47%, n = 16) and horses (30%, n = 10) implementing click–food pairings. All other species (cats, cattle, fish, goats, and monkeys) were equally distributed across types of conditioned (e.g., clicker or spoken word) and unconditioned reinforcers (e.g., food, water, or tactile). A meta-analysis on the effectiveness of conditioned reinforcement in behavioral interventions found a medium summary effect size (Tau-U 0.77; CI_95% = [0.53, 0.89]), when comparing baseline, where no training was done, and treatment levels. Moderators of conditioned reinforcement effectiveness were species (e.g., horses) and research design (e.g., multiple-baseline designs). The small number of intervention-focused studies available limits the present findings and highlights the need for more systematic research into the effectiveness of conditioned reinforcement across species.