This badge signifies the completion of the course What Is Your Purpose? Finding Your “Why” in Animal Training.

Are you following your dream in animal training?

What is your purpose in animal training—and how has it shaped the repertoires you’ve chosen to build throughout your career? In this course, we explore purpose through the lens of behavior analysis, examining how it influences the opportunities we pursue, the skills we develop, and the outcomes we hope to create for animals and the profession. From the evolution of animal care and welfare to the behavioral cusps that transform how we think about training, this discussion examines why purpose matters, how it changes over time, and what happens when our practices become disconnected from the outcomes we claim to value. Along the way, we’ll explore what originally draws people to animal training, why many professionals discover that what they find reinforcing changes throughout their careers, and the many ways animal training can contribute to welfare, conservation, education, science, mentoring, and industry-wide change. Whether you work with zoo animals, wildlife, companion animals, or horses, this conversation offers an opportunity to reflect on the contribution you hope to make and the future you hope to help create.

This course takes 1 hour to complete.