Overview

The Animal Assisted Therapy Programs of Colorado (AATPC) is at the forefront of developing training for professionals that meet regional and international standards for providers of animal assisted counseling, therapy and psychotherapy in the United States.

The AATPC offers this Certificate Program in Animal Assisted Psychotherapy (CAAP) specifically geared towards mental health graduate students and professionals who want to integrate animals into their professional practice. The program is designed by professional educators and clinicians and taught by instructors who lead the field in their own development and practice of AAP with hundreds of clients, and dozens of different animals and different breeds.

The American Counseling Association (ACA) has defined specific competencies which have been adopted as the minimum requirements for working with any animal during counseling sessions. For example: 

In order to meet the legal and ethical standards of animal assisted counseling/therapy/psychotherapy, all mental health professionals should have training and supervision before they work with an animal with clients. 

The AATPC is also a member organisation of the international working group that is further quantifying those standards and competencies.

Program structure

The Certificate Program in Animal Assisted Psychotherapy consists of six (6) courses. Each course is equivalent to a semester at a graduate university in terms of reading, workload, writing expectations, and time required and consists of 3-4 assignments.

Six (6) individual supervision hours are also provided as part of the course.

Curriculum

1. Human / Animal bond

2. Legal and ethical issues in AAP

3. Animal behaviour and training

4. AAP and theory

5. Treatment planning and interventions using AAP

6. Documentation and outcomes: Research study

Target audience

Psychologists, psychology students, General practitioners, Allied Health Professionals.

Level of Learning

Foundational. This activity is targeted to those new to the topic.

Duration of access

The complete Certificate program is designed to be completed in one year, but can be completed at the participant's own pace. There are no due dates or time restriction for completion.

APS CPD-Approved

This activity has been assessed against the APS Standards for CPD activities and approved for its education quality. Learn more about the APS CPD Approval process.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of each course within the Certificate program, participants should be able to:

1. Human Animal Bond

• identify 10 benefits that animals have on humans and their mental health,
• identify 5 benefits that humans have on animals,
• understand how animals can be harmed through interactions with humans,
• develop 3 methods of intervention for mental health clients that are built on the bond between humans and animals, and
• describe 3 ways that the human animal bond can be damaged, or animals harmed through interaction with humans.

2. Legal and Ethical Issues in AAP

• identify the relevant legal and ethical issues that pertain to AAP,
• manage complex ethical issues,
• balance client welfare with animal welfare,
• contribute to the discussion on the ethical implications of animals as a therapeutic medium, and
• maintain the practice of AAP as a professional specialty.

3. Animal Behaviour and Training

• understand basic Ethology of their primary therapy animal, as well as some general ethology of other animals,
• understand how, when and why the animal’s behavior and adaptation can be used within the therapy context,
• provide basic, positive-based training for animals and be able to train clients in this method,
• understand how to train for problem behaviours in their and client’s animals, and
• integrate animal ethology and animal learning as a means to develop and implement rich therapeutic interventions.

4. APP and theory

• develop a treatment plan using one specific theoretical orientation,
• understand the relationship between treatment planning, and AAP interventions used within a specific theoretical context,
• apply specific AAP Interventions within a specified theoretical context, and
• choose (at least) one specific client population to study more in depth in order to develop expertise in that area.

5. Treatment planing and interventions using AAP

• understand the use of medium and projection in psychotherapy and how this can be a useful way to see the relationship of animals in practice,
• understand the basics of attachment-based therapy and be able to write a treatment plan addressing several goals,
• develop a treatment plan for your chosen population and issue using animal assisted psychotherapy,
• develop animal assisted interventions that are theory and goal-specific and can be used with your chosen population and issue, and
• develop a treatment plan that can be evaluated for its efficacy.

6. Documentation and outcomes: Research study

• develop or find an appropriate outcome measurement tool to use with their specific client population,
• use accurate and detailed documentation which supports the demonstration of progress with individual clients, and
• write a professional level single-subject research paper documenting the progress of a specific client.

Notes

CERTIFICATE REFUND POLICY: Your enrolment fees go to support the CAAP non-profit counselling centre; fees go directly towards scholarships for low-income clients as well as care for our resident animals. Therefore we are unable to provide refunds for the Online Certificate Program.

Website/s

https://www.animalassistedtherapyprograms.org/