My name is Kirrie. I have written dozens of therapeutic letters and quite a few booklets during my career in Animal Assisted Play Therapy^®. It appears they have been quite helpful! There are times when animals cannot be directly involved in your therapeutic work or other times when clients need a little extra assistance in coping with the challenges they face. This is where therapeutic writing from the point of view of us animals can be very helpful. Read on to learn more about my upcoming webinar to teach you (and your animals) how to do this type of intervention!

Many people, and children and young people in particular, are drawn to animals. Sometimes they can relate to animals more readily than they can to adults, parents, teachers, or therapists/counselors. Often, animals’ lives bear similarities to human lives, such as life within families, surviving trauma, living in foster homes and being adopted, living with illness or infirmity, adapting to new circumstances, learning new skills, and growing old. Bibliotherapy, in which therapists or educators use books written for a specific audience on a relevant topic to augment the therapeutic or educational process, can be very useful. There are many books on a wide range of topics written for all ages. Even so, sometimes the need for age-appropriate materials arises quickly, or there simply is nothing written on a particular topic, or a more personal touch is needed. In those cases, therapeutic writing can fill an important role.

Therapeutic writing takes many forms. It can be a letter “written” by a known therapy animal, a story or booklet “authored” by a client’s animal, or a blog created by an unknown animal living in a similar situation as the client. Therapeutic letters can help students get past a roadblock or encourage mental health clients to cope with a trauma or loss. The options are limitless.

This webinar will be conducted in a workshop-style manner and is designed to give psychotherapists, play and expressive therapists, counselors, psychologists, and teachers the guidelines and skills for writing therapeutic materials to help their students and clients meet their goals or overcome challenges. A variety of methods will be covered including storytelling skills, shared storytelling, tailor-made booklets, encouraging messages, educational tools, support through tough situations, and more. Skills include the use of humor and playfulness, writing from the point of view of the animals, bringing the writing to life, simple illustration options, finding inspiration, writing at different developmental levels, and ways of involving clients more actively in the process.

The webinar is divided into two meetings. The first day takes 3 hours during which these many topics are covered. An hour-long assignment given at the end of the first day is completed by participants on their own. The second meeting lasts for 2 hours during which participants will share their assignments, receive feedback, and final information and tips are provided.

This is a non-CE course, but it is very useful, nevertheless, in helping therapists find, socialize, and train dogs with whom they can work as partners in therapy.

Selecting a dog as a family companion as well as for therapy work is a complex process, and perhaps more complicated than many realize. Your decision will affect your family for years. If there are plans for the dog to be involved in therapy work, and especially psychotherapy or play therapy, then it is important that the dog is suitable for those purposes as well. Not all dogs are appropriate for all families or all types of work. Most people want a friendly, calm, stable dog who will fit in well with their lifestyle. Therapists need dogs who will be able to perform and enjoy the work that is asked of them.

This self-paced online course has been developed to provide practical and up-to-date information that will help you acquire a dog who is more likely to fit well with your family and work, helping you make a more informed choice. It is designed to help you determine the attributes that you want or need in the dog, and to help you look more fully for those characteristics in the puppies or dogs being considered. Information is provided about acquiring puppies from responsible breeders as well as how to adopt dogs from rescues or shelters.  The following sections are included:

• Introduction
• Lifestyle Considerations
• Dog Breeds
• Puppy Mills, Backyard Breeders, & Reputable Breeders
• Rescue Dogs
• When Should I Acquire a Dog?
• Individual Characteristics of Dogs
• Observations & “Tests” – How to Evaluate the Dog
• Observations
• Available Assessment Tools
• Creating Your Own “Tests”
• Selection for Animal Assisted Play Therapy & Other Therapy Work
• Selection Help from Canine Professionals
• Socialization & Training Considerations
• Keeping in Touch: Well-being & Changes
• Other Resources

This course consists of a PowerPoint presentation in PDF format. It has detailed information, photographs to illustrate, and links to articles, videos, and other resources that might be useful in selecting a new puppy or dog. This course is not designed as a continuing education offering, but the other courses in this catalog do offer continuing education for mental health and some for canine professionals.

This online course is offered as a stand-alone program. Registration fee includes all course materials.

