Certification Assessment – Therapy, School & Visiting Dogs

Is my dog a good candidate to begin training towards Certification as a therapy, school, wellbeing or visiting,  dog?

Requirements for handlers and dogs

• Handlers must be at least 18 years of age and are required to have a dog who has been living with them for a minimum of 3 months, or with whom they have had a strong and ongoing bond for a period of greater than 3 months (required for learner dog and visiting dog certification).
• Dogs must be a minimum of 12 weeks old to begin the learner dog course; 6 months for Learner Assessment; 12 months for full Certification
• Handlers must not work more than one dog per training course, except where they are Certifying as Advanced Multidog Handlers
• Applicants from overseas (who do not have a dog with them) should speak with us in advance about alternative options.
• Current WWCC, or equivalent teacher registration (or international equivalent) is required to attend community visits (Day Four-Learner dog Assessment; Certification/Recertification Assessments; Level Four day two).
• Handler/Dog Certification can only be granted to those participants who successfully complete the practicum course, and whose dog successfully passes the assessments. Alternative statements of completion are available for theory only completion.
• Handlers must have sufficient English language skills (written and oral) to complete the online theory, practical workshops, and communicate with trainers, fellow students, and clients. All training materials are supplied in English.
• Handlers must have the capacity for intensive study and the physical capacity to handle and work dogs in indoor and outdoor environments. Handling and training of dogs can be physically demanding, and there may be some requirement to navigate outdoor terrain, such as stairs, footpaths, hills or uneven surfaces.
• For online study, a computer or device with access to the internet and a camera is required.
• Practitioners are Certified in accordance with their existing qualifications, for example Certified Practitioner in Animal-Assisted Therapy – Psychologist; Certified Practitioner in Animal Assisted Education – Secondary Teaching.

Additional/Secondary handlers

• Secondary handlers must be pre-approved by the course co-ordinator.
• A maximum of two Secondary Handlers may be certified per dog, in addition to the primary handler.
• Primary handlers maintain oversight and responsibility for the dog.
• All certification assessments are strictly one handler per dog (Level 1 day four, Certification Assessment, and Re-certification, Level 4 (all) ). This ensures each individual handler is assessed for competence to work the dog.

Course pre-requisites

• Each course day will have pre-requisite learning which must be completed prior to the practical day. The pre-requisite learning can be accessed through the Thinkific learning platform once you are enrolled in the relevant day.
• All dogs must continue to meet the suitability criteria, have current vet checks and health clearance (every 6 months), and have up to date welfare/wellbeing/workplace plans in place.

Assessments & competence

• E-Courses and online (theoretical) content are assessed via online (open book) questionnaires. Participants are required to obtain 100% correct in order to pass the assessments. If participants need assistance with understanding the content to complete the quiz successfully, they must contact the course instructor for further support.
• Dog handling and dog temperament are assessed face to face as part of a range of practical skills demonstrations. Detailed requirements about competence standards are provided to all course participants at the commencement of their course.
• Dogs or handlers deemed not yet competent are required to re-sit the relevant course or assessment day (costs apply).
• Assessment tasks may be photographed or videoed by the instructors and kept as evidence of competence.

Application process and payment terms

• To apply, purchase the relevant course workshop day via the Thinkific Learning Platform.
• Payment is required online at the time of purchase. Any arrangement for payment outside of these terms (e.g., Schools Mental Health Menu) must be discussed with, and approved by, the Course Coordinator.
• You will then receive an email containing the online application form through our secure client system (ZandaHealth).
• Your application will be processed, and you will receive a confirmation email within 3 – 5 business days of the application being received by the Course Coordinator. If you have not received an email from us within 7 business days, please check your junk mail folder, then contact the Course Coordinator directly at tglasson@leadtheway.com.au or 0421 059 943.

Waiting List

• If a course is indicated as ‘Waiting List Only’ your application will be placed on the waiting list. Occasionally places become available due to cancellations. Places are offered in order of application and you will be notified by email & SMS (mobile phone message) of an available place. Offers must be accepted or declined within 2 business days or the place will be offered to the next applicant on the list.

Attendance/completion requirements

• The attendance/completion requirements for courses is 100%. You must attend all scheduled sessions in full. The content taught is both sequential and cumulative, meaning that if you miss any content, you may not understand critical foundational concepts moving forward. 
• All allocated online theory must be completed prior to your attendance at the associated practical day. If you have not successfully completed all theory lessons and quizzes by 8am on the day of the practicum, your enrollment in the practical day will be forefit. You will need to re-enrol in a subsequent practicum, (charged at the relevant applicable re-sit rate).
• If you have exceptional circumstances, you must discuss this with us. Any missed practical content must be made up via attendance at private lessons, charged at the applicable current rate.
• Failure to successfully complete any component of the course will result in the team needing to re-sit the relevant practical day (charged at the relevant applicable re-sit rate)  or re-sit the online subject (no additional charges).

