Certificate of Pet Care

Unit 1 – Introduction to Animal Care

• Laws and licenses
• Animal charities and societies (eg. RSPCA, WSPA, Blue Cross)
• Pet care needs (feeding, watering, shelter, containment, fencing, caging, protection)
• Maintaining health
• Hygiene

Unit 2 – Cats

• Breeds (Lang Haired, Semi Long Haired, Short Haired, Oriental etc)
• Cat selection
• Allergies
• Containment
• Sexing
• Desexing
• Breeding
• Newborn kittens
• Exercise
• Behaviour
• Hygiene
• Feed and nutrition
• Amount of food
• Watering, grooming
• Travelling
• Care for a sick cat (signs of illness, temperature, common ailments, skin disorders, ticks)
• Cats and wildlife

Unit 3 – Dogs

• Dog selection
• Breeds (pure and mixed)
• Varying size and temperament
• Grooming
• Skin care
• Inherited traits (aggression, deafness)
• Containment
• Breeding
• Desexing
• Exercise
• Behaviour
• Feeding
• Canine nutrition
• Bones
• Watering
• Training
• Travelling
• Identifying sickness

Unit 4 – Birds

• Bird selection
• Breeds (eg. Canaries, Finches, Budgerigars, Small Parrots etc)
• Sexing
• Desexing
• Containment (aviaries –selection, design, size, management)
• Feed and feeding
• Watering
• Grooming (wing trim, beak trim, nail rrim)
• Hygiene
• Catching and restraining
• Travelling
• Caring for the sick bird
• Signs of illness
• Temperature
• Supportive therapy
• Common ailments (eg. abscesses, alopecia, apoplexy, aspergillosis, breathlessness, constipation, parasites)
• Safety in the home

Unit 5 – Fish

• Fish selection
• Inside or outside
• Warm or cold water
• Number of fish
• Types of fish (tropical, marine, cold water)
• Costs, size
• Equipment: tanks, ponds, pumps, aquariums, night lights
• Water quality
• Changing water, feed (pelleted, live feed – daphnia, brine shrimp)
• Illnesses (fungal, bacterial, parasites, environmental)

Unit 6 – Rabbits

• Rabbit breeds (large, small and dwarf)
• Selection
• Legality (illegal in some areas)
• Containment (hutch or cage)
• Environment (temperature etc)
• Feeding, nutrition, watering, feed quantities and routine
• Grooming
• Handling
• Moulting
• Transporting
• Sexing, breeding
• Identifying illness (coccidiosis, snuffles, myxomatosisis, sore hocks, pasteurellosis, ear canker, heat stroke, cannibalism, calcivirus disease)
• Care of sick rabbits

Unit 7 – Reptiles and Amphibians

• Types (eg. salamander, frogs, venomous snakes, non-venomous snakes, shingle-backed lizard, tortoises, terrapins, axolotls, etc),
• Selection,
• Legal issues
• Housing
• Environmental requirements (moisture, humidity, warmth, etc),
• Terrariums,
• Problems (eg. dehydration, stress, external and internal parasites, blisters, scale rot, mouth rot or canker, colds/pneumonia, constipation and diarrhoea, cannibalism, incomplete sloughing of the skin -shedding of the skin)
• Feed and feeding
• General care

Unit 8 – Guinea Pigs, Hamsters and Mice

• Varieties, selection
• Containment
• Sexing, breeding
• Grooming
• Feeding, watering
• Illness (eg. skin problems, abscesses, mites, ringworm, fleas, respiratory infection, vitamin C deficiency, otitis, salmonella, stripping etc)