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150 8 Integrating Training into Animal Husbandry

VetBooks.ir 8.3 Identifying the Philosophy when no one is watching. The commitment
that your team members have to the team’s
and Expectations for Your Team
philosophy needs to be deeper than a generic
8.3.1 Philosophy ‘head nod’ at a meeting: it must be something
that each person truly feels a part of and
It was previously mentioned that we may all believes in to maintain commitment and
have different definitions of training and ideas consistency. Some members of your team
of what methods are appropriate to use when may slip into using methods from their past,
training animals. It is best practice to discuss as they are more comfortable and/or confi­
and write down specifically what is appropri­ dent using them. For example, if the philoso­
ate for your team and the animals in your care. phy aims to adopt positive training methods,
This document will become your training phi­ but an individual trainer reverts to using an
losophy and should be considered a ‘living’ aversive stimulus to motivate a behaviour
document that can be updated and changed as instead, the individual’s choice may seem
needed, continuously compared to actual only mildly out of line (change in their body
practice, used for discussion and selection of position) but could erode trust with the ani­
training methods and act as a reference for mal and the team and could completely alter
staff training. This also means that all expecta­ the course of the training programme.
tions should be included in this document. Your philosophy document should also
For example, if your aim is to integrate train­ cover who is responsible for training the ani­
ing into daily husbandry for the entire collec­ mals and a timeline. The document should
tion and not just some selected species, this answer questions, such as:
should also be included into the philosophy. If
the foremost focus of your training method is ● What roles will the various staff members
to be positive, then this should also be clearly play in the training programme (Figure 8.2)?
spelled out in the document. ● What level of mastery in knowledge of ani­
Discussing the importance of the docu­ mal natural history/behaviour, knowledge/
ment and its contents as a key element of the skills associated with training theory, and
success of the training programme and the understanding of safety expectations are
welfare of the collection is imperative. In needed in order to participate?
daily practice, the members of the team will ● Who will train staff how to train?
many times be making choices alone about When introducing the need for this sort of
how they treat the animals in their care. Your documentation, focus on how it is a tool for
philosophy document will only provide guid­ communication for all members of the team,
ance as to how to best make and communi­ including yourself. Having a written philoso­
cate these choices. Everyone may not agree phy document that outlines training expecta­
with the choices required to adhere to the tions provides the team with a tool to aid in
philosophy document and training pro­ their understanding of what they should
gramme, and this is to be expected. Your expect from themselves and each other.
challenge as their leader is to lead in a way
that the team feels comfortable challenging
the training programme with their input at 8.3.2 Expectations
meetings, but always providing consistency Every person in a team should understand
of care to the animals that adheres to the what their role is and what they are expected
group’s commitments to the training pro­ to do with regards to the new training pro­
gramme, even when commitments may veer gramme. Discussing or providing a written
from personally‐held views. explanation of how training fits into individual
The success of your programme is ulti­ job descriptions or daily schedules can pro­
mately a result of how individuals behave vide a clear understanding of expectations. In