Fundamental Skills

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate effective written and interpersonal communication skills
• Demonstrate effective quantitative skills
• Demonstrate computer and information literacy
• Demonstrate an understanding of the liberal arts, natural sciences, and social sciences
• Office and Hospital Procedures, Client Relations, and Communication
• Participate in facility management utilizing traditional and electronic media and appropriate medical terminology and abbreviations
• Communicate in a professional manner in all formats—written, oral, non-verbal, and electronic
  Follow and uphold applicable laws and the veterinary technology profession's ethical codes to provide high quality care to patients.
• Pharmacy and Pharmacology
• Safely and effectively administer prescribed drugs to patients.
• Accurately dispense and explain prescribed drugs to clients
• Nursing
• Demonstrate and perform patient assessment techniques in a variety of animal species
• Understand and demonstrate husbandry, nutrition, therapeutic and dentistry techniques appropriate to various animal species.
• Anesthesia
• Safely and effectively manage and maintain patients in all phases of anesthesia
• Safely and effectively select, utilize and maintain anesthetic delivery and monitoring instruments and equipment
• Surgical Nursing
• Understand and integrate all aspects of patient management for common surgical procedures in a variety of animal species
• Understand and provide the appropriate instruments, supplies and environment to maintain asepsis during surgical procedures
• Laboratory Procedures
• Properly package, handle and store specimens for laboratory analysis
• Properly carry out analysis of laboratory specimens
• Imaging
• Safely and effectively produce diagnostic radiographic and non-radiographic images
• Laboratory Animal Procedures
• Safely and effectively handle common laboratory animals used in animal research
• Avian, Exotic, Small Mammals and Fish Procedures
• Understand the approach to providing safe and effective care for birds, reptiles, amphibians, guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, and ferrets

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate effective written and interpersonal communication skills
• Demonstrate a high level of inquiry, analytical, and problem-solving skills
• Demonstrate effective quantitative skills
• Demonstrate computer and information literacy skills
• Office and Hospital Procedures:
• Front Desk procedures, including basic veterinary medical record keeping procedures and basic invoicing skills
• Demonstrate knowledge of basic cleaning techniques of animal kennels and bedding, examination rooms, hospital facilities, and surgical suites
• Communication and Client Relations:
• Develop effective client communication skills
• Write business letters and professional electronic communication with clients
• Understand ethical conduct in relationship to the day to day operations of a vet hospital
• Describe the roles and responsibilities of each member of the veterinary health team and the important part that each plays in the delivery of excellent care
• Professional Conduct: Understand the human-animal bond, Demonstrate professional and appropriate appearance and language in the workplace
• Pharmacy and Pharmacology:
• Legal Issues: Recognize legal issues involving drugs in the workplace, recognize general types and groups of drugs and demonstrate proper terminology
• Filling medications and inventory control: Label and package dispensed drugs correctly, Store, safely handle and dispose of biological and therapeutic agents, pesticides, and hazardous waste
• Vaccinations: Reconstitute vaccines and be familiar with proper protocols
• Examination Room Procedures:
• Restrain patients: small animals, restrain birds. rabbits, pocket pets, and exotics, large animals
• Basic Procedures: Determine and record temperature, pulse, respiration, body condition score, and weight of patients
• Express anal sacs using the external method, Identify external parasites: mites, lice, fleas, and ticks, Recognize AKC dog breeds and CFA cat breeds,
• Small Animal Nursing (Large Animal Nursing--Optional):
• Safety Concerns: Demonstrate knowledge of basic normal and abnormal animal behavior, Utilize patient & personnel safety measures
• Animal Care: Provide routine record-keeping, and observation of hospitalized patients, i.e. stress importance of notations made when cleaning and feeding, Demonstrate a basic understanding of common diseases and medical conditions,
• Monitor/restrain patients for fluid therapy and record observations, Perform hand pilling (dog, cat), Demonstrate understanding of treatment plan
• Surgical Preparation and Assisting:
• Assist in performing surgical preparations
• Facility and Equipment Cleanliness
• Have knowledge of: Surgical equipment, Surgical room and prep area, Instrument cleaning and care, Proper disposal of hazardous medical wastes
• Laboratory Procedures:
• Assistance in the laboratory
• Record Keeping: Ensure all laboratory results are accurately recorded, Stock laboratory supplies, File laboratory reports
• Radiology and Ultrasound Imaging:
• Follow recommended safety measures, Assist the veterinarian and/or the veterinary technician in the completion of diagnostic radiographs and ultrasound

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Identify individual life goals and steps needed to fulfill them, similarities between personal financial goals and business goals, the basics of setting up a budget and starting up and maintaining a business
• Discuss both the business environment and a manager’s role in decision making, planning, organizing, leading, controlling, and developing an ethical perspective
• Comprehend the management of the facility's finances, such as patient fees and billing
• Discover the importance of understanding and implementing laws and requirements in a veterinary practice.
• Examine how to provide exceptional customer service to their clients while helping the veterinary practice to grow financially
• Describe the human resources function as it relates to the business environment
• Examine the factors affecting marketing plans to promote the business’s products or services through an understanding of marketing principles, consumer buying habits, and advertising strategies
• Discover the importance and methods of marketing and promotion for a veterinary practice
• Summarize the ethical and legal standards in the business environment
• Analyze relevant business ethics issues when confronted with a new decision situation in a veterinary practice

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Identify the senses of a canine and know how they function, and define the learning theory and classical and operant conditioning
• Describe common behavior problems and strategies for prevention and treatment, identify the pros and cons of punishment versus reinforcement, as well as the signals and displays that dogs use to communicate with each other and with humans
• Apply knowledge of behavior problems by recommending behavior modification plans for the dogs in the three given scenarios
• Define dog testing, state the functions of the American Kennel Club, and list its seven major groups of dog breeds
• Apply knowledge of dog selection by selecting an appropriate breed for the persons in the case studies as well as selecting an inappropriate breed
• Identify the various types of canine training, know the commands to teach dogs basic obedience, and recognize types of dog-training equipment
• Apply knowledge of agility training by examining agility course diagrams and indicating correct and incorrect sequences and identifying handling techniques
• Identify what dog tricks are and know how to use them, describe what play is and why it's important for a domesticated dog, as well as name recreational activities involving dogs
• Name the exercises required for classes of competition and describe the ways dogs are used to assist humans
• Describe basic nutrition, reproductive function, and caring for a dog in old age, as well as know first-aid procedures for shock and wounds
• Outline a dog training business plan, describe effective advertising and marketing strategies, and describe how canine day care centers are run
• Apply knowledge of the dog training business by writing an evaluation of the demographics as they pertain to starting a dog training business and providing information necessary to develop a business plan

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Identify the duties of a pet groomer and how to establish a grooming business
• Know the historical background of the dog and cat and identify the anatomy of the dog and cat
• Identify grooming hand tools and describe their uses and describe how to bathe, dry, and prepare a dog for grooming
• Recognize how to groom dogs from the Terrier group, non-sporting group, and toy group
• Recognize how to groom dogs from the sporting group, herding group, hound group, and working group
• Recognize how to groom poodles, mixed breeds and drop-coat styles, and puppies
• Recognize the basic personalities of different dogs and understand how to groom dogs who have behavior problems
• Identify the characteristics common to cats' personality types and understand how to properly handle each type of cat
• Know the basics of bookkeeping, advertising, customer service, and setting pricing and fees to start a pet grooming business