Videos

Warning—Hero Rats At Work


Tutor Team
Videos
Rats, Scent Detection
by

“Warning—Hero Rats At Work” shows the fantastic work that the Apopo staff and their rats perform in detecting landmines and clearing land for the local populations to inhabit safely. The video shows the final certification test for the handlers. Note the precision with which they execute all steps. The rats had been certified earlier, so we knew they would perform. The handlers did too.

Apopo trains also rats of the same species to detect tuberculosis in saliva samples from potentially affected patients.

The methods we use to train the rats are the same we use for all other species, only adjusted to the species, the Giant Gambian Pouched Rat, Cricetomys gambianus. Roger Abrantes spent two years in Africa working with the Hero Rats and writing the SOP and training manual.

To know more about scent detection, see our course Canine Scent Detection.

Quiz (for students wishing to earn study credits)

"Warning—Hero Rats At Work" Video Quiz

You have five minutes to complete this quiz.

 

Guinea Pig Camp by Roger Abrantes


Tutor Team
Videos
Animal Training, Guinea Pigs
by

The Guinea pig, Cavia porcellus, or domestic guinea pig, also known as cavy or domestic cavy, is a species of rodent belonging to the family Caviidae and the genus Cavia. They live from four to eight years of age. They are very active, up to 20 hours a day, sleeping only for short periods. They are social animals living in small groups.

Like all prey animals, they startle easily but recover quickly. They show good learning abilities as our Guinea pig camps demonstrate. We teach them to deal with various obstacles and scent detection. They perform as well as dogs or rats. We train them using clear finger pointing signals and tapping sounds, sound reinforcers, mainly our customary ‘dygtig,’ and food treats consisting of bits of various vegetables.

To learn more about animal training, the scientific way, go to our course The 20 Principles All Animal Trainers Must Know.

Quiz (for students wishing to earn study credits)

"Guinea Pig Camp by Roger Abrantes" Video Quiz

You have five minutes to complete this quiz.

 

Guinea Pigs Scent Detection


Tutor Team
Videos
Guinea Pigs, Scent Detection
by

In this short video, you see a summary of the five steps leading to the final and successful double-blind test in scent detection. Notice that, contrary to the practice everywhere else, we start by teaching the animal the indication behavior. The goal of this procedure is to allow us to reinforce the animal’s behavior whenever it encounters the target scent. Since it will associate the container with the previous indication behavior, it will indicate it and receive its reinforcer for that—while all the time subject to the target scent. That and the exceptionally carefully planned plans of action (POA) are the reason why we succeed in teaching scent detection to Guinea pigs, dogs, and rats in only three days of training.

If you’re interested in staging a scent detection workshop, be it with dogs, Guinea pigs or rats, please contact us.

To learn more about Professor Roger Abrantes’ unique scent detection method, please go to our course Canine Scent Detection.

Quiz (for students wishing to earn study credits)

"Guinea Pigs Scent Detection" Video Quiz

You have five minutes to complete this quiz.

 

Dog Training: Chuck Berry And Frisbee Fun


Tutor Team
Videos
Dog Training
by

Manuel Castañeda, our late graduate and tutor, who passed away in 2018, shows here the Combi-4 skill at a distance, where Chuck Berry, the dog, responds to four signals, sit, stand, down, and free. After that, they have some frisbee fun. However, notice that there is an educational aspect in the frisbee fun: the dog has to drop the frisbee near a particular cone on the ground.

There is always an educational side to any game. In nature, young animals learn essential skills and features of life through various play activities.

To learn more about training and behavior, see our course Ethology and Behaviorism.

Quiz (for students wishing to earn study credits)

"Dog Training: Chuck Berry And Frisbee Fun" Video Quiz

You have five minutes to complete this quiz.

 

The Importance of Body Language by Roger Abrantes


Tutor Team
Videos
Dog Training, Ethology, Signal
by

In this video, Roger Abrantes demonstrates the importance of a crystal clear, friendly, and self-confident body language. Our self-confidence affects our communication. The video shows the use of our knowledge of ethology at its best. We interact with the animals in ways, which are easy for them to understand and to respond appropriately.

Be prepared to work on yourself. Everything you do, matters. The way you do it, matters. The more you practice, the more subtle your signals will become. How you feel, and your level of self-confidence have a dramatic effect on the result. It’s all a question of attitude. Take your time. Think, relax and enjoy.

