Training Methods

As with any institution or facility, it is their choice on how their dolphins will be trained and raised. This is up to their own discretion and what they feel is best for their trainers and their animals. Sometimes it is a preference and other times it is the choice that seems best fit and the easiest for all involved.

There are five main types of training methods:
1) Direct Manipulation
2) Modeling
3) Targeting
4) Successive Approximations
5) Capturing

1) Direct Manipulation
This training method involves physical touching of the animal and moving the dolphin into the position you want them to hold and the motions they are supposed to go through. This is the least common of training methods simply because there is only so much maneuvering  and manipulation that can be done with the dolphin the the water. They are not only in their own element there, but are large creatures that most behaviors they learn are complex. An example of this type of training would be when you want a dolphin to touch its rostrum (nose) to an object on the platform. You would station the animal and get its attention, physically push its nose down to the object (or toy) and bridge them with the blow of a whistle. The 'bridge' tells the animals that the task has been done correctly and is completed.

2) Modeling
This method of training is usually used by having the dolphin being trained watch another dolphin that has previously learned the behavior. They will imitate the other animals' behaviors once you teach them imitation on cue. To do this, a trainer would have a dolphin mimic a sound or movement they do and teach them a signal to do so.

3) Targeting
As previously explained, targeting is a method in which a trainer uses their hand or a target pole to "show" the dolphin what body part is to be moved and in which manner. The trainers use this target pole or hand to ask for a behavior and then quickly reinforce it. For example, to target an animal, one would use their hand to touch the rostrum of the dolphin. Then the trainer would take their hand away from the dolphin and move it in an up and down motion in order to get the dolphin to shake its head 'yes.' To say 'no' a trainer would simply move their hand or the targeting pole left and right.

4) Successive Approximations
This method is also known as shaping a behavior. To do this, small steps are taken that look like the desired behavior. From each new step that is learned, another piece of the behavior is added until it looks like the 'trick' the trainer is looking for. 

5) Capturing
To 'capture' a behavior, a trainer would simply watch a dolphin behaving as it normally would in the wild. When a naturally occurring behavior occurs, the trainer will then bridge the behavior and reinforce the dolphin for accomplishing its goal. The signal for this behavior must all be paired with the bridge and reinforcement in order to call on the behavior in the future.