Undergraduate Course: Animal Life & Food Safety GEP (BVMS08060)
Course Outline
| School | Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies |
College | College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 60 |
ECTS Credits | 30 |
| Summary | The course will provide an understanding of how to care for and manage production and companion animals, so that the animal's requirements for health and welfare are met. Species covered include cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry, fish, dogs, cats, horses, small mammals, reptiles, and birds.
Practical classes will be provided on the handling, restraint and husbandry of domesticated animals. These include: adult cattle, calves, pigs, horses, small mammals, reptiles, and birds.
Modules Covered:
Animal Husbandry (lectures and practical classes)
Evidence Based Veterinary Medicine (lectures and practical classes)
Principles of Nutrition (lectures)
Dog & Cat Nutrition (lectures)
Breeding and Genetics (lectures)
Farm Economics (lecture)
Veterinary Public Health (lectures)
Animal Welfare (lectures)
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| Course description |
Course Objectives and Aims
1. To encourage veterinary students to acquire sufficient knowledge and understanding of animal health and husbandry to fulfil the current and future requirements of the veterinary profession.
2. To describe the principles of animal husbandry and the relationships between management, breeding, nutrition, environment, behaviour, health, welfare, productivity, food quality and food safety.
3. To train students to handle animals competently and safely and develop practical skills associated with animal husbandry.
4. To provide veterinary students with sufficient understanding of animal husbandry
- to maintain and improve the health and welfare of farm and companion animals;
- to contribute to the productivity, economic performance and ecological perspectives of the livestock and food industry;
- to ensure that food producing and companion animals contribute to the social requirements and health of humans.
5. To give students a clear understanding of the principles behind the scientific approach.
6. Give students the basic tools to interpret scientific evidence critically to inform their clinical decisions.
7. To provide the basic principles and techniques for quantitative investigations in animal populations, including causal studies, field surveys, clinical trials and diagnostic techniques.
8. To provide the necessary skills to allow the rational application and interpretation clinical diagnostic tests.
9. To provide a foundation for clinical teaching within the veterinary curriculum.
10. To encourage professional development and communication skills.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | Students must be enrolled on a BVMS Veterinary Medicine degree programme in order to take this course. |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2025/26, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Full Year |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
600
(
Lecture Hours 90,
Supervised Practical/Workshop/Studio Hours 46,
Feedback/Feedforward Hours 6,
Formative Assessment Hours 1,
Summative Assessment Hours 6,
Revision Session Hours 6,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 12,
Placement Study Abroad Hours 263,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
170 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
70 %,
Coursework
15 %,
Practical Exam
15 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
The examination will consist of:
Section A
End of Course Written Exam 70%
Coursework 15% (two in-course assessments, both worth 7.5%)
Section B
Applied Husbandry Practical Exam - 15%
Section C
Formative Practical Handling Exam X 5 (Cattle, Sheep, Dog&Cat, Horses, Exotics) must attend
Section A (must pass)
1. In Course Assessment 1 (7.5% of final mark)
At the start of Semester 2 there will be a Multiple-Choice Question (MCQ) Assessment, consisting of 25 MCQ questions.
2. In Course Assessment 2 (7.5% of final mark)
During Semester 2 there will be a Multiple-Choice Question (MCQ) Assessment, consisting of 25 MCQ Questions.
3.The End-of-Course Written Examination (70% of final mark)
This examination is a combination of written short answer questions (SAQ) and multiple choice questions (MCQs) covering all material from the course.
A pass in Section A is achieved by scoring at least 50% in these three combined components.
Section B (must pass)
Applied Husbandry Practical Exam (15% of final mark)
In Semester 2, each student will be assessed on their animal handling, practical skills and knowledge of applied husbandry. The assessment is made of 7 components, of which some will have live animals..
To pass this assessment, students must: attend all seven components, achieve an overall score of at least 50% , and pass at least five of the seven components. Candidates will have two attempts to pass the Applied Husbandry Practical Exam before the end of the course.
Section C
Formative Practical Handling Exam X 5 (Cattle, Sheep, Dog&Cat, Horses, Exotics)(must attend)
In Semester 1, each student will be assessed in their ability to demonstrate safe and appropriate handling, basic practical skills and competencies with exotic species.
TO PASS ALFS GEP:
To pass the course, students must:
i) Achieve a pass in Section A, scoring 50% across the combined written exam and in-course assessments.
ii) Achieve a pass in Section B - the Applied Husbandry Practical exam - (please see conditions for ¿pass¿ above) There are two attempts allowed.
iii) Complete the formative exotics practical examination (Section C)
iv) 100% attendance at Practical and Tutorial Classes (attendance will be recorded)
Failure to achieve (i) will result in a FAIL, followed by an August written resit exam
Failure to achieve (ii) will result in a FAIL, followed by a resit of the practical Applied Husbandry exam at the end of semester 2. Students will be examined by an Internal Examiner in the presence of a second Internal Examiner or the External Examiner.
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| Feedback |
An instant feedback session is provided after each In-course assessment.
There is an opportunity to review the handling exam assessment sheets, and applied husbandry practical exam assessment sheets, after the exams.
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| Exam Information |
| Exam Diet |
Paper Name |
Minutes |
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| Outwith Standard Exam Diets April | Animal Life & Food Safety (GEP) Written Paper | 150 | | | Resit Exam Diet (August) | Animal Life & Food Safety (GEP) Written Paper | 150 | |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Critically appraise and advise on animal husbandry practices relating to domestic species
- Independently handle common domestic species in a safe and appropriate manner, and safely demonstrate practical skills associated with animal husbandry
- Describe the management of animal breeding, welfare, behaviour and nutrition within the contexts of the livestock industry and pet ownership
- Use foundational knowledge in veterinary public health, evidence-based veterinary medicine, and statistics to demonstrate decision making underpinned by the principles of epidemiology
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Mr Angus Cassie
Tel:
Email: acassie@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Nicola Meikle
Tel: (0131 6)50 6605
Email: Nicola.Meikle@ed.ac.uk |
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