Tellington TTouch Equine Practitioner Certification
Becoming a certified Practitioner requires a certain amount of self discipline, interest in learning and a commitment to practice.
Credits can be earned through online Tellington TTouch Academy courses and/or through attendance at in-person sessions taught by an approved Instructor or Senior Practitioner. In some cases ongoing learning with other levels of Practitioners can be considered towards credits ( at the office’s discretion).
Students do NOT have to officially declare their intention to become certified. Many students start out for their own learning and decide that they want to become Practitioners as they are inspired on the learning journey. The office keeps track of your course credits so you can decide to work towards certification retroactively.
Once a student has earned at least 60 credits and completed course assignments, including the 5 detailed Case Studies (and 15 checklists); they are eligible for the evaluation process.
Some students will be ready for testing at this time, others may want to continue to study before testing.
Upon submitting an application for testing and paying the required fee, the student will schedule testing with an instructor.
Testing may be in-person, online, with video or a combination of these and will include a written test as well as an assessment of practical skills and applications.
Tellington TTouch Online Academy
Any course that is offered with live, interactive Zoom sessions is part of the Tellington TTouch Academy.
These courses can count towards Practitioner credits.
Unless the student has attended multiple in-person workshops, students must complete the Academy course; “Tellington TTouch for Horses: Immersion Course” (formerly Level 1 & Level 2) at least once. This course encompasses the complete body of online course material in addition to 30 hours of interactive Zoom session classes.
In addition to this core class, which some students may choose to attend more than once, credits can be earned through various Elective courses that cover “Applied TTouch” topics, Intro, and, of course, Linda’s Masterclasses.
One dog, cat, and TTouch-for-You class, may be count towards Equine Practitioner certification credits.
Video Assignments
Submitting videos clips of your work with horses is an integral part of the remote learning process.
Video assignments are laid out in the “Immersion Course” material.
These skills can be done in a single session with a horse or over varying sessions. Remember that the purpose of the assignment is to demonstrate the scope of your skills and allow for constructive feedback from the instructor.
Demonstrate the following exercises:
Lowering the head two different ways
Two variations of TTouch Body Wrap
Mouth TTouch
Ear TTouch
Tail TTouch
Leg circles
Attaching the lead line
Leading in Elegant Elephant
Building a Labyrinth & leading through
Dingo
Case Studies: Showcase Your Skills
Certification requirements include submitting at least 5, detailed case studies that follow the progress of horses you are working with.
Students who are primarily using online credits must provide video segments/demonstration in at least 5 of the case studies (as a way to demonstrate your skill).
Sample Case Study Templates:
Equine Case Study Template sample(1)
Equine Case Study Template sample(2)
Case Study Examples:
Equine Case Study Sample – Lacey
(Please note that these are examples, not required formats.)
In addition to detail Cast Studies, students must submit 15 work checklists for horses not used in above case studies. These checklists provide Instructors with a simple overview of your working style and skill.
Credit Requirements
Upon completion of 60 credits, and successful assignment and case study submissions, you are permitted to be evaluated.
Many students will prefer to attend additional Academy courses, attend an in-person training or enlist the support of a mentor prior to evaluation.
The nature of the Tellington TTouch Method is that learning is somewhat “spiral” or “layered”. The more you learn, the more you refine and add to existing skills and knowledge. For this reason taking any Academy course more than once will NOT feel redundant.
Eligible Credits
Certification credits can be attained through Tellington TTouch Online Academy courses AND/OR by attending in-person workshops taught by an approved teachers. In-person workshops count as 2 credits per day of instruction.
In some cases, one on one work with an approved Practitioner or Instructor can also count towards certification credits, at the discretion of the office.
Credits are tracked by the office database. User accounts on this site are not always accurate due to the combination of learning options. Any questions should be directed to Mandy at [email protected].
