BehaviorWorks Zoo School

Rick Hestor is the Director of Animal Care and Well-Being at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.

"Over the last 20 years I have observed that zoos view behavior through an ethological lens. While ethology necessarily informs our work, many of the challenges currently at the forefront of zoos are those related to learning and behavior. These challenges pose questions ethology alone leaves unanswered, because it fails to attend to the contingencies of reinforcement experienced by the individual. The Behavior Works Zoo School (BWZS) offers a curriculum centered in behavior analysis, which studies the natural phenomenon of learning. A behavior analytic perspective brings at least two key components not commonly found in the ethological approaches of zoo welfare science. First, behavior analysis studies individuals rather than species. We assume all behavior is the sensible product of both the individual’s history (genetic and experiential) and the effects of the current environment in which they are behaving. Second, behavior analysis brings a commitment to moment-by-moment changes to the environment informed by continuously collected data on individual learner’s behavior. Without the sensitivity and understanding gained through this approach we will be hard pressed to engineer environments that support the behavioral health of animals in the zoo. Success in this endeavor is not accomplished without understanding how the brains and bodies of the species work, and with what environments they evolved to interact. However, when we pick up this ethological perspective, we don’t put down our behavior analytic one. Behavior is flexible, it is a biological mechanism for adapting to changes within one’s lifetime. In this inherited behavioral flexibility, called learning, there is hope for zoos. If we are to reduce force and coercion and replace them with freedom to behave for meaningful outcomes, we need to be educated in the philosophy, principles, and procedures of behavior analysis."

For over 10 years, Dr. Alligood-Rice has been a behavior scientist at Disney’s Animals, Science, and Environment. In that capacity, she uses her expertise in the application of behavior analysis to enhance the welfare of nonhuman animals through cooperative training, environmental enrichment, behavioral problem solving, and behavior change strategies supporting the conservation of wildlife and wild places.
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The Behavior Works Zoo School course fills a unique niche in the zoological community. This course brings together top scientists and trainers, all of whom are leaders in the field and who have extensive experience working in the zoo field. This course provides a practical approach to applied behavior analysis, grounded in a solid scientific framework. This education is more critical than ever as zoos come under intense scrutiny from many directions. Understanding behavior, ethics, research, and data collection and analysis are crucial components of providing exceptional animal care and ensuring the well-being of the animals in our care. This is the right time and the right people to guide you in your journey to being the best zoological professional in these challenging times.

Amy Schilz is a Senior Animal Behaviorist at the Giraffe Center for Conservation & Care.

Bob Chastain is the President & CEO of Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.

"Four goals drove me and continue to drive me. 1) develop a culture where after a person leaves they would say it was the best place they ever worked. It is worded that way because I realized people don’t always know what they have until it is gone. 2) While at Cheyenne Mountain, they would use their discretionary energy for the mission. 3) In my mind, every animal deserved the best home possible. Because of that we did not stop building new homes for over 20 years straight. We wanted every exhibit and animal to be set up for success. This would have been impossible without a basic understanding of principles like antecedent arrangement, the negative side effects of punishment, reinforcement vs reward, and the now famous bridge and curse. This list grew and grew in complexity and understanding for over 15 years. You too can understand all of these principles with a skilled guide to help you see how animal behavior and people behavior are just behavior."

Steve Martin is the President & CEO of Natural Encounters Inc.

Megan Sanders has a Masters Degree in Applied Behavior Science.

Bianca Papadopolous Bio.

Dr. Susan G. Friedman, Ph.D. is a professor emeritus in the Department of Psychology at Utah State University. Susan has co-authored chapters on behavior change in five veterinary texts, and her popular articles have been translated into 17 languages. She teaches seminars and courses on animal learning online (How Behavior Works: Living & Learning With Animals), with students from 63 countries so far. Susan also consults with zoos and animal organizations around the world. She was appointed to the F&WS California Condor Recovery Team from 2002 – 2010, after which time the team was retired due to the success of the birds in the wild. She is the Chairperson of the Scientific Advisory Committee of American Humane Association (AHA) Film and TV Unit, and a member in good standing of ABAI, ABMA, IAATE and IAABC.
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Carl D. Cheney, Ph.D is Professor, Emeritus, of Psychology at Utah State University, USA. He taught behavior analysis and physiological psychology, and published widely in the experimental analysis of behavior-conducting basic analyses of predator-prey interactions, diet selection in domestic livestock, as well as reinforcement-schedule alterations and transitions in humans. His current research is focused on encouraging the wider use of behavior analysis in all appropriate situations.

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behavior from a natural
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The Behavior Works Zoo School Mission

Putting Learning Science To Work

Program Learning Objectives

How We're Different

Instructors

Rick Hestor
BW Zoo School Director

Dr. Christy Alligood, Ph.D
Chief Science Officer

Ken Ramirez
Chief Training Officer

Amy Schilz
Senior Animal Behaviorist

Bob Chastain
Leadership

Steve Martin
Enrichment

Megan Sanders
Behavior Skills Training

Bianca Papadopolous
Animal Training

Dr. Susan Friedman, Ph.D
Founder, Behavior Works

Dr. Carl Cheney, PhD.
Mentor-In-Residence

BW Fast Facts

What People Say

So much insight and wisdom

Your entire topic of learned helplessness and ways to counteract it is such vital learning for us trainers. Your entire course is amazing."

Transformed my approach to animals and staff

Moving from anecdotal, anthropomorphic and assumptive interpretations about behavior to a scientific understanding of the function of behavior changed the way I approach companion animals, wild animals and even my staff!"

Grateful for structured, inspired learning

It’s been exciting to have a structure and context to help organize so much of what I “felt” before and had read about and seen in working with institution animal trainers and some wonderful zoo and aquarium creatures."

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Explore learning and behavior from a natural science perspective