“Creating New Training Opportunities for Polar Bears (Ursus maritimus) in a Challenging Holding Facility”
Carrie Weitz, Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, IL
Lincoln Park Zoo uses operant conditioning as an enriching daily activity for its sibling pair of polar bears, Lee and Anana. Training allows us to stimulate the polar bears both mentally and physically, and enrich their lives. The bears rarely refuse to participate in training sessions and are eager to be rewarded by the keeper for correct behaviors. Lee and Anana are especially responsive due to their young age and energetic personalities.
In the past, the setup of the polar bear habitat as well as an inability to train the bears on exhibit during the day allowed for only minimal training to take place. Fortunately, keepers have come up with several innovative ways to train the bears in the same exhibit with minimal renovations.
Lincoln Park Zoo houses two polar bears in a naturalistic exhibit, complete with a large gunite land area with rocky outcroppings and a 266,000-gallon pool. The area was recently renovated to include two foraging pits filled with bark chips, boulders in the pool, a new filtration system with a pool chiller, and a large underwater viewing window. The perimeter of the exhibit is surrounded by a glass wall, which allows visitors to observe the bears from above. When the bears are on exhibit, the only direct access point for training is the barred keeper exhibit door. In the past, this was the only place where the bears were trained, which could only be accomplished while they were locked out on exhibit. Although this exhibit door is useful for general bear inspections and minimal target training, it has its own challenges. For instance, only one bear will fit at the door due to the narrow pathway leading up to it, which makes it difficult to get reinforcement to the second bear in line without causing aggression. Since we have no way of separating bears on exhibit, one bear has to be locked in the dens in order to use the exhibit door for training. As a result, keepers have had to come up with innovative ways to effectively use different areas of the exhibit for training both bears at the same time.
The glass wall surrounding the polar bear exhibit recently has proven to be an excellent place to train the bears. Keepers always have been responsible for cleaning the glass and providing visual cues to warn off migrating birds in the spring and fall. To perform these tasks, we use a lightweight metal scaffold with a wooden platform six feet long by two feet wide. While cleaning windows one day, I noticed that the bears were entertained by watching me. They swam up to the wall below the window and stood up on the gunite to get a better view of what was happening. It occurred to me that the scaffold would be a great training tool, and could be moved around the glass to create several new training areas. Keepers began stationing the bears from the scaffold by calling them over and reinforcing them with fish. The bears immediately picked up the behavior and will now jump in the water and swim to their station as soon as they notice us setting up the scaffold.
The roof area above and behind the exhibit, from which midday treats or enrichment toys are dropped, is also now being used as a stationing area for training. It provides a good place to train an A-to-B behavior for physical exercise and mental stimulation. Two keepers train this behavior: one stations the bears from the scaffold at the exhibit glass and the other stands on the roof. With the use of a long target stick and name recognition, keepers can move the bears back and forth between locations. This behavior also can be elicited using the scaffold and a six-foot ladder stationed elsewhere outside the pool along the exhibit glass. With adequate staff, all three locations can be used at one training session. Just changing the number and locations of training stations provides enriching variety.
The underwater viewing window in the exhibit has always been a place for the bears to interact with people. Within the past year, keepers also have started training at this window. There is a small planter area about 15 feet above the underwater viewing window. From this location, reinforcement can be delivered to the bears over a chain link fence. To date, only one bear at a time has been trained at the underwater viewing window. The trainer positioned in the planter (Trainer A) stations the bear in the water. Another trainer (Trainer B) is positioned at the window. The bear is given the cue to swim to the window, and is baited with fish thrown by Trainer A to go to the desired area. Trainer B slaps on the glass to get the bear’s attention while it swims toward the fish. When the bear looks at the window trainer, it is bridged. Trainer B uses a visual point bridge previously trained in the holding area, and also says “bridge” out loud. Both the point and verbal bridge cue Trainer A to use an audible bridge with their whistle. Both bridges are used because we are not certain whether the bear can hear the whistle while it is swimming. The bear then swims back to Trainer A for the primary reinforcement. It is our goal to create an educational program for zoo guests at the underwater viewing window. The window is a great location to point out the bear’s black skin, feet pads, buoyancy, etc. This behavior has mainly been trained during winter months when there are fewer visitor distractions at the window.