Evaluation Process – Demonstrate Your Skills
🟠 Earn at least 60 credits of course hours (can include in person training which is 2 credits per day)
🟠 Feel confident with your understanding of the Core Curriculum
🟠 Register for Certification Evaluation
🟠 Complete 5 detailed case studies
🟠 Submit 15 work checklists for horses not used in above case studies
🟠 Score 80% or more on a written test
🟠 Demonstrate safe & confident general horsemanship skills in handling
🟠 Demonstrate an excellent understanding of Tellington TTouch Philosophy
🟠 Demonstrate proficiency in practical TTouch skills
🟠 Demonstrate competency in a Client Session video submission
Certification is contingent on the evaluation of the coursework, videos, case study submissions and overall skill level.
Payment
Students will pay for each session prior to participating in the session, unless a payment plan has been approved. In order to become certified as Practitioner or Practitioner 1, all sessions attended must be fully paid.
Students in North America: While registration for online courses is centralized, Canadians and Americans will register in their country of residence regardless of where they are attending the in-person training.
When a student believes they are ready to be tested for certification, they will inform their national office, pay the testing fee, and schedule their test.
Mentors
After completing 24 credits, students in the certification track are eligible to request and be assigned a mentor.
Assignments will be made on the basis of personal student needs, time availability of mentors, and in some cases, geographic proximity of student and mentor. It is our aim to match the interests of the students with the skills of the mentors as best we can. In this process, if a student has a specific mentor preference, we will make every effort to honor that.
Safety Guidelines
Tellington TTouch students and Practitioners must adhere to safe handling techniques to assure the safety of their clients, their client’s horses, and themselves. This includes the following:
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The ability to assess equine communication and stress signals and respond appropriately.
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Awareness of personal space and how to position yourself safely while working with a horse.
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Utilizing the concept of “giving choice,” to reduce the likelihood of a horse feeling threatened or trapped. This includes allowing a horse to retreat, or moving a horse away from a threatening situation.
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Intervening as needed if you observe a client putting the animal or yourself in an unsafe situation.
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Never employing the use of aversive training techniques or tools.
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The ability to recognize when it is not safe to touch or work with a particular animal.
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Keeping safe space between multiple horsess in a class or workshop situation.
Tellington TTouch Certification Levels
Tellington TTouch Practitioner
Qualification Criteria:
– Successful completion of required coursework for a total of 60 credits.
– Submission of 5 approved case studies and 15 checklists.
– Achievement of passing score on written and practical skills assessment.
Permitted Practice:
– Certified to work with individuals.
– May give short (one hour) lectures or demonstrations to groups.
Tellington TTouch Practitioner 1
Practitioners are eligible to be tested for Practitioner 1 after earning an additional 12 credits of specific coursework related to teaching Tellington TTouch workshops. This curriculum will also prepare the Practitioner for the Practitioner 1 test. Some Practitioners will be ready for testing at this time, others may want to continue to study before testing.
Upon submitting an application for testing and paying the required fee, the Practitioner will schedule testing with an instructor. Testing may be in-person, online, with video or a combination of these and will include a written test as well as an assessment of skills required for teaching workshops.
Qualification Criteria:
– Successful completion of required coursework for a total of 72 credits.
– Completion of a class presentation to demonstrate teaching skills observed by an instructor.
– Submission and approval of a plan for conducting a one day workshop.
– Achievement of passing score on written and practical skills assessment.
Permitted Practice:
– Certified to work with individuals.
– May give short (one hour) lectures or demonstrations to groups.
– Give lectures/demonstrations or weekly classes.
– Teach one day hands-on workshops to groups.
Tellington TTouch Practitioner 2
Qualification Criteria:
– Have been listed in the Guild as a Practitioner 1 for at least one year immediately prior to upgrading
– Have taught at least 10 one-day or 20 half-day/evening hands-on workshops (or the equivalent) and turned in feedback forms from participants and organizers from at least five of the workshops.
– Submission and approval of a plan for conducting a one day workshop.
– Achievement of passing score on written and practical skills assessment.
Permitted Practice:
– Certified to work with individuals.
– May give short (one hour) lectures or demonstrations to groups.
– Give lectures/demonstrations or weekly classes.
– Teach one or two day hands-on workshops to groups.
Tellington TTouch Senior Practitioner (P3)
Qualification Criteria:
– Have been an active TTouch Practitioner for at least 8 years immediately prior to upgrading.
– Have taught a minimum of 30 workshops (or equivalent)
– Assisted at a minimum of 10 trainings.
