The whole truth about animal training in the circus

There are many photos and articles on the Internet about how cruel animal training in the circus is. It is enough to enter the corresponding query in the search bar, and materials about the whip method revealed by a hidden camera will immediately appear. Here are numerous complaints from animal rights activists to law enforcement agencies, a photo of an elephant, tied with ropes to the blood

There are many photos and articles on the Internet about how cruel animal training in a circus is. It is enough to enter the corresponding query in the search bar, and materials about the whip method revealed by a hidden camera will immediately appear. Here, there are numerous complaints from animal rights activists to law enforcement agencies, a photo of an elephant tied with ropes to the blood.

Daria Yarkhamova - Kazan

KazanFirst journalists asked themselves a question and visited the backstage of the famous circus of Gia Eradze to find out if it is true that animals must be beaten to teach a trick, and on what basics of training the performance is based.

Alexander Dudkin and Ricci

At the service entrance to the Kazan circus, the administrator meets us and takes us on a tour of the granaries of the "Royal Circus of Gia Eradze". Our first interviewer turned out to be the adorable chimpanzee Richard with his friendly trainer Alexander Dudkin.

Ricci is 12 years old. He has been in the circus since childhood. Came to us when he was still one year old. He became one of the first pupils of Gia Eradze. When I came to the circus, Ricci was almost six years old. He immediately accepted me as a leader, began to show respect and began to imitate, - Alexander Dudkin recalls.

The trainer was sitting on a bench surrounded by green fake palms, and next to him was a tall, stocky gentleman in a logo suit, uniform - a distinctive feature of Gia Eradze's team. The gentleman hugged the "owner" by the shoulders and looked with curiosity at me and the photographer. From the first minutes of our conversation, we realized that in order to train monkeys, we must encourage them with treats. And when the animal is still small, then you need to treat it tenderly and affectionately, like a child, and constantly be near. In terms of mental development, 12-year-old monkeys can be compared with a 6-year-old child - they understand everything and sometimes are capricious.

Practically, you live with a monkey so that she perceives you as a father, - the interlocutor notes.

In monkeys, it is in nature that there should be one leader in a flock. If he is not there, then they begin to fight and identify him; in the circus, this leader is the trainer.

The process of work goes like this: first you observe, play with the monkey, during the game it does some trick itself. Your task is to catch her on this and then consolidate the action with a treat, - Alexander Dudkin reveals the peculiarities of working with animals.

According to the trainer, when monkeys grow up, they should be treated more strictly. When walking, they should always walk side by side and keep eye contact. And monkeys can also eat from their hands. Ricci, for example, will never give up on an outstretched fruit. Favorite treats are bananas and kiwi. In the evenings she eats porridge and drinks sweet tea. He holds the cup himself. He also loves soda: phantom, cola, pepsi. Loves chocolates and sweets.

If you give him six chocolate bars, he will eat them all at once. But monkeys are predisposed to diabetes, so we don't give him much chocolate. Only two pieces per day are allowed, - says the source.

Ricci also takes off his clothes himself. Likes to go naked.

He needs walks on fresh air... The bigger, the better. But in winter we don't go for a walk with him, because the immunity of monkeys is weaker than that of humans, - the trainer notes. So in Kazan, Ricci and I have not yet walked on the street. The temperature is not right yet.

According to the trainer, keeping the monkey is inexpensive. He eats as much as a person of average build.

We don't let Ricci come in contact with other animals because he's big. But if during one of the performances he accidentally meets a lemur, he will bypass him. So he shows himself to be the leader among them, - says Alexander Dudkin.

Richard doesn't need frequent training anymore. Enough two or three times a week. But when he was little, he had to rehearse with him every day for several hours and be around all day.

Many have noticed that monkeys have leashes. This is not so much a limitation as a connection between the animal and its trainer. When the monkey is small, then it is not kept on a leash: there is no harm from the cubs to other people. And an adult only obeys the trainer, and even if one of the people says “no” to him, he can perceive it as “yes”. So Ricci can't walk off a leash, because he can be unpredictable. And if you consider that our hero weighs 60 kg, then games with passers-by can be dangerous.

Ricci is cunning. When you come to his aviary in the morning, you discover some thing, and it is not clear where he got it from, - the interlocutor smiles.

According to him, Richard understands intonation. If he began to behave in an inappropriate way, then he is pulled verbally.

Lyudmila Surkova and her predators

Our next point of excursion is a room with tigers. To our surprise, a fragile woman turned out to be a trainer of predatory animals Ludmila Surkov.

Don't get close to the cages, someone commanded.

