Part #4
(Read Part #3, Sven’s Breakthrough Moment)

We start our day at 6:15 a.m. and it’s still dark outside. I set up Sven’s environmental recycling task: the tub is at the front of the stage with different pieces of recyclables around it. I say, “recycle” and point my finger to the trash, he chooses which piece to pick up first and drops it into the tub. I bridge and reinforce each piece. If he misses the tub, I ask for him to “recycle” again, pointing to the trash. If he doesn’t understand, I hand him the item and he always make it on the second attempt.

Now we need a real trash can for recyclables. The new prop is taller than the old gray tub, almost as tall as Sven’s shoulder: he would need to hold the item higher and lean over the can to drop it in. Sven accepted and figured out the new prop within a few sessions (what a pro!), so I decided to try this behavior right before a show. I think I was more nervous than he was. We made the audience laugh when he missed and cheer when he hit the can, and they all understood the conservation message. More importantly, Mr. Sven Olof was having fun doing it!

I’m not sure if it is the height of the can or Sven’s intense desire to complete each drop, but his stare will linger long after the item has hit the bottom of the can, almost as if he wants to make sure it won’t bounce back out like the others did when they would hit the side of the tub. It is really funny, and I can’t take credit for this hesitation, but I will point out that this is the beauty of “capturing” a behavior, shaping a natural occurring behavior to occur more regularly.

Now I needed him to pick up more than one item before being reinforced, so I asked for the “recycle” after the first one and fed him on the second drop. This slowly increased to three pieces, then four, and so on. I really wanted this show spot to be his alone; I honestly didn’t think a trainer needed to be present, so I eventually trained him to accept my verbal commands from the back and faded myself off the stage.

Now you can see this conservation star do his thing all on his own. He runs out with his tail wagging and his head held high as he pops the trash into the recycling can, with the slight hesitation of making sure the stuff doesn’t magically pop back out after he has placed them ever so carefully. He doesn’t hog the show, but you might think he’s a ham!

Maureen O. Duryee is an animal trainer at the San Diego Zoo’s Hunte Amphitheater.

Sven can be seen recycling Sundays through Wednesdays.

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