When most pet owners think of the care provided by veterinarians in Australia, they tend to think of reactive animal care. Vet roles like veterinary nurse involve a lot of day-to-day variety, helping pets to recover from injury and illness. Believe it or not, more than 2/3 of Australian households now have at least one pet, so this work is endless.
Another part of the work done in a veterinary practice is preventative animal health and education in this particular aspect of animal welfare is just as important. That’s the focus of this article as we delve into how the practice can stop certain animal health issues from coming to pass and ensure your pet stays healthy.
What Is Preventative Animal Health Care?
Preventative health care for animals is what it sounds like - measures taken to ensure that some of the most common health problems are prevented. Used in veterinary clinics across the county on both large and small animal clients, it works in much the same way as human health support provided by doctors.
Those in the industry understand the crucial nature of preventative animal health and education on the topic shows there are four main types of treatment covered by the term.
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Vaccines - pets can get a range of vaccinations that protect them from the most common illnesses, with dogs getting jabs for Parvovirus, Distemper, and Adenovirus, and cats getting something similar for conditions like Herpes, Calicivirus, and Panleukopaenia.
Other veterinary medicines given by animal health professionals include pills for common problems like heartworm and foot-and-mouth disease.
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Parasite Protection - from fleas in dogs and cats to fly strikes in pet rabbits, parasites can be fatal, so it’s important that preventative medicine is provided to combat the problem. As such, animal health professionals need to know how to give oral meds to animals safely.
Jabs are also routinely given to animals for zoonotic diseases. Also referred to as zoonoses, conditions are those that can be passed to humans, which include common animal diseases, such as rabies and Blastomyces dermatitis.
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Microchipping - technology also plays a role in preventative animal health and education on the subject shows us that microchipping helps to recover thousands of lost pets each year.
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Neutering - another important part of animal disease prevention comes in the form of neutering. Both cats and dogs benefit from being neutered, and it’s not just down to the way it stops unwanted litters having to be looked after.
When dogs and cats aren’t neutered, it can affect pet health, as it puts them at a high risk of pathogens that cause womb infections and certain kinds of cancer.
It’s important for pet owners to focus on preventative animal health and education as our Veterinary Nursing Courses represent one of the easiest and most affordable ways to learn about preventing infectious diseases with intelligent and well-timed treatment.
Online Learning With OCA is The Best Way to Learn
Working in veterinary care can be tough and chaotic, but when you realise that pets visiting clinics are typically very scared, knowing how to remain calm when working with animals gets that much easier. We can’t stress enough the importance of preventative animal health, and education on the subject is best enjoyed via OCA short courses online.
Learning about the delivery of veterinary services at a veterinary college can be both time-consuming and expensive. However, when you train to work in a veterinary team with OCA, you get to learn in a way that’s accessible to pretty much everyone.
Anywhere, Anytime Learning On Your Terms
When engaging with in-person training providers, you have to learn at the same pace as other veterinary students - which is far from ideal. However, OCA short courses cover the full range of topics, including preventative animal health and education; this puts control of your study firmly in your hands.
Our online training covers the full spectrum of topics, including:
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Basic pet care - covering how to maintain good pet health, as well as simple, early detection in epidemiology
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Animal behaviour - the correct ways to spot and respond to certain types of animal behaviour
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Animal welfare - applying the principles of animal welfare, as well as rescuing animals and applying basic first aid
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Animal conservation - analysing how threatened species can be recovered, and matters relating to ecology & environmental health
Training like this can give you the skills and knowledge needed to work in a variety of animal health and wellness roles. Whether you have your heart set on a companion animal trainer position or you’d like to assist a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) in an animal hospital, our short courses online can help you get there.
Study For a Career in Animal Care With OCA Short Courses Online
As we’ve seen, there’s a lot to learn when it comes to preventative animal health and education our CPD-endorsed, video-based short courses online ensure that you have the right amount of knowledge and preparedness for the work ahead. We offer a next-level learning experience, too, with our industry-led content and AI-driven LMS encouraging further study.
Watch our Student Study Demo to get a closer look at what it’s like to learn with OCA, or if you’d like to see our full range of courses (that cover 20+ industries), visit us today at www.onlinecoursesaustralia.edu.au. There you’ll also find our selection of easy payment options.
Alternatively, if you’d prefer to speak to us prior to enrolment, no problem! Just call 1300 611 404 or email [email protected], and we’ll be glad to give you the answers you seek.