But how can you not get close to them? To get into the room to the predators, it was necessary to pass in the closest to the cage - 15 cm. There were transplants on either side of us, open-air cages stood in front, and a grate covered the exit from the room at the back. And in each of them tigers darted. Predatory eyes fixed on us. The whole space seemed to me like a huge striped red carpet that rattled against the iron bars.

These are the same cats, only big ones, ”says Lyudmila Surkova, smiling. - I do not need to somehow overcome fear. If you are afraid, it is better not to go to them, because predators feel it perfectly. I was scared only once, when I left the enclosure. It was like knowing: God, what I just did.

Lyudmila is a trainer with 10 years of experience. Since childhood, she dreamed of becoming a "teacher" of tigers.

I have complete mutual understanding with them, - the interlocutor smiles broadly. To tell you the truth, in her features she herself looks like a tiger.

In total, Gia Eradze's show features four African lionesses and 10 Amur, Sumatran and Bengal tigers. Lyudmila Surkova has all her favorites, but the best ones are those who are distinguished by great intelligence and quick wit. This is the Pirate.

There was a case when I was telling "them" a new trick, the Pirate came up and began to do it, but he had never performed it before, ”says our interlocutor.

The tricks are explained by body contact. To make any movement, tigers are lured by goodies. Some even eat from their hands. But it depends on the mood of the predator.

Tigers are cats that love to swim, so in summer they are kept outdoors, if the circus territory allows it, in huge enclosures with pools inside. But walking them on a leash is crazy. Even if several people do it. Not only the trainers can suffer from this, but also the tigers themselves. A cat may simply be frightened from a change in the surrounding landscape, since their "star life" takes place only on the territory of the circus, and it is, as a rule, typical.

We have contact tricks. For example, a kiss with a big lioness. The predator takes meat from its mouth. This is a very dangerous trick when his fangs are next to your face, - says the interlocutor.

In her opinion, all training is based on education.

We take them small, educate them, tame them, sleep with them in the same bed. Nobody should be afraid of anyone. Neither you are an animal, nor it is you. There must be trust between you. If an animal does tricks at the expense of its fear, then someday it will rush at you and take revenge. The main thing in our business is love, mutual understanding and affection, - says Lyudmila Surkova.

If we talk about the diet, then one adult tiger needs 6 kg of meat per day. And different things: pork, beef, chicken, rabbits, otherwise the predators will not be so beautiful, well-fed and healthy. Lions, on the other hand, are prone to obesity. If you overfeed them, they will become fat and immobile. And they will start having heart, kidney and liver problems. And rehearsals and training are just physical exercises so that the animals retain their beauty and grace.

The basics of training are when the animal knows its place and sits there. We have it a curbstone, - adds Lyudmila Surkova.

Each tiger has its own role. Everyone performs only the tricks they are capable of. Lyudmila has a tigress, Klepa, who is not afraid of heights. With her, she sways on a swing. Lyudmila is the only girl in the world who has performed this trick since the time of Irina Nikolaevna Bugrimova.

Circus tigers are born in zoos

There are certain standards. You cannot take an animal from the wild - this is a condition for working in circuses. Lex (white tiger) came to us from the zoo in South Africa. Gina (lioness) is from Karaganda. We take tigers from the zoo in Sochi with pleasure, because there they are born with good genetics and character, - says the interlocutor.

It turns out that all predators are different on the faces, and all have different stripes. Tiger stripes are like human fingerprints. According to Surkova, tigers are trained for a long time. It takes a long time to rehearse new tricks - weeks, months, and sometimes even years.

Tigers also love to be naughty. Even at shows when the trainer does not see. The trainer has a stick called a "stack". This is an extension of the hand. It happened that tigers took away a stick from Lyudmila Surkova. This is how they play and want the person to just play with them.

You can spank a tiger with a stack. If this is a punishment, then the tiger has the most sore spot - the nose. But you can stroke with a stack and even scratch his belly, - she says.

The trainer has assistants. They are located behind the cage. Each of them has its own task - someone needs to watch out for the tiger, someone for the lioness, there are those who stand to protect in case of danger. There are also people behind the arena who are responsible for preventing the viewer from approaching the cage. Predators are rolled out to the arena in special carriers, not by hand, but on wheels. From the aviary in which they are kept, they themselves sit in them. They even know who is sitting with whom and who should enter behind whom.

I was attacked several times. At such moments, you think how much power they have and how it all can end. Once they pushed me against the wall. We just wanted to play. They got up on their hind legs, and leaned their forepaws on me. I thought that I could not bear the load on my spine. Then about 400 kg piled on me. Thank God, they didn't injure me. We jumped off ourselves, - recalls the interlocutor.