To learn more and get inspired, go to our course Ethology and Behaviorism based on the book “Animal Training My Way—The Merging of Ethology and Behaviorism” by Roger Abrantes.

Quiz (for students wishing to earn study credits)

"The Importance of Body Language by Roger Abrantes" Video Quiz

You have five minutes to complete this quiz.

 

Canine Scent Detection in Doglando


Tutor Team
Videos
Dog Training, Scent Detection
by

This video shows the final double-blind test in canine scent detection. It all looks very easy, and it is—when we know what to do and do it correctly.

To learn more about the innovative and unique scent detection training method created by Roger Abrantes, go to our course Canine Scent Detection.

Roger Abrantes trained scent detection for law enforcement canine units in Europe and in the USA, landmine-detecting rats for Apopo in Africa, SAR canine teams for the Alpine Rescue Team in Switzerland, and Guinea pigs for civilian use.

Quiz (for students wishing to earn study credits)

"Canine Scent Detection in Doglando" Video Quiz

You have five minutes to complete this quiz.

 

Puppy on a Lead


Tutor Team
Videos
Behaviorism, Dog Training, Ethology
by

In this video, Roger Abrantes shows his ‘kata’ for puppies. He walks forth and back teaching the puppy to follow, to stop when he stops, to sit, and to ‘down,’

Notice the ‘lead on the floor’ detail, stopping all movement and inducing the puppy to stop; eye contact; the correct timing of reinforcers; clear body language.

It’s all very straightforward when you apply the correct science to your training, a combination of Ethology and Behaviorism. To learn more, see our courses Ethology and Behaviorism and All About Puppies.

Quiz (for students wishing to earn study credits)

"Puppy on a Lead" Video Quiz

You have five minutes to complete this quiz.

 

Six Bones— The Little Deaf Half-Blind Sniffer Dog


Tutor Team
Videos
Animal Learning, Scent Detection
by

Six-Bones, deaf and half-blind, learns scent discrimination in three days. Because he is deaf and half-blind, we need to use our imaginative and creative skills to devise the correct training procedures. Notice how the instructor and the handler create a conditioned positive reinforcer that they can use later when doing scent discrimination. Everything is done with the highest possible precision, patiently and thoroughly. The dog doesn’t need to see or hear to do scent detection. Its olfaction is as good as any other dog’s. All we need is to devise the correct way to communicate what we want and to teach it rightly.

In the end, the team passes the double-blind test, of course!

To learn more about our uniquely efficient Canine Scent Detection, please go to our course Canine Scent Detection.

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Quiz (for students wishing to earn study credits)

"Six Bones — The Little Deaf Half-Blind Sniffer Dog" Video Quiz

You have five minutes to complete this quiz.

 

Canine Scent Detection — Ten Years Old Lab Is a Star


Tutor Team
Videos
Animal Learning, Scent Detection
by
Canine Scent Detection Ten Years Old Lab

“Ten Years Old Lab Is a Star” shows what we can accomplish with a dog and an owner who have excellent communication. The age of the dog doesn’t matter, as long as the dog is stable, well-socialized and eager to learn. Its nose does not deteriorate. The team (human and canine) passed the double blind-tests in scent detection (gunpowder) both indoor and outdoor. The total efficient training time for Heidi and Cricket was eight hours spread over four days.

What you see in this video is professional work. To learn more, please go to our courses Canine Scent Detection and The 20 principles All Animal Trainers Must Know.

Quiz (for students wishing to earn study credits)

"Canine Scent Detection – Ten Years Old Lab Is a Star" Video Quiz

You have five minutes to complete this quiz.

 

Guinea Pigs Camp at the APDT Conference 2015


Tutor Team
Videos
Animal Training, Guinea Pigs
by

Guinea pigs starred at the APDT dog conference 2015. Roger Abrantes and Michael McManus demonstrated in a one day workshop how eager to learn the small piggies are.

To learn more, please go to our course The 20 principles All Animal Trainers Must Know.

Quiz (for students wishing to earn study credits)

"Guinea Pigs Camp at the APDT Conference 2015" Video Quiz

You have five minutes to complete this quiz.

 

Ethology Institute