Animal Behavior Conversations: The Podcast of The ABMA

This episode kicks off a brand new, reoccurring series on the podcast called "The Behaviors of..." which will dive into the human side of the animal care field. Starting this series off is Dave O'Connell and Kyle Alexander, Bearizona, discussing the behaviors of a unified, supportive team. Dave and Kyle talk about what team behaviors have helped to create a healthy, positive work cul...

This episode Becky Wolf, San Diego Zoo, discusses criteria as it pertains to defining behaviors while training. Becky gives examples and a breakdown of the four aspects of a behavior that can be reinforced: topography, duration, frequency, and intensity. The episode ends with a discussion on why it is so important to both the animals, the individual trainer, and a team that a behavior has clear, d...

This episode Grace Sullivan, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo , discusses another one of the most fundamental yet powerful training tools: Targets. There are so many applications for target training and Grace breaks down some of the practical applications of targets and how this "simple" behavior can enhance dialogue and give animals' control in their management. This episode is full of tons of...

This episode Christina Lavallee, Zoo Atlanta and ABMA Board of Directors, discusses thoughts and ideas for creating, writing, and implementing a Training Plan.  There is no one way to write a Training Plan and what works for everyone may be different, however, Christina gives ideas on what can be included in a Training Plan, how to get started, and how to give and receive feedback on Training Plan...

This episode Daisy Barrett, SEA LIFE Sunshine Coast Aquarium in Australia, discusses the science and application behind the Discriminative Stimulus (Sd)/Cues. Daisy walks through the many different types of Sds, when and how to introduce a cue, and how to adapt Sds as an animal ages. Stay tuned to hear about Daisy and Shane's favorite cues and for Daisy's "Training Tale" with lit...

This episode is the second of our two part dive into enrichment. Elly Neumann, Jerusalem Zoo and President Elect of The ABMA, joins the podcast again to talk about the connection between behavior, enrichment, and training. Elly discusses training as enrichment, how training can help an enrichment program, and creating enriched environments and lives for animals. Stay tuned for Elly's "Tra...

This episode is the first of a two part discussion about enrichment with Elly Neumann, Jerusalem Zoo and President Elect of The ABMA. The focus of this episode is Goal-Based Enrichment and the evolution of how we view and implement enrichment opportunities. Elly discusses what goal-based enrichment looks like, how to plan it, how to record it, and how to get a team to buy into it. And make sure yo...

This episode Jake Belair, Nashville Zoo and the First VP of The ABMA, discusses another strategy for training behaviors: Baiting. Jake breaks down the challenges of baiting and why it shouldn't be the first option when training a behavior, however, it is still a tool in the training toolkit that has some practical applications. This episode is full of many real life behavior examples with a mu...

This episode features the first (of many) interviews with a guest currently not living in the United States. Zooming in from Singapore, Rodrico Michel (CPAT) with the Mandai Wildlife Group, joins the podcast to discuss capturing/scanning. Rodrico breaks down what this technique looks like in practice and the advantages, but also challenges of capturing/scanning. Tune in for some really interesting...

This episode Shane Gorbett, the host of "Animal Behavior Conversations", is joined by four other incredible hosts of three other like-minded, zoological and behavior-based podcasts. Joining Shane in this episode is Chris Jenkins and Ari Bailey, the hosts of The TEC Talk Podcast, Dr. Grey Stafford, the host of Zoo Logic, and Ryan Cartlidge, the host of Animal Training Academy Podcast Show...

Welcome to the first ever "Animal Behavior Conversations - Podcast Throwback!" This episode is not in the traditional, interview style but rather is a recording of the keynote presentation for the 2022 ABMA Virtual Annual Conference. The keynote speaker was Dr. Joe Layng and his presentation was titled, "Consequences, Superimposition, Coercion and Their Non-Linear Alternatives." Dr. Layng’s histor...

This episode Tricia Dees, ABMA Sponsorship Chair, breaks down shaping and you can't talk about shaping without also talking about successive approximations. Tricia discusses how successive approximations can be utilized when training novel behaviors and their role when behaviors break down or regress. Tricia also offers ideas on what to do and think about if an animal is not reaching the crite...

