Hands-on versus assisting dog training hours
Hands-on hours are time you spend training (classes, private lessons, consults, training dogs yourself); assisting hours are related work such as shelter volunteering, and at most 75 count.
Assisting also covers talking through cases with another trainer, designing training plans, working as a veterinary technician or groomer, or helping another trainer without instructing. The dividing line is whether you were instructing a person or training a dog. A trainer's assistant who actively instructs counts as hands-on. At least 225 hands-on hours are needed.
The assistant rule
The 2026 candidate handbook allows a trainer's assistant to log hands-on hours, provided they are actively instructing a client or training a dog as part of the assistant role. The same handbook lists assisting another trainer without actively instructing as assisting hours. So two hours at the same class can be different kinds of hours depending on what you did.
- You demonstrated an exercise with a student's dog and coached the handler: hands-on.
- You ran one station of the class and gave instructions to handlers: hands-on.
- You set up equipment, handed out treats and held leashes: assisting.
- You watched the lead trainer and took notes: assisting at most.
Two kinds of hours, two rows
The log instructions say hands-on and assisting hours reflect different activities and cannot be listed in the same row. If you assisted at a school's class for part of the month and instructed for the rest, write two rows for that school for that month, one with the hands-on hours and one with the assisting hours. The log on this site stores one role per row, so it cannot mix them.
Recording the difference as you go
The hardest months to reconstruct are the ones where you helped out at a colleague's classes. A year later it is hard to say how much of that time you were instructing. Two habits make it easy:
- Note in your diary, the same day, whether you instructed or only helped. A word is enough: taught, or helped.
- When you start assisting a colleague, agree with them what you will teach, so the hands-on part of the role is clear to both of you. The person who signs your attestation may well be that colleague.
- If you are unsure whether an hour was instructing, log it as assisting. The cap limits what assisting can add, but an honest log is worth more than a few hours.
Worked example: one month, five rows
| Client or facility | Service and hours | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Garcia | Private lesson, 4 h | Hands-on, leading |
| Main Street Dog School | Group class, 6 h | Hands-on as a trainer's assistant |
| Main Street Dog School | Group class, 3 h | Assisting or related work |
| Riverside Animal Shelter | Volunteering at a shelter, 5 h | Assisting or related work |
| Patel | Designing training plans, 2 h | Assisting or related work |
10 hands-on and 10 assisting hours. The dog school appears twice because part of the time was instructing and part was not. You can log a month of your own the same way in the training log.
Common mistakes
- Putting hands-on and assisting hours for one client in the same row.
- Logging every hour at a colleague's class as hands-on when you were not instructing.
- Logging shelter volunteering outside a trainer role as hands-on.
- Counting more than 75 assisting hours.
Log your own hours
The log keeps one row per client per month with the role and the hours, flags rows that will not be accepted, and the progress page totals hands-on and assisting hours inside the three year window. Everything stays in this browser.
Frequently asked questions
Does consulting with a client count as hands-on?
Yes. The handbook lists consulting with clients alongside group classes, private lessons and training dogs as hands-on training.
Does discussing a case with another trainer count?
Yes, as assisting. Consulting with another trainer about current cases is on the assisting list.
Is a vet tech's time hands-on?
No. Working as a veterinary technician or a groomer is listed as assisting.
Sources
Last reviewed 27 September 2026 against:
- CPDT-KA Candidate Handbook, Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers, 2026 testing periods, read 27 September 2026. Used for: Hands-on and assisting examples and the trainer's assistant rule.
- CPDT-KA Online Training Log Instructions, Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers, 2025 edition, template upload or direct entry, read 27 September 2026. Used for: Hands-on and assisting hours never share a row.
This guide is our own summary of the published documents, not legal advice and not a finding about your eligibility; the credentialing authority decides. If it disagrees with the current documents, the documents win. Trainer Hours is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers (CCPDT) or any other certifying body. CPDT-KA and CBCC-KA are marks of their owners.