Shaping - Day 2

Day 2 - Magazine Training & Shaping

September 20, 2012

Goal:

            My goal of this session is to finish magazine training and to begin training Monica to press the bar through shaping.   Shaping is process of training successive approximations of a certain goal behavior.  In this case, my target behavior will be the bar press and I will begin by her just turning her head towards the bar.

Procedure:

            Day 2 of training, September 20, started at 8:38 a.m.  I pressed the hand switch when she was near the magazine, and waited for her to eat the pellet.  After about 10 pellets, I started shaping her behavior, only reinforcing when she would turn left in the direction of the bar.  I also reinforced her for sniffing the bar and for coming down over the bar after rearing up near the light.  This session continued for 22 minutes and 20 seconds.  I delivered 100 pellets.  Monica received 8 pellets on her own for pressing the bar.

Results:

            By the end of the session, Monica understood that she was reinforced when she explored in the corner with the bar.  As the session, continued I required more from her.  I wouldn’t reinforce just the head turn, she had to sniff the bar, usually the top of the bar.

Discussion:

            I did not shape Monica’s behavior in one day.  She made a great deal of improvement.  She understands that the bar is associated with food.  It will take another day or two to have her pressing the bar on her own.  My series of tasks for shaping Monica to press the bar began with her just turning her head to the left.  Then I made her sniff the bar, sniff on top of the bar, come down over the bar from rearing up on the wall, putting her paws on the bar, and then finally pressing the bar.  In the video, I reinforce her when she puts her nose on the bar and when she comes down over the bar.  At the end of the clip, she goes at the bar pressing it with her nose and paws 6 times in a row!