Instructor: Risë VanFleet, PhD, RPT-S, CDBC
(Licensed Psychologist, Registered Play Therapist-Supervisor, Certified Dog
Behavior Consultant)

Despite sharing our lives with dogs for years, it is often the case that we are unaware of the many ways that they are constantly communicating. They use virtually every part of their body to communicate, and the study of canine body language provides us with a deeper understanding of our dogs. This course is designed to help you become more aware of the ways that dogs communicate and why it is so important for you to become adept at observing and understanding what they are saying at all times, including during therapy or educational sessions in which they participate. Mental health, allied health, and education professionals must be able to communicate effectively with each other to provide quality, coordinated services. Similarly, the human-canine therapy team must communicate well to ensure that sessions go smoothly. The well-being of clients as well as the dogs depends on it! Recognition and accurate interpretation of canine communication is probably the most important skill a therapist can develop to ensure safety for all involved, to make effective decisions during therapy sessions, and to maximize therapeutic gain. Furthermore, it is valuable to help clients learn to understand some of the communication signals of animals, as they can provide a basis for strengthening empathy.

This course covers many details about dogs’ body language and offers some practice opportunities to build awareness and skill in this vital area. The observation skills and the approach to interpretation covered in this course can readily be applied to other species as well, although the specific body signals can be quite different and should be mastered for each species with which one works. Successful completion of this course is a prerequisite for the live 4-day Animal Assisted Play Therapy® Level 1 workshop offered regularly in the US, UK, and other countries. The contents of this course are relevant for those engaging in many forms of therapy dog work, as well as for others interested in understanding their dogs better. This course can be taken as a stand-alone program. Registration fee includes all course materials except the textbook and CD.

CE Credits Available: 10

Required Text and CD (sold separately):

Pelar, C. (2009). Kids and Dogs: A Professional’s Guide to Helping Families. Woodbridge, VA: C&R Publishing.

Byrnes, C. (2008). What Is My Dog Saying? Communication 101 (CD), Spokane, WA: Diamonds in the Ruff.

Instructor: Risë VanFleet, PhD, RPT-S, CDBC, Licensed Psychologist (PA)

Learning Objectives: Participants in this course will be able to…

1. Describe at least 2 reasons it is important to learn to read canine body language when involving dogs in the responsible, ethical practice of child/family/play therapy, other mental health therapies, allied health interventions, and educational programs.
2. Identify at least 10 different canine stress or calming signals therapists might see in Animal Assisted Play Therapy® or AAT and what they might mean.
3. Explain the importance of context in interpreting canine body language.
4. Observe and respond to stress signals in order to ensure the safety of clients in AAPT.
5. Intervene appropriately when dogs show significant levels of stress during sessions.
6. Explain the connection between canine body language and the development of empathy in children within AAPT sessions.
7. Explain the difference between “tolerance” and “enjoyment” in dogs’ interactions with people, how to tell the difference, and the implications of that for AAPT and AAT.

The co-creators of AAPT, Risë VanFleet and Tracie Faa-Thompson, focus on multiple species in their sessions, with an emphasis on dogs and horses. The other presenters, Val Miraglia and Jodi Smith, focus primarily on dogs, although the general principles will apply to all species involved in this work. The four sessions of this course are below with their respective presenters:

• Enhancing Our Human-Animal Skills ~ Risë VanFleet
• Resilience 2.0: The Rest of the Story ~ Val Miraglia
• What Does “Choice” Really Mean? ~ Tracie Faa-Thompson
• Socialization: Preparing Dogs & Beyond ~ Jodi Smith

This self-paced course has been created to provide the practitioner of Animal Assisted Play Therapy® or other Animal Assisted Interventions with a solid background in canine behavior and training. It is likely to be useful to others who wish to learn more about canine socialization, behavior, and training, and how these relate to our relationships with dogs as well as to the work we ask them to do.

Included lessons are as follows: (1) the therapeutic partnership; (2) the nature of dogs; debunking the myths; (3) socialization; (4) overview of dog training; (5) learning principles (theory); (6) positive training concepts; (7) dog training applications; (8) more training applications and resources; (9) the dog’s welfare. The course consists of a PowerPoint presentation, links to supporting documents, video presentations and examples, and detailed examples of how to train a number of key behaviors. Successful completion of this course is a prerequisite for the live 4-day Animal Assisted Play Therapy® Level 2 workshop offered regularly in the US, UK, and elsewhere.

CE Credits Available: 10

Required Text (sold separately): Dennison, P. (2015). You CAN Train Your Dog: Mastering the Art & Science of Modern Dog Training. Blairstown, NJ: Shadow Publishing.

