As part of Oregon Tech's Biology of Companion Animals coursework, students in Assistant Professor Tricia Elliott's class have worked with baby goats, snakes, lizards, baby quail, and rabbits. Two special events during Spring Term also took them outside the classroom for hands-on care of horses, dogs, and cats.
The class serves as a pre-veterinary course but is available to all students. This year, the class includes 18 students from programs such as Biology-Health Sciences, Civil Engineering, Communication, Cybersecurity, Nursing, and Psychology.
Students in the class said they chose to take it because of positive word-of-mouth from other students, a love of animals, or an interest in better caring for their own animals.
“I love animals and have owned three cats over my life, with one currently at home,” said Anima Norris, a Marketing student who chose to take the class as her lab elective. “I knew that by taking this course, I would be better prepared to be a great owner of pets in the future.”
The first hands-on event was a “Horse Day” on May 19 at the Klamath County Fairgrounds. Leah Logsdon from Horse Power Northwest, which focuses on therapeutic equine massage, showcased her horses Diamond, age 20, and Peach, age 14.
Students performed physical exams on the horses, learned about therapeutic massage and horse care, and interacted with the horses one-on-one.
Elliott said that bringing animals into a learning environment helps students develop compassion and empathy, reduces their anxiety and promotes calmness, and increases effective communication between students. She also believes that animals provide students with non-judgmental support and that petting an animal can be a distraction during stressful situations and can help manage emotions.
“Each animal has a uniqueness about it, whether it be a reptile, bird or horse; and all should be taken care of differently,” Elliot said. “I feel the students taking the class will have a lot to offer with having pets currently or in the future.”
On June 4, the class visited the Klamath Animal Shelter for a "Doggy Day Spa." In small teams, students performed physical exams on the cats and bathed the dogs, interacting with the animals and providing community service.
These events were organized by Elliott to help students understand how important and beneficial animals are in humans’ lives.
“Oftentimes it’s hard to put into words just what animals help us achieve, but our minds and bodies can feel the effects,” Elliot said. “There is subjective and objective evidence that suggests that contact with dogs reduces stress and that over the long term this can show up as a lower incidence of stress-related problems.”
“In taking this class, I have learned about a variety of companion animals: snakes, turtles, lizards, horses, birds, and, of course, cats and dogs,” Norris said. “I also learned what to do if my pet is in an emergency, including how to properly bandage them and give them a vaccine. I would recommend this class to anyone as it is essentially animal therapy every week and helped me grow my love for animals even more.”
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