Course

Veterinary Care III

Faculty
Science & Technology
Department
Animal Health Technology
Course Code
AHTT 2303
Credits
4.00
Semester Length
15 weeks
Max Class Size
30
Method(s) Of Instruction
Lecture
Lab
Typically Offered
To be determined

Overview

Course Description
This course will give students practice in advanced veterinary nursing skills. Specialized procedures for a variety of species (large animal, small animal, & exotics) will be covered building upon skills acquired in AHTT 1103, 1203, & 2107. Students will gain experience in data gathering, procedures, & nursing care, in addition to relevant animal behavior and handling practice. This course will include kennel and/or relevant volunteer duty. Professional ethics and workplace issues will be discussed.

Enrollment is limited to students in the Animal Health Technology Program.
Course Content

Clinical pathology

  • bacteriology, hematology, urinalysis, cytology review
  • advanced sampling techniques
  • sampling from a variety of species safely; maintenance of samples and processing for the laboratory; utilizing a variety of laboratory equipment in a clinical setting
  • postmortem techniques
  • tour of provincial veterinary and private veterinary laboratories

Advanced Nursing Care and Diagnostic Techniques

  • diagnostic procedures including thoracocentesis and abdominocentesis
  • usage and maintenance of advanced blood analysis equipment
  • review and practice of advanced monitoring and procedures such as ECG, jugular catheters, blood transfusions, etc…

Emergency Medicine

  • visits to specialty practices and from Veterinary specialists with emphasis on gaining technical skills commonly used in emergency situations (CPR, radiology, clinical sample collection, transfusions, and treatment modalities)
  • decision making and grief counseling in emergency situations
  • post emergency nursing (with concentration on early stabilization phase)
  • hit by car, “big dog little dog”, FLUTD, toxin ingestion and other common emergencies – review of protocols and practice in needed skills as possible
  • Ambu-dog and practice resuscitation

Large Animal Care

  • large animal anesthesia and surgical assistance
  • provision of adequate analgesia/anesthesia and humane treatment to ensure patient comfort
  • recognition of injection sites, administration of injectables, and venipuncture
  • aspects of aseptic technique, preparation of surgery, personnel and patient pre-operatively
  • practical wound healing and management, bandaging techniques and patient care post-operatively

Exotic & Lab Animal

  • practice in restraint, handling and treatment, and advanced procedures

Workplace communications:

  • observation and interpretation of interactions between veterinary team members as well as clients, building upon the skills learned in CMNS 1111
  • workplace safety and a review of WHMIS.

Learning Activities

This course includes 3-7 hours of classroom instruction per week.  It also includes 2-8 hour visits to various animal and veterinary related facilities around the Metro Vancouver/Fraser Valley area as part of a 6 week rotation of Workplace Laboratory Instruction, as well as group field trips during the semester for a total average instructional time of 7 hours per week.  (note:  students will require their own transportation to these WLI locations)

Means of Assessment

Quizzes                                                                     15-25%

Practical Skill Demonstrations/Clinical Reports                20-25%

Assignments                                                             10-20%

Professionalism & Rotation Evaluation                          10-20%

Final Exam                                                                20-30%

                                                                                  100%

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the course students will be able to:

  1. utilize advanced techniques used by the AHT in both small animal, large animal, and exotic practice. These include advanced procedures in clinical pathology, emergency medicine, anesthesia, and nursing care.
  2. demonstrate record keeping, ward hygiene and infection control. 
  3. understand ethical and workplace issues facing the AHT  
  4. demonstrate the basic skills of veterinary nursing.   

Textbook Materials
  • McCurnin, D. & Bassert, J.M. Clinical Textbook for Veterinary Technicians.  Elsevier.  Current ed. (required)
  • Crowe, S.E. Manual of Clinical Procedures in the Dog, Cat & Rabbit.  Blackwell Publishing.  Current ed.  (required)
  • Sirois, M.  2004 Principles and Practice of Veterinary Technology.  Mosby Inc.  (recommended)
  • Hanie, A.H., Large Animal Clinical Procedures for Veterinary Technicians. Elsevier, 1st ed. (recommended)
  • Rockett, J. & Bosted, S. 2007 Veterinary Clinical Procedures.  Thomson Delmar (recommended)
  • Steel toed rubber boots and coveralls or appropriate farm wear will be required for all farm and large animal visits. Clinic shoes and scrubs/lab coat will be required for in clinic instruction.

 

Requisites

Prerequisites

AHTT 2107 Veterinary Clinics I

Corequisites

No corequisite courses.

Equivalencies

No equivalent courses.

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

Course Transfers

These are for current course guidelines only. For a full list of archived courses please see https://www.bctransferguide.ca

Institution Transfer Details for AHTT 2303
There are no applicable transfer credits for this course.

Course Offerings

Winter 2025