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Complete Animal Care

OSC1106

Are you looking to pursue a career in working with animals? By completing this Complete Animal Care course bundle, you could start in a field that offers a wide range of opportunities, from zookeeping and professional pet training, right through to wildlife conservation and academic research.

Course Duration

Up to 3 years.

Course Outcome

You will receive three certificates of achievement in Animal Care Level 2, Veterinary Support Assistant Level 3 and Animal Welfare Level 4.

Entry Requirements

There are no specific entry requirements for this course.

Assessment

Tutor-marked assignments.

Study Options

 
£979.00
or £31.68 /month*
Course code: OSC1106

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Course overview

  • Explore the anatomy and physiology of dogs and cats.
  • Investigate health and safety within the veterinary practice.
  • Understand the main needs of an animal.
  • Devise suitable feeding plans.
  • Learn how to set up suitable accommodation.
  • Know how to handle animals in the correct way.
  • Understand the study of the ethics involved in the care, farming and conservation of animals.
  • Covers the legal, ethical, commercial, agricultural and conservational aspects of animal welfare.
  • From marine life and elephants in the wild to ethical farming in the UK, this course provides maximum coverage of welfare topics for different animals and their habitats.

This Complete Animal Care Bundle includes Animal Care Level 2, Veterinary Support Assistant Level 3 and Animal Welfare Level 4.

This course gives you a comprehensive and full understanding of animal care, covering the practical, scientific, legal and ethical aspects of caring for animals.

During the Animal Care Level 2 course, you will look at the importance of quantity and timing of the feeding of animals, signs of ill health, the housing requirements of animals, the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and much more.

Meanwhile, in the Veterinary Support Assistant Level 3 course, you will examine the roles and responsibilities of Veterinary Surgeons, the basic structure and function of the nervous system, the role of infection in animal and human health, and more.

Finally, in the Animal Welfare QLS Level 4 course, you will explore the codes of practice when it comes to animal welfare practice, dairy farming, the UK’s most protected animals, protecting the marine environment and much more.

All course materials will be delivered to you by post or via email, so it couldn’t be easier. Our experienced and friendly tutors will help you every step of the way.

You may start at any time and have a full year to complete your studies, so you can work at your own pace. Completed coursework can be delivered by post or via email, so handing in an assignment is simple.

It is ideal for:

  • Students who want to develop their animal care, veterinary, and animal welfare knowledge
  • Those aspiring to work or progress their career in the animal industry.

Future career options:

  • Animal technician
  • Equine groom
  • Pest control surveyor
  • Animal attendant
  • Animal keeper
  • Large animal technician
  • Trainee zookeeper
  • Contract animal technician
  • Mammal keeper
  • Primate care staff
  • Animal care assistant
  • Animal rehomer
  • Pet health advisor
  • Vet

  • Legislation
  • Ethics: thinkers and theories
  • Legislative Acts
  • Codes of Practice
  • The role of welfare organisations
  • The Five Freedoms
  • Animal welfare vs. animal rights

  • Animal welfare in veterinary practice
  • Animal boarding establishments licence
  • Animal breeding

  • Pet shops

  • Welfare legislation for farmed animals
  • Welfare of pigs in the European Union
  • Dairy farming
  • Animal transportation

  • Legislation for animal collections
  • Rare and endangered species
  • Laws on transportation of animals
  • Assessing wild animal welfare
  • Welfare of bears
  • Welfare of elephants

  • Welfare of wolves

  • Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
  • The UKs protected mammals
  • Badger culling
  • Dormouse decline
  • Endangered birds
  • Bat conservation

  • Protecting the marine environment
  • Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009
  • Shark welfare
  • Whale welfare

  • Coral reef endangerment

  • Types of feeder
  • Nutritional requirements
  • Vitamins
  • Minerals
  • Choosing and preparing food
  • Quantity and timing of feeding

  • Housing requirements
  • Bedding materials
  • Fixtures and fittings
  • Cleaning and maintaining
  • Waste disposal

  • Disease prevention
  • Common diseases of dogs, cats and rabbits
  • Endoparasites and ectoparasites
  • Signs of ill health
  • First aid procedures and remedies

  • Why do we need to handle, restrain and move animals?
  • Personal protective equipment
  • Handling and restraint equipment
  • Reducing stress

  • Normal behaviour
  • Emotions
  • Specific species
  • Abnormal behaviour
  • Stereotypic behaviour
  • Observing behaviour
  • Methods and recording
  • Avoiding/reducing abnormal behaviour
  • Environmental enrichment

