TRAINING

Training & Certification Program

Real world training with NATIONAL prepares you for real world responses  

 Consider becoming a force for good in your community by serving those experiencing hardship, and those who serve. Train with us, with or without a canine partner, to develop the skills that make a difference for someone in crisis.

Training with NATIONAL Crisis Response Canines requires a six-month commitment to our Canis Major + Canis Minor mentorship program, which involves weekly check-ins and the guided completion of curriculum delivered through workbooks, webinars, virtual classrooms, and in-person practicums.

This six-month training culminates in a two-day intensive training and evaluation weekend designed for canine handler teams and team leads to demonstrate proficiency in safely and effectively delivering psychological first aid, utilizing advanced handling skills, demonstrating requests for public access, technology and communication skills, engaged teamwork, and the ability to understand and operation within the Incident Command System chain of command (ICS).

Why choose NATIONAL?

Meet and Exceed the National Standards for Animal Assisted Crisis Response: This trauma-informed, evidence-based curriculum is continuously updated to include the latest research and most current emergency management forecasts. NATIONAL’s curriculum exceeds the requirements set forth in ‘The National Standards for Animal Assisted Crisis Response’ (rev2010).

Over 25 Years of Experience: Live Q+A sessions with NATIONAL responders and subject matter experts provide the opportunity to share the lessons learned from 25 years of actual deployments and provide the handler in training with specific guidance about the skills they’re working to develop.

Advanced Curriculum: Instructors cover psychological and behavioral considerations of crisis; advanced canine handling and public access skills; stress management, self-care, and teamwork; FEMA Incident Command and phases of the disaster cycle; community partnering and outreach; and technology for responders.

Relationship Building: During the mentorship, the canine team develops the special handling skills and partnerships required for crisis response by working closely with their assigned mentor and the deeply invested community of long-serving NATIONAL volunteers. While the canine team is developing the skills and knowledge they need to be responders, they’re also supporting their community’s efforts to be prepared to respond to and recover from crises and disasters.

Hands-On Learning: The real world practicums of NATIONAL’s mentorship include a wide variety of experiences, drills, mock disasters, public access training, working with our community partners and more.

Community Network: NATIONAL identifies the community coalitions that respond to people in need, and extend our support and collaboration to them. Some of the community coalitions we partner with include CERT and CISM teams, United Way agencies, regional American Red Cross and the Salvation Army. We also partner with children & family services, domestic violence shelters, special needs schools, faith-based ministries, fire/rescue, law enforcement, and employers, to name a few.

NATIONAL Crisis Response Canine teams support state and community emergency management multi-agency drills, disaster simulations and other training exercises, as well as outreach safety and health programs that teach residents how to be prepared for and respond to disasters.

Through collaborative efforts amongst community agencies, we build working relationships and knowledge of local resources in advance of a disaster. This allows better coordination of community volunteers to avoid duplication of services and help recognize unmet needs.

Canis Major + Canis Minor™ Mentorship 

NATIONAL Crisis Response Canines developed the first comprehensive mentorship for training crisis response canine teams, the Canis Major+ Canis Minor™ Mentorship program.

During the mentorship program, each new volunteer is paired with an experienced and certified NATIONAL Crisis Response Canines team. The mentor guides the new handler and their canine as they develop essential skills, teamwork, temperament, stress management, and field experience. These skills are crucial for working effectively in the challenging environments of disasters and for safely interacting with individuals who are experiencing intense emotions in the aftermath of a crisis.

Funny Name. What does it mean?  The name Canis Major + Canis Minor™ means Big Dog and Little Dog. It comes from the name of the two dog constellations that follow the hunter Orion constellation in the night sky. The special relationship between humans and dogs was immortalized by the ancient Greeks when they placed the hunter and his dogs together in the heavens for all eternity.

Program Requirements

Canines: The potential crisis response canine has been a member of the handler’s household for a minimum of six months and is:

  • Willing to work
  • 18 months old (minimum age)
  • Any breed or mix breed
  • Tolerant or disinterested in unfamiliar dogs
  • Tolerant of unfamiliar dogs in close proximity (less than 3 feet away)
  • Walks on loose leash at the handler’s pace
  • Focused on handler regardless of distractions
  • Negative for Fecal Parasite Test (within past 90 days)
  • Current with rabies vaccinations (or titers per state/local laws)
  • Microchipped
  • Provided health and wellness care by a veterinarian (DVM)

Handlers and Support Volunteers: Due to the protective nature of our work, all NATIONAL Crisis Response Canines volunteers are required to have a verified criminal history background clearance and complete the following list of pre-requisite trainings:

Is Crisis Work Right for Us?   

The work of crisis response is not for every dog, or for every handler.

For Canines: As with any working canine, it’s important to know if the canine is willing, interested, and capable of doing the work at hand.

Some of these core traits are innate to the individual canine, while others are the result of its life experiences and previous training. The crisis response canine is healthy, mature, confident, and affiliative and intuitively moves toward the distressed, grief-stricken, frustrated, or overwhelmed person.

For Handlers: Being there for someone on the worst day of their life takes trauma-informed training, practice, preparedness, readiness, skills, knowledge, and a deep personal commitment. NATIONAL Crisis Response Canine teams are committed to providing a safe haven for people affected by crisis.

The crisis response canine team consist of one human and one canine. Each canine is a member of the handler’s household, lives indoors and is cared for and loved by the handler and members of their family. Handlers are deployed only with the canine partner they certified with. Likewise, canines are deployed only with the handler they certified with.

Working Together: Certification requires continuous training, skills and knowledge building, demonstrated teamwork, community partner support, and active deployments for both the handler and their canine partner.

 

 Interested in Getting Started?
We are currently waitlisting for our Spring 2025 Cohort. If you’d like to be added to the Spring 2025 waitlist, or would like to sign up for more information and updates about our Autumn 2025 Cohort, please reach out to us at [email protected].
We look forward to connecting with you!