Animal Centred Education (ACE) is an integrated and mutli-modal approach to animal well-being and education. It has been developed by animal educator and behaviour advisor, Sarah Fisher.
Animal Centred Education combines observations of the animal’s posture, movement and nervous system responses, ACE Free Work, gentle bodywork, and the introduction of simple educational lessons within a Free Work set up.
ACE online courses give you a good understanding of ACE techniques including ACE Free Work, detailed ACE Observations, and gentle handling and bodywork. Interactive live online sessions, and in-person practical workshops (where accessible) support your online learning.
Every course carries ACE credits enabling you to work towards your ACE certification should you choose to do so.
Enrolling on an ACE Course
Our current online courses run over two to three weeks online during specified dates, and include live coaching and support sessions on Zoom and in a dedicated FB group. You can enrol on our online only courses directly through this website.
ACE Modules that form part of the ACE Training Programme can be completed part online and part in-person at Tilley Farm, or all online for those who cannot attend the practical workshops at Tilley Farm. Enrolments on the ACE Training Programme Modules One to Five are manual to ensure you book the right course. Please email [email protected] for more information, and booking forms for the Modules that are of interest to you.
We also run in-person two day workshops at Tilley Farm that you can attend as part of the ACE Training Programme, or as a stand alone course to gain practical skills to support the dog in your care.
Dates for all our practical workshops, and ACE courses taught by Sarah Fisher, and ACE Associate and ACE Advanced Tutors can be found on our website at www.tilleyfarm.org.uk.
Sarah Fisher and the ACE Evolution
I have worked with animals for almost thirty years and am passionate about sharing all I have learned from my inspiring four legged tutors.
ACE has evolved from my early learning experiences in the fields of human well-being, and seeking alternative ways beyond training to support animals that struggle with sensory sensitivity.
It is thanks to the dogs at Battersea and two special dogs, Cookie Dough Dynamo and Henry, that ACE Free Work has become a structured method of supporting animals of all ages.
ACE Free Work is changing the lives of animals around the world. As well as being an enriching and peaceful experience for both the animal and caregiver/guardian, it provides a foundation on which further learning can be built.
ACE Observations and ACE Free Work are at the heart of all our ACE courses and help to improve our understanding of the animals in our care. Many ACE students have identified physical struggles in their animal companion that influenced the way their companions navigated their world.
If you would like to learn more about the ACE approach you can enrol on Watch This SpACE.
ACE Training Programme
If you would like to become a certified ACE Trainer or ACE Practitioner you can join the ACE Training Programme.
Trainers, behaviourists, veterinary physiotherapists, animal welfare teams, vets and veterinary nurses are incorporating ACE skills into their fields of expertise with great success.
To gain your frst level ACE certification you need to complete ACE Modules One, Two and Three and submit case histories for assessment. Further courses and case history submissions enable you to progress through the levels.
Animal guardians have been able to support the animals in their care through their ACE interactions and skills learned from our online and/or in-person events. You do not need to commit to becoming a certified ACE Trainer/Practitioner to enrol on our ACE Modules, or shorter courses.
Please email [email protected] for more information on the ACE Training Programme.
ACE Trainer/Practitioner
300 ACE Credits
ACE Trainers and Practitioners have completed ACE Module One, Two and Three, and submitted five case histories.
ACE Trainers and Practitioners can offer one to one support in-person or online and can include ACE elements in their fields of expertise and their own educational courses.
ACE Associate Tutor
500 ACE Credits
ACE Associate Tutors have gained their ACE Trainer/Practitioner certificate, have accrued a further 200 ACE Credits through completion further of ACE courses through Animal Centred Education Ltd or approved ACE courses taught by members of the ACE teaching team, and have submitted three further case histories.
ACE Associate Tutors can offer ACE workshops online or in-person.
ACE Advanced Tutor
700+ ACE Credits
ACE Advanced Tutors have been invited to be a part of the ACE teaching team, and have been teaching ACE courses online or in-person as an ACE Associate Tutor.
ACE Advanced Tutors can offer ACE credits to any participant on their courses who is working towards their ACE Associate Tutor certification.
ACE Courses
All our courses are designed to increase your observation skills and deepen your understanding of the animal companions that share your life. We are passionate about giving animals choice, and a voice.
Whether you are a guardian (owner), or already working in the world of animal welfare, education, behaviour or husbandry, our ACE courses will add new layers to your existing knowledge.
Please email [email protected] for more information on our courses.
You can join the ACE Training Club for an annual one off payment to benefit from a 10% discount on all our courses.
Feedback from some of our ACE students
'I just want to say a huge THANK YOU for the time I spent at Tilley Farm. I am always blown away by the layers in ACE Free Work'
'I am so very grateful to you for your support with my wonderful dog. It is a journey that has been truly inspirational.'
'Thank you for a wonderful, interactive, and informative two days. It was such a privilege and pleasure to be able to dedicate time to seeing the magic of ACE Observations and Free Work'.
'I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for opening my heart and mind to the amazing world of ACE Free Work. It has been a humbling and emotional two days, and I can't wait to learn more.'
'I have to share this update with you and your team. Thanks to all I have learned on the online courses and at the workshop I took my dog to my vet. He has been diagnosed with physical issues that he has probably stuggled with for some time. He is now on pain relief and I cannot believe the difference in his behaviour. I have a happy dog, and I am a happy guardian. I am so grateful for ACE.'
'Thank you so much for the information and enjoyable ACE Adolescence course. I have already been able to put some of the skills I have learned into practice with my adolescent clients. The results are outstanding. I cannot wait to learn more.'
'Thank you for the brilliant ACE Dog Detective Course. It was amazing! I am so looking forward to progressing with my ACE journey to improve my dog companions' lives, and that of others and their guardians.'
Animal Centred Education is a Founder Member of the UK Dog Behaviour and Training Charter. https://www.dogcharter.uk