Cancellation and refund policy

• All cancellations, refunds, and transfers are granted at the discretion and with the approval of the course co-ordinator.
• Refunds will be granted prior to accessing course content, and provided a minimum of 30 days notice is given prior to the booked practical day. Once the course is purchased and online theory content accessed there is no opportunity for a refund (even if the practical day has not been attended).
• If you need to reschedule your attendance to a booked practical day please notify the course co-ordinator at the earliest opportunity, to allow someone on the waitlist your place in the practical day.
  • Should you need to reschedule your booked practical day within 2 weeks (and more than 3 days) of the scheduled date there will be a $100 rescheduling fee applied.
  • If 3 days or less notice is given, or non-attendance, this will result in a forfeit of the full course fee. Re-enrolment in a subsequent practicum day will be charged at the relevant applicable re-sit rate.
• All courses must be completed within 12 months of purchase. Participants who wish to enrol or access course content (online or practical days) after this time must be granted specific approval by the course coordinator, and additional fees will apply.
• Should a course be cancelled by Lead The Way, for any reason, all monies paid will be refunded in full, or transferred to a future course, by mutual agreement.
  • Courses are subject to minimum numbers, and cancellations outside of Lead The Way’s control may impact on the running of some courses. Participants will be given a minimum of 2 weeks notice if a course is subject to cancellation.

Intellectual Property & Copyright

• All courses and all content delivered, including but not limited to; written documents and manuals, the course outline structure or content, activities, assessments or assessment protocols, policies, procedures guidelines or documents, learning goals or outcomes, videos pictures or graphics, remain the intellectual property of Lead The Way Pty Ltd and relevant Associates.
• No part of any course may be replicated or delivered by you or your agents.
• The intellectual property delivered throughout the course must be used for the sole purpose for which it was intended – that is to certify you, the handler, to work with your own dog.
• You must not use any content for professional training programmes for profit or in any other manner without the express written permission of the owners.
• All written materials provided to you are subject to copyright. You must not reproduce or distribute any materials or communications except for your own personal or professional use, without the express written permission of the owners. All citations of the work must be adequately referenced.

Health and Safety

• Dogs and handlers must be well. Do not attend the training centre if unwell.
• Health, safety or hygiene requirements may be in effect and must be adhered to (e.g., relevant covid restrictions).
• Dogs must be up to date with vacccinations and parasite control.
• Dogs must be up to date with health screening and veterinary checks (every 6 months)
• Abusive behaviour is not tolerated. Any person acting in an aggressive or abusive manner will be asked to leave the training centre.

Aggression Policy for Dogs

• Depending on the severity of the aggression (see below), participants may also be asked to discontinue the practical day for the safety and welfare of the other participant teams.
• Handler and dog teams will be unable to continue on the practical day if the dog shows:
  • Three incidences of level 1-2 aggression
  • Two incidences of level 3-4 aggression
  • One incidence of level 5+ aggression
• Dog’s showing aggression at any assessment will be given a grade of either ‘not yet competent’ or ‘not suitable’ depending on the severity of the aggressive display.

• • If given a grade of ‘not yet competent’ dogs may re-sit the full assessment at a later date, subject to trainer approval. However, it is expected that the handler and dog team have had additional training and support from a professional dog trainer or veterinary behaviourist to address the “cause” of the aggression and the dog is no longer displaying these behaviours prior to re-sitting the certification assessment.

Welfare Policy for Dogs

• Ensuring the safety and welfare of our teams is paramount, even during ‘stress testing’ where we place teams in challenging environments that may simulate their working life. If your dog displays persistent stress responses, or they display any fear, we will modify the exercise in line with your dog’s capacity.  This may result in a not-yet-competent grade during assessment however your dog’s welfare is paramount.

• Reset for success is important – we do not want our dogs practicing incorrect or inappropriate behaviour (including over excitability). For that reason, after two errors, an exercise will be modified. This ensures not only that we set our dogs up for success, but also that we don’t allow them to develop patterned behaviour that is contrary to our expectations.

Graduates Code of conduct

All graduates must adhere to the code of conduct. Graduates are required to sign a disclaimer attesting to the safe, ethical, and professional handling of their dog, agreeing:

• To operate within their certification level and not to misrepresent their training or certification standards or operate outside of the Institute guidelines including:
• Team statements of competence (including limitations and recommendations)
• Practice guidelines (Handler, Infection Control & Allergy Management, Grooming, Welfare Wellbeing & Workplace Plans, Risk Assessments), and the Veterinary Screening procedures, and all other relevant LTW guidelines, policies, procedures & recommendations
• To maintain a high ethical standard, ensuring the safety and welfare of humans and animals during all interactions
• To work exclusively within the Handler’s own professional training and expertise, and to operate within said professional and ethical guidelines
• Not to misrepresent the Handlers level of training or expertise or to provide ‘therapy’ without appropriate qualifications & registration
• Not to misrepresent any learner dog as a fully certified dog, nor any certified dog as an assistance/service dog with public access
• Not to claim a dog is Certified if they are not, nor allow any other dog to wear the Learner/Visiting /Therapy/School Dog Identification Coat
• To maintain the standards of all dog’s training and behaviour as per the team assessments, and to seek assistance, guidance or support from LTW trainers (for rehabilitation and/or re-certification) or cease working with the dog if required
• Not to allow another person to work the dog without supervision or guidance, or to claim to be the Certified Handler for the purposes of providing animal-assisted services
• To acknowledge the copyright of all educational materials, appropriately attributing authorship via referencing
• To acknowledge ‘fair use’ of the training by acknowledging the ownership of all intellectual property, by attributing ownership of ideas and concepts learned, and to refrain from using the intellectual property to run training for profit