During her many years of career, Lyudmila Surkova had a moment when a tigress accidentally hooked her claw on the pillow thumb... The main thing is to calm the tigress and remove the palm from the claw, because a big cat may be afraid that it has caused harm. We do not punish for such misconduct - she is not special.

As for the offspring, it is impossible to breed tigers in the circus. The conditions for raising babies are difficult here. A tigress can bring three or four kittens, you can't take all of them “home” at the same time. Therefore, during the rutting season, tigresses are planted away from males. But if it happens, then they bring up like their own children.

Other animals

Then we were taken to look at horses and other herbivores. The photographer and I left the predatory room with relief. First of all, we saw the nose and porcupines. Nosuha is a predator, but omnivorous, eats both meat and fruits. Then we walked past the room of a kangaroo named Kanga. This is a boy. He is seven years.

In the Soviet Union, the famous trainer Vladimir Durov had a kangaroo boxer, for a long time this number was the hallmark of the Soviet circus. Nowadays it is less and less common to meet these animals in the circus. The kanga was given to us. They feed him with vegetables, fruits and hay, - said the administrator Christina.

Then we went to the stable to the artiodactyls.

Zebra Ele is 14 years old. She came to us when she was three years old. Artiodactyls before a certain age fragile bones. They are raised and then transferred to zoos, equestrian sports or a circus, - our "guide" explained to us.

Then there were llamas, dwarf ponies, the African antelope Jafar, Andalusian horses, the majestic black Friezes and camels. They are all kept in stalls, often walk in the yard in warm weather, and rehearse every day. Our excursion ended. After leaving the circus, the photographer confessed that he barely moved the room of predators, and I felt that my hands retained the smell of tigers that we stroked.

We tried to reveal the secret behind the scenes, the secrets of training, and on ourselves we felt the whole burden of responsibility for our smaller brothers.

When we went to the circus as little kids, we always thought: a how animals are trained? Let's consider how and why animal training is possible.

A person most often trains only those animals that lend themselves well to training. Usually these are mammals and birds (while we remember that whales, dolphins, sea lions, seals are also mammals).

There are many stories about flea circuses. The animal trainers boast that they were able to tame these insects. In fact, they force fleas to act as they would in nature.

People also tame wild animals. It is usually easier to tame those animals that live in flocks. It is customary for these animals to obey someone and live in a group. There are substitute leaders, leaders, subjects, and also the rest of the pack: aged animals or vice versa, young and weak. They all behave differently, but all must obey the leader. The leader maintains his power with fear and strength.

What can not be said about the trainer - he acts in a different way. An animal cannot be mocked, and especially not beaten. The trainer must find a common language with his animal, make friends with him, and only after that the animal can act as a person wants.

In the first place when taming animals is the reward for correctly completed tasks. If the animal begins to behave differently than the trainer intended, then the animal should not be given a reward.

It is quite easy to make an animal do what it will do in nature. Training will give good results only in this case. Take, for example, Durov's corner - his number is that a raccoon is rinsing linen. The natural instinct of the animal is involved in this trick - before eating its next victim - a snail or a frog - the raccoon washes them off the ground.

"Circus of Horrors". There is no other name for the video, which was filmed by a volunteer girl in one of the circuses in St. Petersburg. What methods do trainers use to get tricks from even the most harmless animals? Sensitive people are not recommended to watch videos. (18+)

"Circus of Horrors". There is no other name for the video, which was filmed by a volunteer girl in one of the circuses of St. Petersburg. What methods do trainers use to get tricks from even the most harmless animals?

Sensitive people are not recommended to watch videos. (18+)

The video was filmed by a volunteer at the Vita Animal Rights Center, who got a job as a cleaner in the Great St. Petersburg State Circus on the Fontanka and put a hidden camera there.

It's better not even to imagine what is happening behind the scenes of the most cheerful and joyful of places. To create tricks with animals, only a whip is used, there was no smell of gingerbread here.

In particular, to force the monkey to stand on its front legs, the trainer not only hits it with a whip, but also hits the animal with its head on a chair several times.

The containment cages are clearly not comfortable. Our smaller brothers can hardly turn around in their "houses".

The video material collected by the volunteer about cruelty to animals in the circus served as evidence attached to the statement to the prosecutor's office of the cultural capital demanding that the trainers be prosecuted under Art. 245 Art. Of the RF Criminal Code "On cruelty to animals."

“I have said many times that it is necessary to introduce a license for the profession of“ trainer ”, to introduce a license for keeping dogs of fighting breeds and for keeping dangerous animals at home,” the trainer commented on the situation. Edgard Zapashny.

