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CAAWT Online Class
Training for Bonding with Constructional Affection
Do you live or work with a dog that gets too excited and jumps, mouths, or scratches, people, destroys furniture and objects, or struggles with separation anxiety?
If we don't do anything, these behaviors can become problematic for dogs and humans... It can lead to changing our daily routines to accommodate our dog's behavior, fewer interactions or outings for the dog, or the dog being surrendered to an animal shelter or rehomed.
However, there is good news! When our dogs behave like this, they are telling us something important - that we have something they really want... OUR AFFECTION!
To fulfill the dog's needs and teach more desirable behaviors, we can give the dog what they want, our affection, for doing easier and more desirable behavior that we want. And we have the perfect training technique to do this!
Constructional Affection is a training procedure that uses affection in the form of gentle petting and stroking as a reinforcer to build desirable behavior and interactions. Constructional Affection is the first and only method available that teaches humans how impactful our daily interactions can be in establishing our relationships with our animal companions and how to harness our affection to shape desirable behavior.
The benefits of Constructional Affection include:
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Build mutually enjoyable relationships between dogs and the people who care for them
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Establish clear communication with our dogs
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Build a foundation for a better live with our dogs
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Solve problem behaviors that are maintained by human interaction
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Help with separation anxiety
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Teach dog how to relax in many settings
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Help shelter dogs get adopted and stay adopted
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It is fun and easy for everyone!
Constructional Affection has been able to successfully help dogs and their family establish the kinds of relationships they always dreamed of. It also has helped shelter dogs learn the kinds of behaviors that get them adopted and stay adopted.
We will teach you the process and the training technique in a step-by-step fashion!
Class Description
In this class, you will learn the fundamental knowledge and skills of the Constructional Affection!
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How to train based on the Constructional Approach
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When and what kind of animals we can use Constructional Affection for
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Goals of the Constructional Affection
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How to do the Interaction Guidelines
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How to plan Affection Loop
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How to do Affection Loop
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Decision-making during the Constructional Affection
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How to live a Constructional Affection lifestyle
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Receive individual feedback and advice from Sean and Maasa and implement and revise Constructional Affection with your own animal
This is an interactive project-based online class. Listening to the lecture only will not help you gain the knowledge and skills. We included many interactive exercises to support your learning, as well as class assignment in each class, where you can practice the skills you learn in the class. Let's learn and think together and apply what you learn with your animal with Sean and Maasa's support! We do our best to create a learning environment where you can easily ask any questions, so we encourage all the questions and discussions!
You can learn these content only from CAAWT, and what you learn are lifetime skills.
Let's learn how to create an affectionate and mutually enjoyable relationship together!
Constructional Affection is a training program we offer when training with shelter dogs. Here are two success stories of shelter dogs, Sammy and Caramel, who were thought to be difficult to get adopted, learned desirable behaviors through Constructional Affection and found their forever home!
◼️ Online Class Dates
The class will be held on Tuesday from 7pm to 9pm Eastern Time. And we have five online classes. The dates for the online classes are listed below:
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April 8th
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April 22nd
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May 6th
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May 20th
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June 3rd
◼️ Open House Dates
The Open House will be held on Wednesday from 6pm-8pm Eastern Time. During the class period, you are invited to attend Open Houses, where we meet on zoom for two hours. During the Open House, you can share the class assignments, and receive advice and feedback from Sean and Maasa. This is also a great place to ask any questions you have from the online classes. The dates for the Open House are listed below:
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April 16th
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April 30th
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May 14th
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May 28th
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June 4th
◼️ Free Webinar
Sean and Maasa hosted a free webinar about this online class on March 18th from 7pm-8pm Eastern Time.
If you missed the webinar but want to watch the recording, please email us before April 1st.
The recording will be available until April 2nd at 11:59pm Eastern Time.
During the webinar, we covered:
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CAAWT mission and a story (The rationale behind the reason why we continue to teach Constructional Affection)
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What the Constructional Affection is
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Success Stories: Before and After of Constructional Affection with four shelter dogs
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Get a sneak peek of the class material and format
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Meet the instructors: Sean and Maasa
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How to register for the class
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Ask any questions about the class

Sean Will, M.S.

Maasa Nishimuta, M.S.
Online Class Registeration
◼️ Who is this class for?
This class is perfect for those who have never heard of Constructional Affection, those who are interested in learning it, or those who want to incorporate and use Constructional Affection in their own training, consultation with their client, and their lifestyle with animal companions! We welcome everyone from family members/pet owners, professional trainers, groomers/trimmers, veterinarians/nurses, and animal shelter staff/volunteers!
◼️ Online Class Registration Fee
Individual - EARLY BIRD (until March 20th at 11:59pm Eastern Time) - Early Bird price ended
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Non-member: $400
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CAAWT Premium Member: $200
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CAAWT Basic Member: $320
Individual - REGULAR (from March 21st until April 6th at 11:59pm Eastern Time)
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Non-member: $450
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CAAWT Premium Member: $225
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CAAWT Basic Member: $360
To learn more about CAAWT Membership, click HERE
PayPal transaction fee will be added to the registration fee.
Group Discount for animal shelter staff and volunteers - Buy two, get the third for FREE!
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All three members need to be from the same animal shelter
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If you are interested in registering for this, please contact us!
Registration deadline: April 6th at 11:59pm Eastern Time
Class capacity: 30 people
◼️ What is included?
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Attend the online classes live (online class dates are listed above)
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Lecture slides and worksheets
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Online class recordings
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You will receive the recording within 48 hours after each class
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The recording will be available until 10/31/25
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Attend the Open Houses live (Open House dates are listed above)
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When you share the class assignments, you will receive individual feedback and advice!
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Access to Open House recordings within 48 hours after each Open House
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Ongoing support throughout the online class period
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We provide individualized feedback and advice for the class assignments. For us to provide feedback, we will need to see your work (worksheet and video). We will explain the class assignment and support you all throughout.
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If you are a CAAWT member, you will receive ongoing support after the online class ends
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If you are a non-member, we will give you feedback for 2 weeks after the online class ends
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◼️ CEUs
You can earn CEUs from the organization below:
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KPA: 10 CEUs
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CCPDT: 10 CEUs
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BCBA: 10 CEUs
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IAABC: 10 CEUs
We will explain how to earn CEUs in the class.
◼️ Place
This is an online class held on Zoom meeting. You can attend classes from anywhere as long as you have a secure internet.
◼️ How to register for the class
① Click the registration button below to fill out the registration form.
② After we check your registration form, we will send you an invoice from PayPal. Please make a payment within 7 days. You will receive an invoice from an email address: caawtcontact@gmail.com
③ After we confirm your payment, we will send you the confirmation email.
④ Three days before the class starts (April 5th), we will email you all the information you need to join the class!
◼️ All the profit from the group class will fund free behavior support and training we offer to shelter dogs ♡
CAAWT is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to remove financial barriers to behavior support and training for individuals and organizations who need training but cannot afford it. As you learn with us, you are helping shelter dogs! We thank you for your support.
◼️ Cancelation
After you submit the registration form, we will send you an invoice from PayPal. If you do not make a payment within 7 days, your registration may be canceled. Once we receive your payment, we are not able to refund. If we have to cancel the online class, we will refund you in full.
◼️ Contact Us
If you have any questions about the online class, feel free to email us.
We are looking forward to meeting you in the class!