PITTSBURGH -- WTAE Channel 4 Action News anchor Sally Wiggin was at the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium this week, watching trainers use the same tools on zoo animals that some might use to get their dog to sit.

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The training is called operant conditioning and uses positive reinforcement.

Kathy Suthard and Diane Hagey, two trainers at the zoo, train from outside the animals' fences, even though some were hand raised.

"It keeps them safe, keeps us safe, and it is learning environment is good for them," said Suthard.

Raw meat and praise are motivators for the animals, Suthard said, but still, some animals take longer than others to learn.

But Petya and Mara, two 8-month-old tiger cubs, are more advanced.

The two were raised by their mother, Toma, and are completely wild, yet they are learning to lean in, and get injections with the help of a clicker.

The clicker is one similar to those pet owners use to trains their pets.

Allegra, and sons Vicent, Jules and Hector, are cotton-topped Tamarin monkeys, native to Colombia, South America.

"They like to live high in the trees, so it is very beneficial to get them to come down to us," said Michelle Farmerie, primate keeper at the zoo.

You might expect a monkey to come when called, but what about a shark?

Aquarist Bob Snowden has done what only a very few people in the world have done, which is train two zebra sharks, Nori and Sushi.

"We are trying to reduce the stress levels on the animals, whenever we can, so when we do physical procedures like draw blood, weigh them, measure them, things like that," said Snowden.

The technique is repetition and reward, said Snowden.

With sharks, there is no clicker, because sharks can't hear. They only feel vibrations.

Due to his training skills and accomplishments, a national animal behavior conference has given Snowden their Training Achievement award.

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