Animal Care Courses
Do you love animals? Kickstart a fulfilling career with animal care courses, preparing you to care for and rehabilitate animals of all sizes. Start your future working with animals by exploring courses today!
Do you love animals? Kickstart a fulfilling career with animal care courses, preparing you to care for and rehabilitate animals of all sizes. Start your future working with animals by exploring courses today!
Try our navigator tool and find the right Animal Care course.
Start HereGet ready to turn your love for animals into a rewarding career! Go behind the scenes with animal and veterinary care experts at RSPCA Queensland and other leading organisations. Find your passion as you learn about every aspect of animal health and ca...
This nationally recognised certificate will give you practical skills and ensure you are job-ready to work in animal shelters, kennels, catteries, sanctuaries or veterinary clinics. Gain administrative skills related to the animal care industry, how to...
If you love animals and are passionate about promoting their welfare, then a job in animal care could be perfect for you. This course will provide an excellent foundation for your career in animal care. Throughout the course you will gain first-hand ex...
Start your very own doggy daycare business. If you love canines and want to work for yourself, you won’t find a better or more helpful way to go about it. This course teaches you how to care for pet dogs, the theories behind training them, and the basi...
Get your dog grooming business off to a flying start. If you’re looking to work for yourself, what could be better than a pathway that shows you the right way to go about it. With this course you’ll learn about the care requirements of dogs, and all ab...
Teaching all dogs new tricks. Here’s your chance to teach your dog good behaviour habits in the human and canine world. Our highly instructive online course will teach you all about canine psychology, their senses and behaviour, and you’ll learn how to...
The Certificate II in Animal Care is a general qualification for entry into sectors of the animal care and management industry, where workers provide care for animals in workplaces such as animal shelters, kennels, catteries, sanctuaries, and veterinar...
Isn’t it time you turned your passion for animals into a job you love doing every day? Have you always wanted to secure a role within the animal field? Whether you wish to enter a veterinary clinic as a vet nurse, work alongside exotic animals as...
Do you have a passion for animals? Maybe even exotic animals? And would like to work with animals as a Zookeeper? This course is a terrific introduction to working in zoos, safari parks, aquariums or wildlife sanctuaries. Not only will you be learning...
Have you always dreamed of working with dogs? Are you excited to learn how to provide the best life possible for our four-legged friends? Then our Canine Care and Training Course is a perfect choice for you. To work with dogs requires a thorough unders...
Are you fascinated by snakes? Do you love learning about lizards? Are you passionate about protecting these critters and are considering a career in this field? This course is the perfect introduction to the world of reptile conservation, equipping you...
Wildlife Conservation and Animal Healthcare are the two key skills necessary to work in this exciting industry. In this Wildlife Veterinary Assistant course, you will learn about general animal healthcare, first aid and rehabilitation, taking you throu...
Do you have a passion for wildlife? Are you one of those individuals that find snakes and lizards fascinating? Then look no further and welcome to our Reptile Zoology course! Here in Australia we are very lucky to have a beautiful variety of native rep...
This course is specifically designed for those students who want to work in Zoo’s and particularly for those students who want to work with Carnivores. Have you ever dreamed of working with Big Cats? Then this is the course for you! Our Carnivore Zoolo...
Have you always been fascinated with monkeys, gorillas and chimpanzees? Could you see yourself working with these special animals? Then this is the course for you! The Learning Online Primate Zoology Certificate will teach you all about the taxonomy, b...
Parks, pests & reserves The Certificate in Wildlife Management is designed to teach you the foundations of working with wildlife. This program will give you a working knowledge of running parks and reserves, pest control, rehabilitating wildlife, a...
The Certificate IV in Animal Behaviour and Training has been designed for those with experience in working with and caring for animals, to develop the skills required to interpret animal behaviour, apply animal learning theory, and to evaluate best pra...
The Certificate III in Animal Care Services allows for specialisation in ‘pet grooming’, providing a sound background knowledge and benchmark certification for those wanting to be self-employed or work in the grooming industry*. Outcomes fr...
The Certificate III in Animal Care Services is designed as a general industry qualification to prepare students to embark on a career as an animal carer. The Animal Academy focuses learning around the requirements of a kennel hand in animal care facili...
Leaders in the veterinary industry will guide you through your qualification; small class interactions and a practical, hands on approach will set you up with the skills needed to succeed within the industry. Work placements will continue to offer you...
Try our navigator tool and find the right Animal Care course.
Start HereDo you love animals so much that you want make your living working with them, caring for them or nursing them back to health? We have a great range of animal care courses to get you set for a wonderful, fulfilling career amongst furry and four-legged colleagues, great and small.
Animal care is a growing industry too. More than 63% of Australian households now have pets, and there are thousands of animals in shelters and the wild that need care. The government expects job numbers to increase rapidly over the next few years. With the right animal courses qualification, you could be a vet or wildlife nurse. You could work in a shelter, animal hospital, kennel or pet shop. You could even run your own pet service business.
Training.com.au lists a range of Australia’s best animal care online courses and distance learning. To fit your needs and availability, these nationally recognised TAFE certificates and diplomas include full-time, part-time and self-paced study options.