By the way, yesterday, May 21, a bill was introduced to the State Duma of Russia that toughens the responsibility for cruelty to animals. Today, the maximum punishment is six months of arrest. If the use of sadistic methods is carried out by a group of persons - two years in prison.

The bill proposes to increase the terms to two and three years, respectively. Those who prove that they have mistreated animals due to a mental disorder are encouraged to send them to compulsory treatment.

In addition, it is proposed to enter the information resources of dog hunters in the register of prohibited sites. “At the same time, it is quite obvious that it is necessary to adopt a new Federal Law, entirely devoted to the issues of animal management. It is with the introduction of transparent rules governing the keeping of animals and the treatment of them that it is possible to establish more specific measures of responsibility, including administrative ones, ”the author of the bill, a State Duma deputy from the Fair Russia party, points out in an explanatory note. Oleg Mikheev.

Traineranimal sheep- a set of training actions on animals, undertaken to develop and consolidate various conditioned reflexes and skills. Training can be carried out with the aim of developing friendly relations, forming an adequate behavior of an animal for finding it in human society, searching for material objects of any type, protection in certain circumstances, or entertainment. Training is a necessity for a comfortable existence of a person with certain types of animals. (http://ru.wikipedia.org)

Druin other wordsanimal training is the formation of conditioned reflexes in an animal. For the formation of reflexes, various stimuli are used, such as sound, food and gesture signals, etc. It is this effect that causes the necessary reaction in animals, which the trainer tries to fix.

To train an animal requires not only a lot of time and patience, but also knowledge of the features of training methods. It is also very important to feel (understand) the animal in order to determine the method of training and the way of reward.

Pain method

The pain method, which forces the animal to perform the actions required by the trainer, is based on the sensations of pain, which forces the animal to do what the person wants from it. This inhumane method is used mainly in the training of predators in circus and other large animals livestock in the village, for example.

Incentive method

The rewarding method of training is used in the training of hunting and herding dogs, which perfectly accept this method of training. With an incentive teaching method, natural reflexes are fixed by giving food, or by affection. Especially the dogs are ready to complete the necessary task for the fact that the owner simply strokes them, or gives a piece of delicacy.

Imitative method

The imitative method of training is based on the repetition of young animals of the actions of another, older and already trained one. This method is widely used for teaching shepherd dogs guarding the flock of sheep.

If the necessary commands are fulfilled, the animal is encouraged, in case of disobedience - punished. The skills developed must be periodically consolidated, the animal must be periodically trained. In this case, the animal will ideally perform all the actions that a person requires of him.

Personally, I tend to the rewarding method, as I am not a supporter of inhuman methods.

Train your pets, in the future it will be easier for you with them. By taming the cat to walk in the sand, and not just anywhere, you will noticeably make your life easier. My relatives in Moscow have tamed the cat to go to the toilet and then flush after them. I saw it myself.

Don't forget to buy your dogdog food , because only with him your dog will always be in shape. And food in the form of a bone is useful for encouraging a pet during training.

The need to train dogs is often talked about, and it seems that the arguments proving its necessity are undeniable. However, a huge number of owners still neglect regular training with their dogs or limit themselves to unsystematic upbringing of their own accord.

This fact is all the more surprising since usually none normal person deliberately does not want to live side by side with an uncontrollable, non-conforming behavior, and even posing a threat to health. But this is precisely the picture we can observe in many families: they put up with the "quirks" of pets, they are tolerated, depriving themselves of peace and comfort throughout the dog's life.

But the solution to the problem exists and is available to almost everyone. In order to fully enjoy the mind, nobility, emotional attachment of the dog, you need to teach her to live next to you according to the rules that you set. If the owner does not do this, then the behavior of the animal will obey laws that are very far from the norms of human society. There are simply no other options for the development of events.

Trust the professionals

In the matter of raising dogs, many people rely on their own strength, believing that they have sufficient knowledge and experience. Perhaps, of course, there are such nuggets, but in most cases the owners are in the captivity of illusions, which is proved by a simple mathematical calculation.

The average life span of a dog is 10-12 years, people rarely keep more than two dogs at the same time. It turns out that by the age of 40, the owner will have time to raise about 2-4 dogs. While hundreds of animals will pass through the hands of a professional during this time, each with its own character and behavior.

A person who has dedicated his life to dog training faces and copes with dozens of different problems and gains invaluable experience, which, moreover, must be supported by special knowledge and the appropriate RKF certificate, which gives the right to such activities.

When to start training animals?