This episode Marni Wood, Zoo Miami and ABMA Board of Directors, talks all things bridging stimulus. Marni breaks down the many types of things used as bridges and how a bridge is trained using respondent conditioning. She also talks through something we will have all done in our career and that is what to do when you bridge at the wrong moment. Tune in for Marni's "Training Tale" abo...

This episode Katie Stevens, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, breaks down what it means to "label" an animal and the risks associated with using labels while training. She discusses how labels can lead to poor communication and potentially set up an animal or a training session to fail before it even begins. Katie provides strategies and alternatives to labels that allow us to discuss training...

This episode we take a break from discussing a specific training topic and instead talk about a challenge that most of us in the animal care field have faced: finding the time to train. The core of this episode stems from a quote by Ken Rameriz which is "Don't look at training as a luxury or fringe benefit: it is an essential part of an animal's life." This episode's guest, S...

May is National Pet Month so this episode Sarah Dugger from Good Dog and Company discusses that, while the environments may be different, the principles and applications of the science of behavior change is the same between training in a zoo and training pets.  Since Sarah started her career in a zoological setting, she is able to provide a unique perspective on the future of animal training in th...

This episode Justin Garner of Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, returns to break down both Positive and Negative Punishment. We discuss practical applications of using Punishment and the "side effects" of its usage. Punishment focuses on what the animal shouldn't do, as opposed to providing the information of what they should do. Tune in for Justin's fun "Training Tale" about a...

This episode current President of The ABMA, Anaka Nazareth of the National Aquarium, continues our discussion about reinforcement from Episode 9 by breaking down Negative Reinforcement.  We discuss practical applications of using Negative Reinforcement including using this method as a way to give animals control and a voice in their training. However, the episode ends with an explanation of why we...

This episode Wouter Stellaard, Behavior 360 and The Kuzo Group, continues the discussion about Tokitae, the killer whale, and touches on the importance of using data to make informed welfare decisions. Additionally, Wouter discusses the importance of putting the animals' successes first and how we talk and think about training . Tune in for some amazing training stories from Wouter including p...

This episode Mark Simmons, author of “Killing Keiko: The True Story of Free Willy’s Return to the Wild”, dissects the recent news about the plans to release Tokitae, the killer whale, and two Pacific white-sided dolphins, Li-i and Loke, into the waters of the Pacific Northwest.  Mark also discusses his talk at the 2023 conference, "Past is Prologue", which focused on the role of trainers...

This episode Andie Haugen, Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, discusses the the big one: Positive Reinforcement! Positive Reinforcement is an amazing tool to empower animals and allows for each animal to learn in their own way. Tune in for a two for one "Training Tales" from Andie where she recounts how she captured an animal to mimic the legendary Indiana Jones theme song and describe...

This episode, through daily live recordings, features a recap of the 2023 ABMA/IMATA joint conference (March 5-10 2023) hosted by Zoo Atlanta and the Georgia Aquarium. Each day of the conference, one of the presenters for the day discusses their presentation and other learning that impacted them. Day 1: Benjamin Fainsod, Jerusalem Zoo (carnivores@jerusalemzoo.org) Day 2: Justin Garner, Busch Garde...

This episode Pablo Joury, Curator of Pinnipeds at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, discusses Consequences and finishes our breakdown of the ABCs of Behavior! We start with a quick run down of reinforcement and punishment and then continue on exploring the many different ways consequences can be applied while training. Tune in for our first in-person podcast and for Pablo's "Training Tale&qu...

This episode Chris Jenkins of Natural Encounters, Inc. continues our discussion about the ABCs of Behavior with the start of it all: Antecedents!   We discuss how antecedents set the stage for successful behaviors and how our business cards should read "Professional Antecedent Rearrangers" since that is such a powerful tool while shaping behavior.   Tune in for Chris's fun "Tra...

This episode Nicki Boyd, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, discusses the namesake of the podcast: The ABCs of Behavior!  Antecedent, Behavior, Consequence and how we can utilize the ABCs of Behavior to help us maintain and train new behaviors. Tune in for some amazing training stories from Nicki about emergency recall training with bears, tigers, polar bears, and gorillas.  You can also r...