Ken Ramirez
Training &
Consulting
2012 Events (Past)
Below is a list of past events from 2012. To see upcoming events for 2012 please go to the main events page.
January 27-29
Clicker Expo
Portland, OR
Ken was excited to be returning to Clicker Expo in 2012. Three sessions were repeated by popular demand from the previous season: Smart Reinforcement and a lab on reinforcement substitutes as well as the new course from 2011 on Aggression Treatment and Context. Additionally, Ken offered three new sessions: Oops! What to Do When Mistakes Happen, 1+1=3 Adduction & Combining Cues, plus a lab focusing on adduction. The latter class on adduction was a continuation of Ken's series on Concept Training, previous years focused on modifier cues and mimicry. Each season, the Clicker Expo proves to be one of the highlights of the year because of the enthusiasm of the attendees - no other conference has so many people devoted to soaking up and sharing info about positive reinforcement like the Clicker Expos do. Ken loved getting requainted with old friends and making new ones.
February 4-5
Weekend with Ken Ramirez
Gentle Touch Pet Training
Arroyo Grande, CA
This seminar will be focused on dog training, but will certainly be applicable to all trainers and animals. Day 1 (Saturday) is by invitation only. Day 2 (Sunday) will be open to the public and topics will include Reinforcement Strategies (Non-Food Reinforcers), Problem Solving, and Training for Conservation. It proved to be a very good weeked, Teah's facility is in a beautiful location with beautiful weather and attendees with a real interest in learning.
February 7
International Giraffe Symposium
San Francisco, CA
Ken was invited to be the keynote speaker. He spoke on training and conservation and highlighted the important work that zoos can play in contributing to conservation efforts - but with a unique focus on the role of training. The organizers also asked Ken to do a two day training workshop that was open to the public and held immediately following the symposium (see below). The conference proved to be an interesting conference with presentations from zookeeprs as well as from wildlife bilogists who study giraffe in the wild.
February 10-11
Zoo Training Seminar
Sponsored by International Giraffe Symposium
Oakland, CA (11th) and Vallejo, CA (10th)
see Giraffe Symposium web-site listed above
Following the International Giraffe Symposium, Ken conducted a two-day seminar for attendees of that conference. However, the seminar was open for anyone to attend. The seminar was a basic overview of operant conditioning and positive reinforcement for the zookeeper. The approach was broad and accessible for those training any species. Day 1 was held at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo and day 2 was held at the Oakland Zoo. There were nearly 70 attendees, half from the zoological world and the remainder from the dog and horse training worlds. They were a very attentive group with excellent questions.
March 10
Art & Science of Animal Training
University of North Texas, ORCA
Denton, TX
Ken was invited back for the 4th consecutive year, the topic this year was "Lessons from the Aquatic World". Ken invited colleagues Steve Aibel and Mike Pool from SeaWorld San Antonio to join him and present several topics that will illustarte the advances made in marine mammal training that have direct application to so many other species. As with previous years of this conference it is a truly mind expanding expereince that creates great dialogue about important topics.
March 30-April1
Clicker Expo
Nashville, TN
Ken was excited to be returning to Clicker Expo in 2012. Three sessions were repeated by popular demand from the previous season: Smart Reinforcement and a lab on reinforcement substitutes as well as the new course from 2011 on Aggression Treatment and Context. Additionally, Ken offered three new sessions: Oops! What to Do When Mistakes Happen, 1+1=3 Adduction & Combining Cues, plus a lab focusing on adduction. The latter class on adduction is a continuation of Ken's series on Concept Training, previous years focused on modifier cues and mimicry. This was a great Expo as usual. Special guest Dr. Clive Wynn spoke about dog cognition and during the panel discussion we all surprised Karen with a cake and gift as we celebrated her 80th birthday (actually in May). The celbration included a video retrospecitve of Karen's career. It was a very special weekend.
April 9-14
AZA Training Course
Disney's Animal Kingdom
Orlando, FL
This is an excellent course for zoo trainers. Ken was invited to participate for the 5th straight year. This course has multiple instructors including Steve Martin, Marty McPhee, Michelle Skurski, and Emily Insalaco. This year included anouther great group of keepers who were interested in learning about training.
April 20-22 *Note change in date!
3 Day Seminar with Ken Ramirez
Sponsored by Clicker Training fur Pferde
Munich, GERMANY
This was an advanced seminar with a multi-species approach. Topics included Reinofrcement Strategies, Handling Animal Mistakes Positively, Recipe for Becoming a Top Trainer, Aggression Treatment and Problem Solving Review, Concept Training: Mimicry, Positive Reinforcement in the Workplace, Training Consultant Notes. There were nearly 100 participants from 16 countries. They had a high level of skill and asked some excellent questions. Ken truly enjoyed this group.
Print