You need to start training a dog from a very early age, literally from the moment when quarantine after vaccinations passes, that is, from about 4 months. This does not mean at all that if you come to the instructor with a one-year-old, three-year-old, five-year-old, or even ten-year-old dog, you will be chased away.

The fact that adult dogs are unteachable is a myth! They, like people, can successfully study at any age, the only question is the speed and effectiveness of learning, because habits and behavioral stereotypes that have developed over the years can be very difficult to break. In addition, it is much more difficult to build a dog's relationship with the owner if the animal has not been used to respect and reckon with him over the years.

It is also worth noting that dogs of all breeds and sizes can and should be trained! Do not believe the statements that can be found on some breed sites that this breed is so smart that it does not need any kind of education and training.

Breeders who spread this lie behave irresponsibly, and we can observe the fruits of this irresponsibility every day in yards, squares and on the streets.

Site or individual lessons?

If you start training with your dog on time and do not start the problem, then group training is definitely preferable. Indeed, in this case, the puppy not only acquires the necessary skills, but also learns to communicate with his own kind, undergoes the most important socialization for his life.

At the same time, the course of this process can be immediately directed in the right direction and adjusted with the help of an instructor, which will allow avoiding many troubles in the future.

Individual lessons are recommended in case of severe deviations in the dog's behavior, for example, aggression, as well as when the root of the problem lies in the relationship between the owner and the animal and, in order to establish them, the instructor must devote a lot of time to both of them.

In the general group, this is difficult. In any case, the question of group or individual lessons is decided after the professional has close acquaintance with the dog and the owner.

How to choose a site?

Training grounds can now be found in almost every area of \u200b\u200bmajor cities, and owners tend to choose a dog school closer to home. However, convenience should not be the decisive criterion for selection. First of all, you must be sure that there are professionals on this training site who can help you achieve the result.

Reputable clubs provide a wide range of services, which you can find on their own website. Among them, there must be a separate course for puppies, an initial training course, which can be called OKP (general course of obedience) or UGS (controlled city dog), as well as OKD (general course of training), ZKS (protective guard service) and optional courses sports, circus training, handling (behavior at exhibitions), etc.

Whatever you choose later, the education and training of animals should contain at least a minimum, which means that it is advisable for your dog to take courses for puppies and OKP or UGS. The latter are a somewhat lightweight version of the OKD, containing training in all the necessary commands and skills, but without complicated transportation, overcoming obstacles, etc.

Of course, a full OKD will benefit your dog, but if you are limited in money and time, then you will get an obedient dog even with the minimum that we indicated. After making sure of the seriousness of the approach in this club, go to the indicated address without a dog yet.

The training area should be located in a sufficiently large and fenced area, where no outsiders walk. Ask permission to watch the class, see how the instructors interact with the dogs and their owners - you should feel a working, welcoming atmosphere.

Pay attention to the trainees themselves: dogs that are trained correctly, creating positive motivation in them, get great pleasure from the training! Their eyes burn with joy, their movements are free and impetuous, their tails are not drawn in. It should seem to you that they are ready to jump out of their own skin, wanting to understand and execute the command.

If you see such a picture, then you can agree with the instructor about the beginning of classes.

Animal training is a reciprocal process

There is no greater mistake than bringing your pet to the training ground and addressing the instructor with the words: "Here's a dog, I want her to be able to do this and that." It won't work! Animal training is always a joint process of training the owner and the animal with the help of a professional.

All instructors unanimously say: "We teach not so much the dog as its owner!" And this is the true truth for which you need to be prepared. You will have to make a lot of effort to comprehend all the intricacies of relationships with your four-legged friend, to master the approach to training and methods of animal training.

Moreover, in order to get the result, you cannot do without doing homework, which the instructor will give out at each lesson. The final result depends on how conscientiously you treat this. Try to listen carefully to the instructor and carefully follow his instructions.

Training and feeding the dog

The dog must come to classes hungry, 8-10 hours after the last meal. This is important because during training, positive reinforcement is necessarily used, most often a delicacy. The sharper the dog's hunger, the more desirable the food will be for it, which means that the training will go faster and more pleasant for the animal.

During active training, it is also very important to pay special attention to the quality and composition of the dog's basic diet. The animal spends a lot of strength and energy, which must be fully replenished from food. From the quality of the feed, its usefulness, that is, the presence in the composition of a sufficient amount of animal protein and all the necessary vitamins and mineral substances, the success of training largely depends.

If you fulfill this condition, and also regularly work with your pet, following the instructions of the instructor, then literally after a few months, you will be able to fully enjoy the delight that communication with a trained dog gives.