Killer Whales are the top predators in the sea - smart, fast, and powerful. Quite a lethal combination when they want to be. So how is it that we can, as trainers, swim with them on a daily basis and not get hurt?
A big part of training killer whales (or any large potentially lethal animal for that matter) is teaching them to disregard what their instincts tell them to react to. It is similar to teaching your dog not to bark at strangers, or your cat not to sharpen his claws on the furniture, but the stakes are a lot higher!
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All the animals with which we work are taught calmness, patience and gentleness, along with all the other behaviors they learn. These "traits" are actually behaviors which can be encouraged through reinforcement. We train the animals to do behaviors that are incompatible with excited or aggressive behaviors. When your dog receives lots of your attention (even negative attention) for barking when someone comes to the front door, he is getting reinforced for barking. If you teach him a behavior like sitting in his bed when the doorbell rings, and he receives at least as much attention and other varieties of reward for that, he will learn to go to his bed when he hears the bell. (Make sure to rehearse this quite a bit in the beginning with just familiar family at the door.) Sitting in the bed is incompatible with being excited and jumping all around. We do the same type of training with the killer whales. We ask them to rest their head on the side of the pool and reward them for remaining calm and relaxed while other stimuli is introduced little by little over time. Soon, they don't want or need to rush over if a trainer jumps in the water, another whale enters the pool or something unexpected happens. They will wait calmly and patiently for the next signal, interaction or reward. |
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In order to achieve this and other behavior consistently, we cannot take their compliance for granted. Trainers need to be fun, interesting and creative or the animals will not find the interaction to be reinforcing and they will not want to participate. We work hard to keep the sessions and rewards stimulating, so the whales don't know what to expect, and look forward to what may happen next. Of course much of what they do is fast, powerful behavior, playing with the other members of their pod as well as the trainers. This variety of activity, quiet time, learning, playing, socializing and resting, allows the whales to exhibit their own unique personalities, which we apply to determine each whales favorite things. |
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That's why the decisions we each make on a daily basis regarding the behavior and training of each individual animal needs to be made thoughtfully and skillfully. Poorly timed reinforcement, boring sessions, or unclear communication, either with the animals or other trainers, can result in increasing danger for humans who interact with them. But a positive, fun, stimulating and caring environment for the whales and all other animals, along with devoted, knowledgeable and perceptive trainers can make all the difference.