Insist on working with a CDWA-vetted and endorsed Walker. Assurance of professional ethics, training and excellence is your right.
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Insist on working with a CDWA-vetted and endorsed Walker. Assurance of professional ethics, training and excellence is your right.
AT THE TIME OF CDWA’S CREATION, we established set of values and standards in our Code of Ethics that Walker members agree to. Additionally, we seek to vet Walkers by their credentials, be they professional, educational or personal.
We ask that Walkers embrace professional development, industry standards and accountability, especially since their work is not supervised and a system of standards has not been imposed within the industry by a formal body, until now.
First tier vetting. We are asking for the organization and submission of verifiable credentials that are obtainable. With those, we are able to endorse that our Members are law-abiding and bondable, formally or mentor-trained to standard, insured, permit-carrying when applicable, and in agreement with the code of ethics. Together, these form a strong basis for first-tier endorsement.
In our second tier vetting, criteria levels-up to include more stringent assessment and training, to promote broad-based use of functional standards and best practices. In this way, we raise the industry’s operational caliber, we resolve the current patchwork of practices, and we build the industry into professional-class.
Pet Parents benefit from the knowledge and recommendations offered by qualified professionals who work to gold standards.
All of these parts work together to service the needs of dogs, and this promotes animal welfare, overall.
Dog Walkers care for sentient beings and have key access to private homes. Their responsibility and liability are high, as are the expectations placed upon them. The Walking industry does attract some who want an easy job. Credible, trained Walkers should have the ability to distinguish themselves. Vetting and Endorsement provides that framework so that the public may also distinguish who the committed professionals are, along with what training model they practice. This speaks to quality and transparency.
Skills and Methods. In a single day, a Walker will encounter countless situations and behaviours that require humane, proactive handling and management, for the well being and safety of dogs and people. To do that, Walkers should be able to observe and identify issues when they are subtly alerted to and be ready to apply pre-emptive and therapeutic techniques, in the minute. In this way, they can work predictively and preventively to reduce stress, improve behaviours, avoid injury and protect all dogs. Training is important to successful, day-to-day operations. The Code of Ethics sets out humane boundaries for how dogs are treated, while in care.
Protections. We perform background checks and ensure all applicable permits and insurances are in order so that all parties are safe, protected and engaged in a confirmed, professional relationship.
When a Walker complies with these minimum requirements, they demonstrate a commitment to their credibility and professional life for everyone’s benefit. We want to help them shout it from the rooftops.
Experts are sexy.
Walkers have a challenging role and must prepare for every eventuality. It’s a sizable expectation. Training is everything.
Walkers should be expert in canine body language and Animal CPR, teaching and positively reinforcing basic obedience skills; leash walking and effective management of leash reactivities; humane handling; fear and reactivity/aggression, stress management and resource guarding; assessing and mitigating predatory norms and drift; dog self defense and bite prevention.
Walkers should be highly conversant in classical and operant conditioning; Humane Heirarchy principles; accurate behaviour assessment.
These basic competencies require training and are non-negotiable minimums for walking dogs. They are all required in a day’s work. They inform how a Walker works with individual dogs and guide success.
Walkers should be able to assess what service model is appropriate for a given pup so he/she will thrive in care, and ethically adapt or refer when it’s not their model. They should be knowledgeable of, and use, humane tools and equipment and have strong safety protocols in place. Walkers should also be expert-level, accurate sources for information for dog parents on diet, health, emerging behaviours, toys, technique, and so on. All of this requires training and knowledge, from approved industry sources.
Amplify all of this when working with fearful Rescues and Reactives. Add increased knowledge of brain chemistry, keeping the pup under threshold, more stringent safety protocols. And so on. Dog Walking is not appropriately done, without training. It takes knowledge, preparation and chops to be effective.
Together with Educators and Certified Trainers across the country, our collective goal is to ensure that education—and continuing education—becomes the standard.
Walker effectiveness, confidence, professionalism, respect, acknowledgement and reward.
Pet parent peace of mind and trust, with the knowledge that the whole household is getting gold standard care from a professional Walker, who is a subject matter expert.
Dogs who are properly cared for. This means they are safe and thriving in care, treated and trained with dignity, with better and more guaranteed, positive outcomes overall.
Ultimately, the power of these benefits working together mean that we addresses the well being of dogs, we equip Walkers and Parents to care for their pets by addressing needs with precision and compassion, we lower the number of incidents and decrease the number of surrenders.
Greater knowledge and better practices lead directly to insight, well being and success.
Modern dog training and management employs the methods and tactics of science-based learning theory and positive, motivational techniques. The emphasis is placed on reward-based learning, without any inhumane consequences or treatment. This forms the basis for the Standards we endorse.
This philosophy is reflected in our Position Statement and the Walker Code of Ethics and governs how CDWA-endorsed practitioners treat animals in their care. Positive experiences. Insight, patience and humane, effective training methodology.
CDWA endorses the most humane training and management models which are underpinned by a “Do No Harm” philosophy, which is central to canine well being, the most successful outcomes, and our core values. They include:
> LIMA-based (Least Intrusive, Minimally Aversive) Balanced training
> Positive Reinforcement (R+) training (wholly non-aversive)
> Force-Free training (FF, also called Fear Free) (wholly non-aversive)
We do not support training and management tactics or tools that risk, cause fear, pain or injury to animals. The methods and tools we endorse create a fear-free learning environment that preserves the dignity, well being, trust and relationship with the animal. Together, these secure better training and behavioural outcomes, in the short and long terms.
Find out more about how to apply the gold standard yourself. See our Learning Resources and learn what we learn.
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