Page 341 - Zoo Animal Learning and Training

13.3 Understanding and Maintaining Situational Awareness 313

VetBooks.ir the amount of information received by the 2) Ambiguity
When the information provided and
zoo professional is significantly above
their capacity to process, zoo profession-
actions of the zoo professional are likely
als will again operate under lower levels of received is ambiguous, decisions and
situational awareness, potentially missing to be based on inaccuracy and could lead
critical information. Often labelled ‘infor- to uncertain and potentially dangerous
mation overload’, these situations can hap- results. For example if a zoo professional
pen when a zoo professional is new to a sets up training apparatus in the tiger
complicated training regime or there are holding area, they might ask a colleague if
multiple animals in the environment. the tiger shift door is closed or open. If the
Zoo professionals are often required to colleague’s response is ‘Yes’ and the zoo
operate in new, changing, and some- professional assumes that the shift door is
times challenging environments. Some shut an accident could occur.
of these settings are likely to lead to loss 3) Fixation or preoccupation
of situational awareness. The most trou- In certain training situations, the ability
bling training situations are those that to detect important information is lost
are outside of your normal routine and when the zoo professional is preoccu-
unusual in nature. Some examples pied, fixated or otherwise distracted. For
include: i) when guests and VIPs are example, if an elephant keeper is training
present at training sessions. Additional an elephant to raise a front leg, by cueing
people and pressure can distract not only the elephant to touch the top of its foot to
the zoo professional but the animals too. a hand‐held target. The elephant keeper
The zoo professional might feel com- might then be completely focused on the
pelled to do more for the guests and push small point in space where the elephant’s
themselves and the animals out of their foot will make contact with the target.
respective comfort zones. Likewise, the During this time, the elephant keeper is
zoo professional’s supervisor or even the less able to perceive important informa-
company CEO might ask for something tion like the location and movement of
special that has not been tried nor tested the elephant’s trunk nor can they see
under the best of conditions. It is in these body cues that might help predict aggres-
scenarios where the company’s culture of sive intent.
safety can be tested. The zoo profes-
sional should be empowered to say “no” 4) Departure from policies and protocols
to any request where safe outcomes are Using improper procedures, places zoo
not certain. ii) Another classic example professionals in a grey area, where safe
of where situational awareness can be outcomes cannot be predicted with cer-
lost is found in the nature of caring for tainty. Zoo professionals may not have the
living creatures. Zookeepers regularly experience and, therefore, the proper
find themselves rushing due to high judgement to understand the risks they
workloads and unexpected tasks that might be placing themselves in when devi-
come with the job. It is at this time where ating from agreed policies and protocols;
a zoo professional must have the where- which have in fact been established to
withal to know that this may not be the reduce the risks of incidents. Something
safest time to train. Postponing or can- as innocuous as breaking protected‐
celling a training session should always contact to pet ‘Fluffy’ the lion could end in
be an option in these circumstances. If tragedy. Consistent and/or blatant viola-
rushing is an everyday occurrence then tions of rules often reveal other systemic
this is a more systemic issue that should problems within an organisation. A disre-
be addressed by management. gard for following established procedures