Training as Enrichment

I feel like within the zoo community, we often lump enrichment in with training.  Both are very behavior-focused disciplines, and I've definitely noticed that the people who are very interested in one tend to also be very interested in the other.  Which is a little ironic, when you think about it.  Enrichment is meant to stimulate natural behaviors.  Training, on the other hand, often encourages animals to engage in decidedly unnatural behaviors (though it can also be used to encourage animals to demonstrate natural behaviors).

When teaching new keepers, I always used the saying that training is school.  Enrichment is recess.  

Besides it's other benefits in facilitating animal care - namely encouraging animals to voluntarily participate in their care, reducing stress and improving safety - training is often also touted as a form of enrichment.  If done correctly, training provides mental challenge and stimulation for the animal, giving it physical and mental exercise, testing problem solving capabilities, and building a stronger bond between keeper and kept.

The caveat for this is that choice is essential.  Choice is the main driver of enrichment, and if an animal is not given the option to opt out of training, than there is no choice.   Zoo professionals understand this concept better than the general public, which often associates training with the ol' Clyde Beatty routine, cracking whips and chairs and flaming hoops.  Training sessions ideally take place when the animal wants them to (working around keeper schedules) and in a manner that the animal is most comfortable with.  Most importantly, they end on the animal's terms.  In the picture below, there is nothing that will stop that seal from swimming away if it decides it doesn't want to interact with the trainer any more. 

With this in mind, sometimes training doesn't need a set purpose.  There may not be a medical or behavioral need that you're trying to fulfill in training an animal.  Instead, it can serve as just physical and mental exercise, essentially structured play for the animal.