Instructor: Risë VanFleet, PhD, RPT-S, CDBC, Licensed Psychologist (PA)

Learning Objectives: Participants in this course will be able to…

1. Explain why the therapist-canine relationship is so important to Animal Assisted Play Therapy®.
2. Identify key features of a therapy partnership with a dog.
3. Define the basic principles of classical conditioning.
4. Explain the four quadrants of operant conditioning.
5. Describe what is meant by socialization and why it is so important for play therapy dogs.
6. Define the following terms: luring, free shaping, capturing, marker training, play training, DRI.
7. Give at least 3 reasons why it is critical to use nonaversive methods in training dogs for therapy work.
8. Distinguish collars and harnesses that are appropriate and inappropriate for managing dogs’ behavior.
9. Apply training principles and ideas to teach their dogs at least 3 useful behaviors for AAPT work.
10. Monitor their dogs for stress during therapy sessions and respond appropriately when they see it.

​This Level 2 rabbit course provides a review as well as new information that enhances one’s understanding of and ability to work with rabbits as partners in Animal Assisted Play Therapy®. Participants will explore rabbit behavior, care, and communication in depth, gaining the knowledge needed to support both animal welfare and therapeutic effectiveness.

Key topics include:

• Bunny Basics: The history of domestication, breeds, and cultural significance of rabbits.

• Health & Husbandry: Nutrition, veterinary care, housing, enrichment, and welfare needs.

• Body Language & Social Behavior: Interpreting rabbit communication signals and understanding social dynamics.

• Relationships with People: Building trust with a prey species, force-free handling, and safe training approaches.

• Integrating Rabbits in Therapy: Client orientation, office setup, interventions using natural rabbit behaviors, and managing risks.

Designed for professionals in counseling, play therapy, and animal-assisted interventions, this training highlights both the unique opportunities and responsibilities that come with including rabbits in therapeutic work. By the end of the course, participants will be able to recognize rabbit communication cues, implement welfare-centered care, and ethically integrate rabbits into therapeutic settings.

Description:
This comprehensive course on rabbit communication and training is designed to provide participants with a deep understanding of rabbits, covering essential topics such as their history, instinctive prey behaviors, communication, care, and training tips. This course will do all of this in order to explore the value and role of partnering with rabbits in Animal Assisted Play Therapy® (AAPT). We will also delve into the rabbits’ natural instincts, helping participants recognize and respond to their unique needs that can show up in play sessions. This course is recommended for anyone who is interested in learning more about rabbits.

Course Objectives:
Participants in this course will learn to:
(1) Understand the history and origin of rabbits to aid in the development of empathy in play therapy sessions. (2) Describe the stages of a rabbit’s life cycle, from birth to maturity, and identify key milestones in growth and development that contribute to risk management in AAPT. (3) Examine the instinctive prey behaviors of rabbits and how these behaviors influence their interactions with play therapists, clients, and their environment. (4) Identify the essential components of a rabbit’s diet, including the importance of hay, vegetables, and vitamin C. (5) Describe the ideal habitat requirements for rabbits, focusing on space, comfort, and environmental enrichment that is important to their work in play therapy. (6) Demonstrate the basics of clicker training and how to implement this technique to teach rabbits new behaviors and tricks to be used in play therapy. (7) Understand the various forms of body language and vocalizations used by rabbits to communicate with each other and clients/therapists in play therapy. (8) Discuss the role of partnering with rabbits in play therapy as well as ethical guidelines and considerations.

CE Credits Available: 6

Required Text: Müller, I. (2018). Clicker Training for Rabbits, Guinea Pigs, and Other Small Pets. Fox Chapel Publishing Company, Inc. (Can be purchased on Amazon)

Instructor: Dr. Mary Rottier, LPC, RPT-S, CAAPT-S-I, CPDT

Link for Course: Pawsitive Online Rabbit Communication Course

Description:
This Level 2 rabbit course provides a review as well as new information that enhances one’s understanding of and ability to work with rabbits as partners in Animal Assisted Play Therapy®. Participants will explore rabbit behavior, care, and communication in depth, gaining the knowledge needed to support both animal welfare and therapeutic effectiveness.

Key topics include:

• Bunny Basics: The history of domestication, breeds, and cultural significance of rabbits.
• Health & Husbandry: Nutrition, veterinary care, housing, enrichment, and welfare needs.
• Body Language & Social Behavior: Interpreting rabbit communication signals and understanding social dynamics.
• Relationships with People: Building trust with a prey species, force-free handling, and safe training approaches.
• Integrating Rabbits in Therapy: Client orientation, office setup, interventions using natural rabbit behaviors, and managing risks.

Designed for professionals in counseling, play therapy, and animal-assisted interventions, this training highlights both the unique opportunities and responsibilities that come with including rabbits in therapeutic work. By the end of the course, participants will be able to recognize rabbit communication cues, implement welfare-centered care, and ethically integrate rabbits into therapeutic settings.

Instructors: Rikki Ford and Dr. Leslie Stewart