As a professional animal trainer and educator using approaches in Applied Behavior Analysis with any animal, I share many concerns in using force and coercion with any animal. I train a lot of zoo animals. Many of these animals could easily cause harm, whether intentional or unintentional.
The pointย isย not that force and coercion work or not. They do or they would not exist. There are side effects to using them. Here I explain my concerns addressing the pig community and a method called Move The Pig that is being promoted. Move The Pig is when a person walks up and pushes a pig with their leg for no other reason but to show them who is in charge. Will it work? That seems like such an unclear line of communication. I receive so many e-mails for consultations from people now saying their pig charges them when they get near them. Sure they do. They don’t understand why or when your foot may be coming near them to force them to move and for what reason? They don’t understand the contingency! I would highly advise giving the MTP serious consideration before implementing it. It isn’t needed. There are other methods more effective for developing a clear line of communication with the pigs in your care.
Our live-stream pig training classes will begin next week. See our website and join our e-mail newsletter list to be notified.
Leave a Reply