care dogs & co Programs
Puppy Program
Our Puppy Pre-school program is for puppies fresh out of the litter pen, and for slightly older puppies up to around 12 weeks of age. Ideally, these essential life skills need to be carefully introduced at this age to set them onto a good path of learning, building confidence and developing great social skills. They are also essential learning for older puppies and dogs that have never had any pre-school training, so if you are entering our program with an adolescent with no prior training, or even an adult dog with an unknown history, these elements need to be covered to ensure your dog is ready for our Assistance Dog training program.
junior/novice program
The Junior/Novice training program follows our Puppy Pre-school training and is suited to puppies over three months of age, junior dogs or older dog/handler teams that have had no previous formal training. This course involves early preparation of canine ‘lifestyle obedience’ skills and continuing social training to ready junior dogs and novice adult dogs for entry into our assistance dog training program.
Accredited Asssistance Dog program
The Care Dogs & Co Assistance Dog Compliance Training program is presented across three levels: Introductory, Intermediate and Advanced. An initial Preliminary (pre-entry) assessment is required to ensure the dog has what it takes in temperament, social skills, and basic obedience to become an Assistance Dog.
Some clients may be unsure whether their dog is ready to enter the full Assistance Dog Compliance program. Rather than having to fully commit financially, Care Dogs & Co are happy to arrange a Preliminary (pre-entry) Assessment of the dog for the standard assessment fee. If successful and you proceed with your application, this assessment fee comes off the full program application fee. This provides reassurance at no cost.
Once the Preliminary assessment has been passed and course fees paid, the team enters the training program under the guidance of one of our experienced and approved trainers, by purchasing blocks of training sessions.
When Introductory Level skills are competent the client is assessed and, if successful, a Trainee Assistance Dog jacket and ID card are issued. The team then proceeds to Intermediate level with access to train in all public places as if a fully accredited Assistance Dog (except air flights). Once Intermediate skills are competent the client is assessed for progression into Advanced Level, and once Advanced Level skills are competent, the team may apply for a Public Access Test (PAT). If successful, the team will receive full compliance under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 DDA as a Care Dogs & Co Assistance Dog with ID jacket and card. Annual PATs are required thereafter to maintain compliance.
A more detailed course overview is available which provides a concise summary of the skills covered at each level of the program, and the assessment outlines ensure clients understand the standard required to achieve competency. The skills begin at very basic competency and progress very gradually, so the program is eminently achievable if the training is done.
Independent Public Access Test (PAT)
Not everyone requires the support of an organisation like Care Dogs & Co. Some handlers have a solid relationship with a trainer or club and are self driven and dedicated to their dogs training independently.
Care Dogs & Co acknowledge this and offer a Public Access Test ONLY, however strict terms and conditions apply.