Page 13 - Bliss Planet March 2018 Health And Wellness Magazine

deal with animals in different
situations where their behavior can
cause problems to their owners and to
the animals themselves.
An animal care course can help
introduce you to a veterinary industry
career as it will qualify you to work in
pet shops, kennels, animal shelters,
grooming salons and farms. You can
also find work in veterinary clinics and
hospitals as animal care specialist. Be
aware however, that in some work
environments, you might be
responsible for euthanizing unwanted
animals such as cats and dogs that
were abandoned by their owners.
Working as an animal control
professional on the other hand, you
have the responsibility to protect
abused, injured, stray and unwanted
animals. You respond to distress calls
involving lost or neglected animals,
and as the first person to arrive at the
scene, you are expected to show and
give compassion and comfort to the
animals you find there needing your
attention.
Animal caretakers perform all the
necessary duties to make sure that
the animals under their care remain
healthy. This job can be very
demanding but it has its rewards.
Your most important duty as an
animal caretaker is to feed the
animals and provide them with the
right kind of nourishment. You also
need to provide them enough time to
exercise so just like humans they
remain in good physical condition.
Grooming is important as well, and
this includes giving the animal a bath,
clipping nails, cutting and brushing
hair, and other services to keep the
animal clean and groomed. As an
animal caretaker, you are generally
responsible for maintaining and
monitoring their overall health. You
need to report to the owners or
facility manager any changes that you
have observed in them.
With further studies in animal care,
you can work as a marine or zoo
worker, and animal welfare officer. As
a basic course, if nothing else, it can
provide you at least with knowledge
and skills to become a more
responsible pet owner. You will study,
among others, common animal health
problems, signs of sickness, animal
behavior, safety and first aid for
animals, routine health treatments,
preventative care, rehabilitation care,
and administration of animal health
programs.
One interesting job that you can do
after taking an animal care course is
to become a pet sitter. Being one is
not just about sitting pets whose
owners have gone on vacations,
leaving you with their beloved pets
that you have to feed, walk, change
and clean litter boxes, or do
everything to make sure that they are
in the same good health when their
owners left them to your care. Their
owners take care of their pets
and as a pet sitter, it is your
responsibility to extend
that same care and
concern to them. Young
people can do this in
their spare time and
earn while doing
something worthwhile.
Bliss Planet 13