A friend and colleague recently shared this video with me @grantkother and I was going back and forth between sharing it because I left the zoo world not the way I had hoped I would; I had an injury at work and the view from my rose tinted glasses changed from that point onwards…Luckily, those who I was close with understood why I had to leave but it didn’t make the departure any less painful.
I loved being a zookeeper, the animals were amazing, the people made it fun, training animals and presenting was something I really enjoyed! I felt right at home in the camaraderie of my knowledgeable and experienced colleagues. @scottishwildcat01 @siobhan1ksh
So here’s some backstory behind this video. The rats were trained using their natural history, brown rats are prey animals and they feel safe moving along walls and hiding in tunnels so they are less exposed—it’s a matter of survival. They would lift a box, expose them and work backwards from the tunnel that they wanted them to run into. I along with my colleagues felt that we wanted to change this…what if the rats had a choice? What if we could train them operantly, to learn to leave a place and move to another location by choice.
My favourite motivational speeches are when people say “you’ll never be able to do it, it can’t be done” why? Because I absolutely love a challenge, I’m not a person who feels comfortable with words like “never” and “can’t” and if someone thinks it can’t be done, I have to try anyway, that’s what motivates me—I have to find a way!
So…with some awesome building skills and support of colleagues who didn’t think I was crazy…we did it! The training began, we started with teaching the rats to leave their cage and walk into our laps—with lots of socialisation training, desensitisation and counterconditioning they learned they had a choice.
Fast forward to now…I always think back at this moment as a a reminder that with awesome people who suppor
Happy Thursday!😎
Having trouble with your training?
❤️ Try this Play & Train Technique (a puppy parent adaptation of the Pomodoro Technique created by Francesco Cirillo)
✅ By breaking down large training goals into smaller ones and implementing plenty of play breaks and brain breaks in-between, you can increase focus, engagement and retention!
⭐️How it works:
1. Pick one training goal like teaching “go to place”
2. Set a timer on your phone for 2-8 minutes
3. Start Training
4. Take a Play Break! …when the timer goes off, pick up a toy, play tug, chase, or play a silly game with your puppy that you both invented!
5. Repeat this 4 times!
6. After 4 repetitions, take a long 15-20 minute break…let your dog sniff, hide treats around the room, relax…whichever your pup does to relax
#playandtraintechnique, #playandtrain, #puppyplay, #trainingrecipe, #dogtrainingtechnique, #puppyengagement, #dogengagement, #dogfocus, #dogtraining, #dogtrainingtips, #dogowners, #dogownerslife, #jackrussellterrier, #jackrussell, #jrtlove, #jrtlovers, #dogtoy, #dogtrainingadvice, #dogtraining101, #dogtrain, #dogtrainingisfun, #rewardgoodbehavior, #dogbreak, #puppybreak, #brainbreak, #playbreak
Very interested in knowing your thoughts whether you're a dog/puppy owner or professional trainer (all comments welcome but remember to be kind!)
😆Head on over to my instagram @angellawson_
to participate in the conversation...
#dogtraining, #askadogtrainer, #fearfuldogs, #reactivedogs, #dogtrainer, #dogowner, #doghandling, #reinforcement, #positivereinforecment, #dogemotions, #fixedactionpatterns, #respondentconditioning, #antecedentarrangement, #dogquestions
Great question from the public!
☣️Biodegradable plastics can anywhere from three to six months to decompose. But that’s much quicker than the alternatives that can take up to several hundred years!
✅Many factors affect how long a biodegradable bag takes to break down such as the temperature and the amount of moisture available.
😱One study found that the impact of a medium-sized dog was greater than that of an SUV!
😬Another study found that feeding the world’s dogs and cats created the equivalent of 64 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year!
🌱Want to reduce your dog's carbon footprint?
Switch to products with recycled, plant based and sustainably sourced materials...
♻️BioBags for example, are made from a compostable resin that’s derived from plant starch, vegetable oils, and compostable polymers. The bags are completely plastic-free, which helps keep microplastics out of our environment.
#climatechangeawareness #biobags #plantbasedliving #environmentalawareness #biodegradeable #dogpoop #dogpooping #dogpoopbags #askthedogtrainer #dogpoopbag #dogpoopbagholder #stinkydog #sustainablysourced #environmentaldogtraining
