The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore trains elephants using an operant conditioning system. Operant conditioning is a process used to positively reinforce behaviors that are desired and to decrease behaviors that are not desired by training the animal away from those behaviors. Punishment is never used. The animal is given a variety of cues for a specific behavior in the form of either an audible, tactile, or visual stimulus. Depending on how the elephant responds, a positive reinforcement usually is given in the form of a food item, verbal praise, or an enrichment item. Conditioning occurs when the elephant’s correct behavior is achieved and reinforced consistently through repetition over an extended amount of time.