training

Update on Tamy’s Status

We have some encouraging news from the Mendoza Ecoparque: they have contracted Ingo to begin working with Tamy on the basic behaviors that he’ll need to learn for his sanitary requirements before importation to Brazil. These requirements are government dictated and were created to protect animals in Brazil. They include…...

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Guille Continues to Build Trust

As Scott mentioned in an earlier post, Guille is still working on having an emotionally open and honest relationship with her caregivers. There seems to be a veil that is blocking the emotional element of trust that we know will take time to pull back. That became evident in a…...

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Maia Makes Guille’s Training Interesting

In her charming way, Maia is making training slightly more challenging by wanting to come and join in during Guille’s sessions. When Maia is there, it’s nearly impossible to get anything substantial done. Sometimes Scott will work a little with one elephant and then switch to the other; sometimes he…...

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From Scott: Guille and the Vulnerabilities of Training

As we’ve mentioned, we’re working on training with Guillermina so that she can learn some new behaviors for foot care and refine some of her other behaviors like “lean ins,” which were limited because there wasn’t a full training wall to work with them in Mendoza. In addition to acquiring…...

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Shirlei’s Perspective on Sanctuary Life

We often talk about how caring for elephants involves learning the nuances of each individual and adjusting your care approach accordingly. Recently, one of our newer employees, Angelica, was speaking to Shirlei about how impressed she was by how much physical work Shirlei is able to accomplish. Shirlei is petite,…...

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Ingo Prepares Guillermina For Travel Sounds

This video shows Ingo gently working with Guillermina, getting her used to hearing unexpected noises while also staying relaxed in the crate. In order to prepare an elephant for transport, we  do our best to simulate sounds, banging, and other unfamiliar sensations they might experience as their crates are closed,…...

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