Most courses have no entry requirements and involve practical workplace hours. They’ll have you ready for your dream career as an animal groomer, breeder, carer, healer – or whisperer!
Animal Attendants and Trainers care for the needs of animals, including training, feeding and grooming requirements. Depending on your animal care course and career choice, you could be performing tasks such as teaching animals to obey commands both verbal and non-verbal, maintaining comfortable and hygienic animal enclosures, maintaining animal health records and treating minor injuries, and playing with animals and providing companionship.
Depending on the specific animal care course you choose to complete, there is a wide range of potential careers you could pursue.
Animal Attendant or Technician
Horse Trainer
Guide Dog Mobility Instructor
Animal Hospital Assistant
Wildlife Hospital Nurse
Animal Attendants and Trainers make up approximately 16,400 full-time and part-time positions Australia wide. This is expected to grow moderately to 2018. As such the availability of positions in some areas may be limited.
Average full-time wages for Animal Attendants and Trainers is $49,972 per year
Over the past five years growth in the industry has been 51.8%, compared to the 6.5% average across all industries
5% of the workforce are female, while 37.5% are male
There are a range of Animal Care courses to take, from people just wishing to find out a little more about caring for their own pets, through to TAFE and university qualifications to kick-start a career in Animal Care. You can specialise in a wide variety of fields, that will enable you to work in a range of animal care facilities, such as zoos, veterinary clinics, theme parks and wildlife sanctuaries.
If you’d like to become an Animal Attendant or are a pet owner who wants to know more about caring for companion animals, then a Certificate in Animal Care may be the course for you. With a particular focus on caring for dogs and cats, you will be trained to understand animal anatomy, health, disease, first aid, dietary safety, animal handling, grooming, manicuring and bathing. There are no pre-requisites to enter the Certificate of Animal Care short course. You can also study this animal care course online.
While the Certificate in Animal Care is a taste of what the industry could provide, or a way for pet owners to increase their knowledgebase, the Certificate II in Animal Studies is your first step to a career in the industry. You’ll learn how to care for animals in a variety of environments, including kennels, catteries, animal welfare centres and pet stores. This course requires no educational pre-requisites. Upon completion you’ll be able to pursue a career as an Animal Attendant.
The Certificate II in Animal Studies includes core subjects that teach you about working in the animal care industry, workplace communications, complete hygiene routines, health care and environmentally sustainable work practices. During this course you are encouraged to find a work placement in an animal care environment to increase your experience and receive on the job training. There is no minimum education requirement to complete the Certificate II in Animal Studies at TAFE or any other approved course provider.
At this point in your studies you are able to continue with a Certificate III in Animal Studies. Alternatively you can focus on a specific Animal Care discipline such as a Certificate III in Captive Animals, Companion Animal Services or Pet Grooming.
A Certificate III in Animal Studies will include those subjects studied in the Certificate II course plus other core subjects and electives such as planning nutritional requirements, infection control policies and procedures, caring for young animals, reception services and simple breeding procedures.
While the Certificate III in Pet Grooming doesn’t have any educational pre-requisites, the Certificate III in Captive Animals and Companion Animal Services requires a Certificate II or relevant work experience. It is highly recommended that during your studies in these more specific Certificate III courses, you undertake work experience in a facility corresponding to the course or you are already employed at a relevant animal care facility.
Certificate IV courses are highly specific to a particular field of study. These qualifications are for people working towards:
Certificate IV in Captive Animals – senior keeper level who care for animals at zoos, wildlife or theme parks.
Certificate IV in Companion Animal Services – caring for animals and maintaining animal housing facilities while monitoring their health and wellbeing.
Certificate IV in Pet Styling – maintaining styling standards for specific breeds, understanding small animal anatomy and identifying potential health risks.
Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing – providing professional assistance at a veterinary practice.
All Animal Care courses at Certificate level are available online. Various TAFE colleges and approved education institutions offer them online for those interested in pursuing a career in looking after animals and maintaining animal care facilities. As such they are perfect for:
Those who are currently working in the industry but would like to acquire additional qualifications.
People looking at a career change while continuing in their current employment.
Recent high school leavers.
Those wishing to re-enter the workforce.
However, for most Certificate level studies you will be required to undertake practical work experience at an approved animal care facility. This could either be at your current place of employment if you already work in the industry, or with a facility that is willing to accommodate you.
If you love animals, enjoy hands-on practical work, the outdoors and dislike paperwork, a career in Animal Care could be for you. You should be patient and caring, while having the confidence to handle animals that could be sick or undisciplined.
You’ll be predominantly working within a team and often communicating with colleagues and members of the public. Animals require care 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so you could find yourself working in the evenings or on weekends, depending on where you find employment.
You may also have to be willing to get your hands dirty with at times unpleasant tasks. There can be an emotional toll when dealing with injured, sick or badly treated animals.
But the rewards far outweigh the negatives if you’re an animal lover, and combining what you love with a career is the ultimate in professional job satisfaction. If this sounds like the right career for you, check out the animal care courses available now.
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