VET353 Animal Welfare

PRIMARY LEARNING OUTCOMES

Knowledge goals

After completing the studies the student should have knowledge about

• Ethics, animal protection, ethology and experimental animals
• How animal welfare is evaluated in specific cases
• Sentral perspectives in animal ethics and consequences for the interpretation of animal welfare
• Selected health-related, physiological, cognitive, emotional, and behavioural components of animal welfare
• Sentral welfare challenges, the impact of the environment including human-animal relationships, breeding, and the relationship between the environment, health, welfare, and quality assurance

Abilities

The students should be able to

• perform relevant examinations and use methods that are common when using experimental animals

General competence

The students should be able to

• understand and communicate existing perspectives, methods and interpretations from different sources and work independently and professionally in connection with discussions and finding practical and theoretical solutions
• Understand and communicate relevant academic, professional and research ethical dilemmas
• Reflect about the veterinarian’s roles and responsibilities

LEARNING GOALS THAT ARE DISTRIBUTED OVER THE DIFFERENT TEACHING PERIODS

Knowledge

After completing this course the student should have knowledge about

• Animal welfare theory
• Differences and similarities between animal ethics, animal rights, and animal welfare
• Consequences of different definitions of animal welfare and how animal welfare is evaluated in different situations
• Ethological concepts that are relevant for understanding animal welfare
• Selected health-related, physiological, cognitive, emotional, and behavioural perspectives on animal welfare

• Sentral welfare challenges in production animals, sports- and pet animals, and experimental animals
• Human-animal relationships
• General principles and techniques that are used for experimental animals

Skills

The students should be able to

• Read and understand material related to animal welfare
• Evaluate and interpret animal welfare at the individual and group level and be familiar with the limitations of the possible interpretations
• Participate in scientific and public discussions and debates about animal welfare
• Perform general examinations and use methods that are common when using experimental animals

General competence

The students should be able to

• Understand and communicate existing perspectives, methods and interpretations in the area of animal welfare and work independently with relevant problem solving
• Relate critically to different sources of information
• Be familiar with different scientific, professional, and ethical issues related to animal welfare
• Understand and communicate about relevant issues, analyze them, and draw conclusions
• Discuss the connections between ethics and animal welfare
• Present themselves as reflected and professional in regard to the veterinarian’s role and responsibilities in animal welfare issues