Our off-exhibit holding area previously had a solid keeper door with a very small viewing slot. It was difficult to see the bears much less train any behaviors. In 2001, a new mesh door replaced the solid door. The 72” x 56” mesh door provides adequate access to the bears for husbandry training. We have been able to train numerous behaviors from this location, such as open mouth, paw/nail presentation, scale, and injection training. The zoo, in coordination with Teton Welding, is also in the process of designing a sleeve that can attach to the mesh and allow the bears to position for voluntary blood draw procedures. The sleeve should be in place by the spring of 2004.
Although the mesh door has been very helpful in advancing training, it is still too small to properly train certain husbandry behaviors. A laser target, recently introduced to the bears, has become a useful tool for positioning them. Lee caught on almost instantly and, out of curiosity, touched his nose to the small laser beam. Anana did not understand the concept right away and we were not sure that she even saw the light. Animal Management Resources provided us with a laser that can deliver either a moving or stationary beam. Anana responded immediately to the moving beam and pounced on it; she will now target on both the stationary and moving beams. Laser targeting will allow us to position the bears for behaviors such as hand injections, ear wipes (to apply fly cream), shifting, crating, and general body inspections.
Crate training for shipment has been another significant training accomplishment. The zoo received money in the summer of 2002 to renovate portions of the polar bear exhibit. Before renovation could proceed, the bears had to be moved to the Milwaukee County Zoo for five months. Previously, bears had always been anesthetized for shipments. This time the move took place in the middle of July when high temperatures were a concern. To avoid anesthetizing the bears, keepers crate-trained them over the course of several weeks. With the help of our construction crew, a crate was set up by the mesh door and secured in place with straps and metal bars. The guillotine door was secured in the open position by a pulley system attached to the ceiling. Each bear was trained daily to walk into the crate. Keepers practiced using the hardware so as to be prepared for the day of the move, when one bear would have to be crated and moved over before another crate could be set up for the second bear. The day of the move, both bears cooperated fully, entered the crates calmly, and had a relatively stress-free trip to Milwaukee.
With the exception of the new mesh training door, we managed to create new training areas from already existing spaces. It just took some brainstorming to come up with ways that keepers could use the areas to their advantage. Training from the scaffold, roof, and underwater viewing window allow us to work with the bears while they are on exhibit during peak visitor hours. Training from these areas also provides an opportunity to discuss training with visitors and educate them about the bears. Making use of the mesh door and laser training when the bears are inside has already advanced our husbandry practices and should continue to do so in the future.
Back to Behavior Training
In the past, the setup of the polar bear habitat as well as an inability to train the bears on exhibit during the day allowed for only minimal training to take place. Fortunately, keepers have come up with several innovative ways to train the bears in the same exhibit with minimal renovations.
Lincoln Park Zoo houses two polar bears in a naturalistic exhibit, complete with a large gunite land area with rocky outcroppings and a 266,000-gallon pool. The area was recently renovated to include two foraging pits filled with bark chips, boulders in the pool, a new filtration system with a pool chiller, and a large underwater viewing window. The perimeter of the exhibit is surrounded by a glass wall, which allows visitors to observe the bears from above. When the bears are on exhibit, the only direct access point for training is the barred keeper exhibit door. In the past, this was the only place where the bears were trained, which could only be accomplished while they were locked out on exhibit. Although this exhibit door is useful for general bear inspections and minimal target training, it has its own challenges. For instance, only one bear will fit at the door due to the narrow pathway leading up to it, which makes it difficult to get reinforcement to the second bear in line without causing aggression. Since we have no way of separating bears on exhibit, one bear has to be locked in the dens in order to use the exhibit door for training. As a result, keepers have had to come up with innovative ways to effectively use different areas of the exhibit for training both bears at the same time.
The glass wall surrounding the polar bear exhibit recently has proven to be an excellent place to train the bears. Keepers always have been responsible for cleaning the glass and providing visual cues to warn off migrating birds in the spring and fall. To perform these tasks, we use a lightweight metal scaffold with a wooden platform six feet long by two feet wide. While cleaning windows one day, I noticed that the bears were entertained by watching me. They swam up to the wall below the window and stood up on the gunite to get a better view of what was happening. It occurred to me that the scaffold would be a great training tool, and could be moved around the glass to create several new training areas. Keepers began stationing the bears from the scaffold by calling them over and reinforcing them with fish. The bears immediately picked up the behavior and will now jump in the water and swim to their station as soon as they notice us setting up the scaffold.
