Target Practice
By Lara Joseph
Training animals to target makes husbandry a lot less stressful and much safer. It is also a useful tool to have at your disposal in an emergency situation…There are so many instances where targeting and stationing are beneficial to our animals that we should be training these behaviors consciously. Doing so will make their lives less stressful by giving them an attractive choice of what to do and how to behave in countless situations… I train the mammals to target and station to either the tops of buckets or to carpet squares. I need at least all feet on the target. The birds target and station to perches or banisters placed intentionally high up off of the ground where the mammals cannot jump or leap and people cannot reach. This arrangement is also very useful even when an emergency is not in place. Getting the animals to target and station helps me retain focus and control. Read more.