Humane Society University

Compassion Fatigue in the Animal Care Field

Course Description

Compassion Fatigue or secondary traumatic stress disorder-is the natural consequence of stress resulting from caring for and helping traumatized or suffering people or animals. Our one-day Compassion Fatigue workshop specifically addresses the impact on animal professionals who themselves experience feelings of fear, pain, and suffering as a result of caretaking and being exposed to traumatized animals. Compassion fatigue occurs in humane advocacy professionals, especially those who must participate in euthanasia of animals. Animal advocates experience countless first- and second-hand accounts of animal abuse and neglect as well.

Course Objectives

The Compassion Fatigue workshop is designed to provide those who work in high–stress animal professions with the tools and approaches to effectively manage and address their emotions on an ongoing basis.

By the end of the workshop participants will be equipped with the tools to:

• Identify the path and distinctive elements of compassion fatigue in animal related fields: primary and secondary traumatic stress, burnout, and loss accommodation
• Determine their susceptibility to compassion fatigue and that of their coworkers through an individual survey and group exercises
• Understand how to recover from and become resilient to compassion fatigue
• Learn how compassion fatigue affects both individuals and their organizations
• Develop knowledge and tangible skills necessary to prevent the symptoms of secondary traumatic stress

Schedule

Where: The location of onsite workshops will be determined by the host agency.

When: This is a one-day workshop held between the hours of:
8:30am to 5:00pm
Check in begins at 8:00am

* Note: Participants will be given an hour for lunch

Registration & Fees

Cost Options: The Host Agency can choose from one of the three cost options, below. Rates are specific to each workshop topic and length of the workshop

• Hosting Agency Flat Rate/No Student Registration Fee: The Hosting Agency pays a flat rate to cover the cost of the workshop; individual students do not pay HSU. The cost of each workshop varies according to the requirements of each workshop and your location. For specifics, please inquire with hsuonline@humanesocietyuniversity.org.
• Low Cost Student Registration Fee/Back-up Hosting Agency Matching: The student registration fee is set at a low rate determined by the hosting agency (i.e. $25). The hosting agency would match the difference between the low student rate and the normal registration fee. An invoice will be sent to the hosting agency following the completion of the class.
• Student Registration Fees only/No Hosting Flat Rate: HSU sets the registration fees based on our average class size of 35 students. Workshop fees vary in order to cover costs of instructor travel and materials. In general, our standard student rates are:

Workshop Rate:

Registration deadline is two weeks before the start date of the workshop.

Cancellation fee is 25% of the registration fee.

No refunds will be given after the two-week time period.

HSU reserves the right to cancel this workshop due to low enrollment or in the case of a major animal disaster response.

Accommodations

Recommendations for accommodations will be made by the host agency and will be posted on the specific webpage for each workshop.

Instructors

All of our instructors are subject - matter experts with 10 or more years of experience in their field of instruction.

Required Materials

Workshop materials will be provided by HSU and sent to the host agency within 7-10 business days prior to the start of the workshop.

Upcoming Workshops

View all upcoming Compassion Fatigue in the Animal Care Field workshops