– Guild member for a minimum of 4 years before application and remain a Guild member
– Demonstrates exceptional teaching and interpersonal skills
– Submitted feedback forms from 5 workshops taught in the past three years prior to upgrading.
– Demonstrates excellent handling and technical skills with a wide variety of horses.
Permitted Practice:
– Certified to work with individuals.
– May give short (one hour) lectures or demonstrations to groups.
– Give lectures/demonstrations or weekly classes.
– Teach one or two day hands-on workshops to groups.
– Qualified to function as senior assistants at trainings.
– Develop and teach webinars for the TTouch Online Learning Program.
– Teach workshops (up to 3 days) to provide TTouch CEU credits according to curriculum guidelines.
Tellington TTouch Instructor
Instructors are selected based on experience, technical and practical skills, teaching ability, and collaborative nature and other contributions to (and needs of) the organization.
Benefits of Practitioner Certification
The process of becoming a Certified Tellington TTouch Practitioner for Dogs has many benefits, besides the tremendous personal learning potential.
Tellington TTouch Practitioners are certified to:
Teach the method and its exercises to individual clients and their animals
Use the official Tellington TTouch Logo and branding in a professional capacity
Eligible to join the Professional Guild which allows for discounts, insider access, invitations to weekly educational webinars, annual membership to the TTouch Community
Access to private Practitioner Facebook page
TELLINGTON TTOUCH PRACTITIONER GUILD:
The Tellington TTouch Practitioner Guild is a professional membership organization with the mission of promoting the Tellington TTouch Method.
Being a Guild member entitles you to:
– A discount on TTouch equipment purchases (for current Certified Practitioners only).
– Subscription to the Tellington TTouch Community FaceBook group.
– Listing in the Practitioner Directory of the Tellington TTouch Guild Site and the TTouch USA and TTouch Canada sites. Listing includes an individual Profile Page for each Guild Member to enter business information, services, contact data and photographs.
– Assist at trainings which can count toward keeping your certification current.
– Updated teaching resources and access to the members only section of the Guild website.
– Referrals through the TTouch offices.
– Current Practitioners and Instructors will be listed with the TTouch Guild provided they maintain their status (see section below in Maintaining Practitioner Status) and pay the appropriate Guild Membership fee.
– With prior approval, Certified Practitioners who are Guild Members may assist at training sessions. If the Practitioner’s intent is to upgrade or maintain status, the Practitioner must be present and attentive at the sessions. This will preclude organizers unless all duties have been delegated.
Guild membership for all levels of Tellington TTouch Practitioners depends on maintaining status and paying the annual fees. Robyn Hood sends out Guild renewal forms each year, by e-mail and/or postal mail, to all Practitioners. This information includes the prices for all the levels of membership and the directions for how to renew.
MAINTAINING PRACTITIONER STATUS:
Tellington TTouch Training uses a system of Continuing Education Units (CEUs) to maintain/re-establish Practitioner status or provide means of additional study.
Practitioners of all levels will be required to accumulate 12 CEUs within the previous two years.
CEUs will be awarded for the following:
– Attending or assisting at a five- or six- day in-person training or Level 1 or 2 online courses – 12
– Advanced Training/CELLebration – 12
– Online Practitioner Update – 12
– 2-day workshops with approved practitioner – 3
– 1-day workshops with approved practitioner – 1.5
– TTouch approved webinar – .75
– Practitioners teaching courses, modules or webinars will be assigned appropriate CEUs.
RE-CERTIFYING OUTDATED PRACTITIONERS
All levels of practitioners who fail to update will not be authorized to use the logo or present themselves as Practitioners.
Depending upon the length of time they have been away from the TTouch work, the CEU requirements may vary in order to re-establish the original Practitioner level. For example, a Practitioner 2 outdated for two years may regain their status after accumulating 12 CEUs, whereas a Practitioner 2 outdated for 5 years may need 24 CEUs to regain the Practitioner 2 status, but will be recognized as Practitioner 1 after 12 CEUs.
After two years of being outdated, 12 of the required CEUs must be accumulated at a Practitioner Training Session. In-person trainings may be attended at half the cost of the session.