Fagen et al. (Elephants)

Studys Conditioning

Operant conditioning

Aims

Investigate if secondary positive reinforcement (SPR) in free-contact could be used training elephants in Nepal to voluntarily participate in a trunk wash for tuberculosis testing.

Sample

5 female elephants, four juveniles (5-7), one adult (50s)

Sampling Technique

Opportunity sampling

Selection made by the facility's staff and based on docility, lack of pregnancy or current calf, and willingness

of the elephant's handlers

Experiment Type

Controlled observation in artificial setting

Research Method

Observations (controlled, non-participant, overt with event sampling)

Data Type

Quantitative data (mins of training, number of offers/cues, success rates for behaviors and sequences)

Study's Design

NO design since the study was not an experiment

Apparatus

Bananas, whistle, sterile water, bucket, syringe with saline solution

Controls

Same behavioral checklist

Standardized training procedure

Procedure - Animal Care

Grazed jungles 5am to 7am and from 10:30am to 4pm everyday

Leg chained remainder day and night (6-8 ft long)

Diet mainly fresh grasses and dhana

Not offered water outside protocol, has access during grazing periods

Procedure - Training

Training conducted during morning and afternoon sessions with mahouts present but not interfering

Trunk wash behaviors taught via SPR technique

Behavioral tasks included "Trunk here," "Trunk up," "Bucket," "Blow," and "Steady"

Behavioral chaining used to string tasks together

Desensitization and counterconditioning introduced syringe and sample fluid

Training individualized based on elephant's success

Training considered complete when an elephant passed with 80%

Behavioral Task: Bucket

The distal end of the trunk is gently placed inside a bucket

Behavioral Task: Blow

The elephant gives a strong, sharp exhale through the trunk

Capture Technique

Waiting for animal to perform natural behavior and then "capturing" it by marking and rewarding repeatedly

Lure Technique

Animal is drawn into a wanted body position by strategic placement of a reward

Shaping Technique

Rewarding only behaviors close to the goal

Data Collection: Session Times

Assistant timed each training session using cues, missing data points replaced with the mean minutes per session of each individual elephant

Data Collection: Number of Offers

Assistant counted offers for behaviors in elephants, recording total cues and offers during desensitization and new task learning, even without specific response or verbal cue pairing

Data Collection: Performance Tests

Administered tests to elephants every five sessions after Session 10, allowing flexibility + allowing them to understand training methodology before learning basic behavioral tasks

Results

Four juvenile elephants all successfully learned the trunk wash, elephant 5 did not

Participant drop out began after session 25

Elephant 5 never passed blow in bucket, desenzitation to syringe, and steady tests

Elephants 2 +4 never passed steady tests, despite passing full trunk wash tests

Average training session 25 minutes

Concluding Discussion

Juv elephants can be trained to participate in a trunk wash within a month, using one to two short daily sessions

Distractions may have influenced elephants performance

Video tapping sessions could have produced more objective data

Strengths

Ethics

- Reinforcement (Never forced to participate, access to food + water 2x a day; well-housed)

Validity

- Elephants can learn to trunk wash using SPR training

Weakness

Generalizations

- Only 5 female, 4 juvenile

Usage of animals

- No qualitative data explaining behaviors