The roof area above and behind the exhibit, from which midday treats or enrichment toys are dropped, is also now being used as a stationing area for training. It provides a good place to train an A-to-B behavior for physical exercise and mental stimulation. Two keepers train this behavior: one stations the bears from the scaffold at the exhibit glass and the other stands on the roof. With the use of a long target stick and name recognition, keepers can move the bears back and forth between locations. This behavior also can be elicited using the scaffold and a six-foot ladder stationed elsewhere outside the pool along the exhibit glass. With adequate staff, all three locations can be used at one training session. Just changing the number and locations of training stations provides enriching variety.
The underwater viewing window in the exhibit has always been a place for the bears to interact with people. Within the past year, keepers also have started training at this window. There is a small planter area about 15 feet above the underwater viewing window. From this location, reinforcement can be delivered to the bears over a chain link fence. To date, only one bear at a time has been trained at the underwater viewing window. The trainer positioned in the planter (Trainer A) stations the bear in the water. Another trainer (Trainer B) is positioned at the window. The bear is given the cue to swim to the window, and is baited with fish thrown by Trainer A to go to the desired area. Trainer B slaps on the glass to get the bear’s attention while it swims toward the fish. When the bear looks at the window trainer, it is bridged. Trainer B uses a visual point bridge previously trained in the holding area, and also says “bridge” out loud. Both the point and verbal bridge cue Trainer A to use an audible bridge with their whistle. Both bridges are used because we are not certain whether the bear can hear the whistle while it is swimming. The bear then swims back to Trainer A for the primary reinforcement. It is our goal to create an educational program for zoo guests at the underwater viewing window. The window is a great location to point out the bear’s black skin, feet pads, buoyancy, etc. This behavior has mainly been trained during winter months when there are fewer visitor distractions at the window.
Our off-exhibit holding area previously had a solid keeper door with a very small viewing slot. It was difficult to see the bears much less train any behaviors. In 2001, a new mesh door replaced the solid door. The 72” x 56” mesh door provides adequate access to the bears for husbandry training. We have been able to train numerous behaviors from this location, such as open mouth, paw/nail presentation, scale, and injection training. The zoo, in coordination with Teton Welding, is also in the process of designing a sleeve that can attach to the mesh and allow the bears to position for voluntary blood draw procedures. The sleeve should be in place by the spring of 2004.
Although the mesh door has been very helpful in advancing training, it is still too small to properly train certain husbandry behaviors. A laser target, recently introduced to the bears, has become a useful tool for positioning them. Lee caught on almost instantly and, out of curiosity, touched his nose to the small laser beam. Anana did not understand the concept right away and we were not sure that she even saw the light. Animal Management Resources provided us with a laser that can deliver either a moving or stationary beam. Anana responded immediately to the moving beam and pounced on it; she will now target on both the stationary and moving beams. Laser targeting will allow us to position the bears for behaviors such as hand injections, ear wipes (to apply fly cream), shifting, crating, and general body inspections.
Crate training for shipment has been another significant training accomplishment. The zoo received money in the summer of 2002 to renovate portions of the polar bear exhibit. Before renovation could proceed, the bears had to be moved to the Milwaukee County Zoo for five months. Previously, bears had always been anesthetized for shipments. This time the move took place in the middle of July when high temperatures were a concern. To avoid anesthetizing the bears, keepers crate-trained them over the course of several weeks. With the help of our construction crew, a crate was set up by the mesh door and secured in place with straps and metal bars. The guillotine door was secured in the open position by a pulley system attached to the ceiling. Each bear was trained daily to walk into the crate. Keepers practiced using the hardware so as to be prepared for the day of the move, when one bear would have to be crated and moved over before another crate could be set up for the second bear. The day of the move, both bears cooperated fully, entered the crates calmly, and had a relatively stress-free trip to Milwaukee.
With the exception of the new mesh training door, we managed to create new training areas from already existing spaces. It just took some brainstorming to come up with ways that keepers could use the areas to their advantage. Training from the scaffold, roof, and underwater viewing window allow us to work with the bears while they are on exhibit during peak visitor hours. Training from these areas also provides an opportunity to discuss training with visitors and educate them about the bears. Making use of the mesh door and laser training when the bears are inside has already advanced our husbandry practices and should continue to do so in the future.
Back to Behavior Training