Animal-Assisted Services: Walk the Walk (K9AA Team Certification) *Handler must of completed 3/3 K9AA Handler Courses successfully

Course Highlights:

1. Applications and Approvals: Navigate the process of applying for certifications and approvals, including the K9AA licensing contract via a personalised 1:1 interview process, ensuring compliance and professionalism.
2. Sector Peak Body Membership: Understand the membership requirements and code of conduct of the Sector Peak Body, Animal Therapies Limited, ensuring alignment with industry standards and ethics.
3. Behaviour Identification and Shaping: Learn to identify and shape natural behaviours into tasks or skills specific to your team’s role or work type, maximising efficiency and effectiveness in the field.
4. Environment Familiarisation: Prepare your team for success by familiarising them with new environments, ensuring all necessary approvals and paperwork are in place for seamless integration into various work settings.
5. Evidence Collection: Spend valuable time on the ground collecting evidence and results of all learning experiences, providing tangible proof of progress and skill mastery.
6. Feedback and Reflection: Collect feedback and engage in critical reflection sessions to continuously refine and improve your team’s performance, fostering a culture of learning and growth.
7. Team Evolution: Embrace awareness and “ah ha” moments as your team evolves and adapts to new challenges and opportunities, staying ahead of the curve in an ever-changing environment.
8. Best Practice and Research: Stay abreast of best practices and the latest research in the field, incorporating cutting-edge techniques and methodologies into your team’s training and operations.
9. Consolidation of Skills: Consolidate your team’s skills and knowledge through supervised placement and practical application exercises, ensuring readiness for certification testing.
10. Advocacy and Sector Updates: Explore advocacy efforts and sector updates through presentations and discussions led by industry experts, deepening your understanding of key issues and trends.
11. Testing Preparation: Prepare for certification testing through targeted training and preparation exercises, ensuring confidence and competence in your team’s abilities.
12. Certification Testing: Undergo certification testing to assess your team’s readiness and proficiency, receiving valuable feedback and guidance for future improvement.
13. Personalised Feedback: Receive a personalised 1:1 feedback session to identify strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement, guiding your team towards ongoing excellence.

Equip your team for success in the workforce with “WALK THE WALK – Team Certification.” Enrol today and take the first step towards achieving mastery and recognition in your field!

Prerequisite Course/s: You may purchase this course if you have not completed the following courses, but you will not be able to commence until you have completed them. We recommend waiting until you have completed the pre-requisites before purchasing this course. The completion of the following courses are mandatory before commencing this course:

• Is a K9 workmate for me?
• Becoming a K9 Team: Establishing a Reciprocal Relationship
• Preparing Your K9 Team for the Workforce: Governance Skills

K9 Requirements: The dog you wish to certify with as a K9 Team.

K9AA TEAM Certification course DOES require a dog you intend to team-up with for the role and the dog must be over 12mths old (and homed with you for at least 3 months), Vet checked and ready to participate in this course with you. This course is a Practical Course and is only available to Certified K9AA Handlers (those that have successfully completed 3 of 3 K9AA Handler Courses).

Equipment: 

1. Access to computer/phone with camera and internet access for zoom app for Live weekly course review/discussions. *Students must have an 80% attendance to the live meetings, as well as complete all assessments through out the course.

2. A chest mount for handler to record some of the evidence (see recommended equipment list).

3. A headset/bluetooth to allow Live 1:1 supervised sessions in the field for some assessments or additional private consults (see recommended equipment list).

4. Appropriate equipment and tools to maintain a healthy K9 (see recommended equipment list).

FUNDING:

If you are a Self-Managed or Plan-Managed NDIS client please refer to your NDIS goals and discuss with your Support Coordinator appropriate line items that this innovative program or mentoring or training/assessment or recommendation service/s could fall under- it may fall under Core or Capacity Building supports and may be different for each client depending on the goals that are being worked towards/achieved through our animal-assisted services.

If you are not eligible for NDIS funding support or other financial support and finances are the barrier for accessing our services and you are:

1. A First Responder or Military Veteran or;
2. receiving an Australian Disability Support Pension or;
3. an Australian Concession card holder or;
4. other exceptional circumstances

and would experience or are experiencing financial hardship by accessing our services please use our  website contact page to advise us in writing of your circumstance and to request a initial consult/interview/review of circumstances for free to determine if K9AA are able to offer a Financial Hardship or Exceptional Circumstances partial or full scholarship.

K9AA strongly believes in leaving no team behind based on finances as the barrier. Accessibility and inclusion in advancing relationships through education and support within the animal-assisted services sector is at the core of the K9AA culture and we endeavor to help where feasible and within our capacity and scope.

Those that can afford to pay, do so knowing that a portion of funds are directed directly back into supporting other K9AA teams in need to realise their full potential and increasing knowledge and skills to improve quality of life for both humans and the K9’s.