  • Welfare needs
  • How can we meet these needs?
  • The Animal Welfare Act 2006
  • Current legislation
  • Animals in production
  • Intensive farming
  • Free-range farming
  • Organic farming
  • Animals in sport
  • Animals as assistance

  • Roles and responsibilities of Veterinary Surgeons
  • Roles of the Veterinary Nurse
  • Roles of the Student Veterinary Nurse
  • Essentials of the legal system
  • Individual character and conscience

  • Animal cell structure and cell function
  • Basic structure and function of the nervous system
  • The endocrine system
  • The digestive system
  • The urinary system
  • The respiratory system
  • The cardiovascular system
  • The circulatory system

  • Principles of health and safety
  • Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 2013
  • Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH) 2002
  • Hazardous Waste Regulations, 2005
  • Manual Handling Regulations, 1992

  • The role of infection in animal and human health
  • Principles of disease transmission in veterinary practice
  • How to maintain a clean clinical environment
  • Main groups of disinfectants

  • Running a laboratory in a veterinary practice
  • Emergency procedures
  • General safety measures
  • How to collect and prepare urine, faecal and blood samples
  • How to carry out common laboratory tests
  • Test results

  • Principles of pharmacy stock management
  • The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971
  • Principles of safe dispensing
  • Medication terms used in Pharmacology
  • Absorption rate
  • Drug formulations

Extra information

This course is assessed by a series of assignments, which are submitted to your tutor for marking. No external examination is required.

Once enrolled, you will have 3 years to complete this bundle, which will allow you to work at your own pace, without the pressure of tight deadlines. You will also receive 12 months tutor support for each course, so you can feel confident that you’ll get the help you need. Studying around your work and family commitments has never been easier.

You will study this course through distance learning, which will enable you to learn when and where you want. You can study from home or at work; it is completely up to you. All your materials will be posted or emailed to you online, whichever you choose. You will also receive our tutor support by email, so help is only a click away!

At the end of this course successful learners will receive 3 separate Certificates of Achievement.

For the Animal Welfare Level 4 course, you will receive a certificate of achievement from ABC.

You will also receive a Certificate of Achievement from Training Qualifications UK (TQUK) for the Animal Care Level 2 and Veterinary Support Assistant Level 3 courses.

The completion of these courses alone does not lead to an Ofqual regulated qualification but may be used as evidence of knowledge and skills toward regulated qualifications in the future.

The unit summary can be used as evidence of your Recognition of Prior Learning if you wish to progress your studies in this sector.

FAQs

You do not need any previous knowledge to enrol on to this course.

  • Dedicated personal tutor support
  • Dedicated learner services
  • Assignment marking and feedback
  • FREE CV critique service
  • FREE employability guide to help you impress future employers
  • FREE XO Student Discounts membership
  • * Comprehensive study guide
  • * Open Study College pen and highlighter
  • * Student notebook

* Not included with the online study option

No, everything you need is included in the price!

You will send your work to your personal course tutor for them to mark and return to you. On successful completion of the course you will be awarded your certificates.

It's not a problem. We offer a course replacement service, so if you get into trouble and your course pack is lost or damaged, our Learner Services Team can provide you with a new set of materials for a one-time additional fee.

That's not a problem. We want to make sure you're 100% confident about enrolling on the course and starting your study. So, just give our team of education specialists a call on 03300 563 100 and they'll do their best to help.

Awarding bodies

The Quality License Scheme

The Animal Welfare Level 4 course has been endorsed by the Quality License Scheme for its high-quality. This course is not regulated by Ofqual and is not an accredited qualification. We will be able to advise you on any further recognition, for example, progression routes into further and/or higher education. For further information please visit the Learner FAQs on the Quality License Scheme website.

This course has been benchmarked at Level 4 against level descriptors published by Ofqual, to indicate the depth of knowledge and understanding that you would expect at this level.

TQUK

The Animal Care Level 2 course and Veterinary Support Assistant Level 3 course have been designed by Open Study College to meet specific learners’ or employers’ requirements. The courses have been endorsed by TQUK. This means Open Study College have undergone external quality checks to ensure that the organisation and the courses’ it offers meet a high standard. Regular reviews of our courses are carried out as part of the endorsement process.

The courses depth and study have been benchmarked at Level 2 and 3 against level descriptors published by Ofqual.

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