Beyond the Training Field: Earning NATE Treibball Skills Certificates and Titles

Take your Treibball training to the next level with official skills certifications and video titling opportunities!

Treibball is about much more than teaching a dog to push exercise balls into a goal. It's a sport built on communication, teamwork, distance skills, independent thinking, and precision.

As our dogs progress through training, it's exciting to see those individual skills come together. But what if you could take that progress one step further and earn official recognition for your accomplishments?

Through the National Association of Treibball Enthusiasts (NATE), handlers can work toward Skills Certificates and Treibball titles without needing to travel to an in-person trial.

Whether your dog is developing foundation skills or successfully completing full Treibball courses, there are opportunities to set new goals and celebrate your teamwork.

NATE Skills Certification Program: Celebrating Individual Skills

Not every dog is ready to complete a full Treibball course, and that's perfectly fine!

One of the great things about NATE's Skills Certification Program is that it recognizes the individual behaviors that make successful Treibball possible.

The program is divided into three skill categories:

1. Send Skills

A reliable send is one of the most important foundational behaviors in Treibball.

Your dog must learn to move away from you, travel to a designated position, and respond appropriately to your cues.

As the difficulty increases, dogs must demonstrate greater distance, precision, and independence.

2. Push Skills

Pushing isn't simply about moving a ball. Dogs need to learn how to approach the ball correctly, maintain control, and move it toward the appropriate destination.

Strong pushing skills require an understanding of body positioning, direction, and sustained interaction with the ball.

The certification program allows teams to demonstrate their ability to perform these behaviors under specific criteria.

3. Directional Cues

Can your dog move from one location to another on cue? Can they respond accurately when you ask them to change direction?

Directional skills are essential as Treibball courses become more complex.

Dogs must learn to understand their handler's cues, travel to designated positions, and maintain control even while working at a distance.

How Do Skills Certificates Work?

Each of the three categories offers three levels of increasing difficulty, creating nine possible Skills Certificates.

Unlike some titling programs, you don't have to begin at Level 1. You can work toward whichever level is appropriate for your dog's current abilities.

To earn a certificate, your dog must successfully demonstrate the required skill for an approved NATE Skills Evaluator. And yes, skills can be evaluated through video!

Handlers can record their dog's performance and send it to an evaluator for review.

When all nine Skills Certificates have been earned, the dog is recognized with NATE's Skills Certificate Award (TE-SC).

Why do we love this program?

• It provides clear, measurable training goals.

• It recognizes progress before a dog is ready for full courses.

• It encourages handlers to strengthen important foundation behaviors.

• It creates opportunities for accomplishments at different training levels.

• It gives teams another way to celebrate their hard work!

Learn more: NATE Skills Certification Program

NATE Video Titling: Earn Official Treibball Titles Without Traveling

If your dog is ready to put those individual skills together, NATE's Video Titling Program offers another exciting challenge! Rather than traveling to a live Treibball trial, handlers can record their dogs performing eligible Treibball runs and submit the videos to NATE for official judging.

This makes earning titles more accessible to teams who may not have local competitions available.

How Does Video Titling Work?

The concept is straightforward:

1. Choose the appropriate NATE game and level for your dog.

2. Set up the required course according to NATE regulations.

3. Record your dog's run following NATE's filming requirements.

4. Submit the video to NATE for official judging.

5. Accumulate qualifying runs toward your title!

A NATE Treibball Enthusiast (TE) title requires three qualifying runs at the same game and level.

You can submit runs individually or save them until you have three runs ready for submission.

The video format gives teams the flexibility to work toward titles at their own pace.

What Games and Levels Are Available?

NATE offers several Treibball games, including:

• Standard Treibball: Dogs move balls from a designated formation into the goal.

• Balls N Order: Dogs must move balls into the goal in a specified order.

• Snooker: A strategy-based game where teams work to earn points through a sequence of ball movements.

• Urban Herding: Dogs navigate balls through additional challenges, including designated routes and obstacles.

• Team and Pairs: Opportunities involving two dogs working in the game.

Not every game begins at the same level, but NATE offers progression from foundational through advanced competition skills. For example, the Standard game includes Pre-Novice, Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, and Expert levels.

Pre-Novice Standard can be an excellent first titling goal for teams developing their ability to complete a full course.

As teams advance, the challenges increase through additional balls, greater distances, and more complex handling requirements.

Why Try Video Titling?

A goal to train toward

Having a specific course and set of performance criteria helps guide your training sessions.

An opportunity to test your teamwork

A complete Treibball run challenges your ability to communicate with your dog while allowing them to work independently.

An accessible competition option

You don't have to wait for a local trial or travel long distances to pursue official titles.

A reason to keep progressing

Once you accomplish one goal, you can continue building skills and working toward the next level.

Learn more: NATE Video Titling Program

Which Program Is Right for Your Dog?

The wonderful thing about these programs is that you don't have to choose just one!

Consider Skills Certificates if:

• Your dog is still developing individual Treibball behaviors.

• You're working on more reliable sends, pushes, or directional cues.

• You want measurable goals between training classes.

• Your dog has strong individual skills but isn't ready for full competition courses.

Consider Video Titling if:

• Your dog can confidently complete Treibball sequences.

• You're ready to work within official game requirements.

• You want to earn recognized competition titles.

• You enjoy having increasingly challenging training goals.

Consider both if:

You want to continue strengthening individual behaviors while also progressing toward complete Treibball performances.

Even dogs competing at advanced levels can benefit from revisiting and refining foundational skills.

What Do You Need to Get Started?

Both NATE programs require the handler to have an active NATE membership and the dog to be registered with NATE.

Additional fees apply to certification and titling submissions. NATE currently charges $5 per Skills Certificate, and Skills Evaluators may charge a separate review fee.

Video submissions must follow the rules for the selected program. For Video Titling, that includes appropriate field setup, ball placement, camera positioning, and clear footage of the performance.

NATE makes resources available to help competitors understand these requirements.

You can get started by visiting NATE's website, exploring the programs, and reviewing the current handbook.