Do you love animals? Have you ever thought about a career as a veterinary assistant? Taught by a practicing veterinarian and college instructor, this intensive program provides the information you need to work with animals in a veterinary hospital.

You’ll first study the major organ systems that you’ll need to know about as a veterinary assistant. Next, you’ll move to front office duties so you can see how to work with clients and handle medical records. You'll also delve into the communication skills that come in handy for the assistant.

Then the program moves to the area you're probably most interested in—the back of the hospital. You’ll see how to restrain animals for procedures, take their vital signs (temperature, pulse, and respiration rate), trim their nails, and properly bathe them. You'll also gain the expertise you need to educate clients about key topics in pet care, such as nutrition, vaccinations, and administering medication.  

The program also shows you how you can be an asset during surgery and dental procedures by monitoring heart rate and breathing, passing instruments to the surgeon, and charting teeth. You’ll learn how to prepare prescriptions, take blood samples, perform laboratory tests, and take radiographs. 

The program concludes with a lesson to prepare you for the job market, in which you'll see how to create an effective resume, advance your skills, and develop strong interview skills. Upon passing this program, you’ll have the credentials and knowledge to be a valued team member in a veterinary hospital.

Upon registering, you're given an initial six months to complete the program.  Should you need more time, you may request a six-month extension at no additional charge.   

Upon completion of the ed2go Veterinary Assistant Program, you'll:

• Understand the duties of the veterinary assistant.
• Learn the anatomy and physiology of the major organ systems.
• Master office communication skills and see how to handle medical records.
• Learn how to determine age and gender of animals.
• Find out how to restrain animals seen at the hospital.
• Discover how to take vital signs such as temperature, pulse, and respiration rate.
• Learn how to trim nails, empty anal sacs, and properly bathe animals.
• Identify the hazards you'll face in a veterinary hospital from anesthetics, infections, and X-rays,
• Explore the reproductive cycles, diseases, and sterility procedures in cats and dogs.
• Find out how vaccines work, when to give them, and how to administer them.
• Learn the basics of feline and canine nutrition, including prescription foods.
• Discover how to prepare prescriptions and understand the different drug classes.
• Learn the different ways to administer medications—orally, in eyes and ears, and by injection.
• Research the euthanasia process from the client's and hospital's perspectives.
• Learn how to take blood samples and how to restrain for the procedure.
• Understand what blood tests tell us, and see how to do a packed cell volume and blood smear.
• Learn how to collect urine and perform a urinalysis, and understand what the results mean.
• Explore diagnostic tests performed in the hospital on serum, skin, and feces.
• Find out about radiation protection and how to position an animal to for a radiograph.
• Recognize and alleviate pain in animals.
• Learn how to deal with common emergencies you'll see in a veterinary hospital.
• Learn how to chart teeth, perform common dental procedures, and provide client education on dentistry.
• Explore the life cycles, diagnosis, and treatment options for internal and external parasites.
• Investigate substances that can poison pets and learn about emergency treatment.
• Learn the names of surgical instruments and how to prepare surgical packs.
• Figure out how to prepare a patient for surgery and help during and after the anesthetic.
• Learn how to prepare an effective resume, advance your skills, and develop strong interview skills.

Lesson 1: Welcome to the Veterinary Hospital
Get familiar with the different roles people have at the hospital, find out what veterinary assistants do, discover what it takes to succeed as a veterinary assistant, and explore the physical layout of a veterinary hospital.

Lesson 2: Getting Ready for Your First Visit
To prepare for your first visit to a veterinary hospital, you'll learn how to dress and communicate appropriately, protect the confidentiality of clients, and protect yourself from the potential hazards of the hospital.

Lesson 3: Physiology and Anatomy 1: Directional Signs and the Skeletal System
Describe locations on the body using medical directional terminology and apply these terms as you learn the bones of the skeletal system.

Lesson 4: Physiology and Anatomy 2: The Nervous System, Endocrine System, and Muscles and Joints
Gain an understanding of the nervous and endocrine systems as well as the muscles and joints, and recognize common diseases that affect these systems.

Lesson 5: Physiology and Anatomy 3: The Circulatory and Respiratory Systems
Learn the details of the circulatory system—which includes both the cardiovascular and lymphatic systems—and understand the anatomy and function of the respiratory system.

Lesson 6: Physiology and Anatomy 4: The Digestive System, Urogenital System, Liver, and Spleen
Investigate how the digestive and urogenital systems work in animals, and see what roles the liver and spleen play in the body.

Lesson 7: Front Office Duties: Records, Confidentiality, and Client Relations
Explore some front office duties, including working with medical records, handling confidentiality issues that might arise with them, understanding how liability applies to phone advice, and learning how to constructively interact with clients.

Lesson 8: More Front Office Tips, and Determining Age and Gender of Kittens and Puppies
Expand your knowledge of how to handle clients by learning good telephone techniques and methods of dealing with complaints, and figure out how to tell a kitten's or puppy's gender and age.

Lesson 9: Canine Restraint
Learn how to approach, carry, and hold dogs for your mutual safety.

Lesson 10: Feline and Exotic Restraint
Learn how to determine what a cat is telling you and how to restrain it, and explore techniques for handling exotic animals such as rabbits, pocket pets, and birds.

Lesson 11: The Physical Examination: Procedures, Restraint, and Vital Signs
Discover how to conduct a physical examination, how to restrain an animal while doing it, and how to take vital signs such as temperature, pulse, and respiration rate.

Lesson 12: Nail Trimming, Anal Sacs, Bathing, and Clipper Care
Learn how to trim nails, empty anal sacs, properly bathe animals and apply dips, and care for hair clippers.

Lesson 13: Workplace Hazards and Infection Control
Identify the hazards you'll face in a veterinary hospital, including chemicals, anesthetics, radiation, and diseases, and learn how to prevent the spread of infectious disease to patients and yourself.

Lesson 14: The Reproductive Cycle and Sterilization Procedures
We'll explore the reproductive cycle in cats and dogs, the diseases they are at risk for if they're not sterilized, and finally, the procedure used to stop them from being able to breed.

Lesson 15: Vaccinology
Find out what vaccines are made of, how they work, when we should give them, and how to administer them.

Lesson 16: Nutrition Basics and Prescription Foods
Learn the basics of feline and canine nutrition, why we use of prescription foods, and why some clients prefer homemade foods.

Lesson 17: Prescriptions: Preparing and Calculating Doses
Learn how to prepare prescriptions and calculate doses of medication using an animal's weight, and find out what to tell clients who ask for refills or prescriptions over the phone.

Lesson 18: Prescriptions: Types of Medications and What They Do
Learn the differences between over-the-counter and prescription drugs, discuss the major types of medications and what they do, and find out which human medications pose a danger to pets.

Lesson 19: Giving Medications
Learn the different ways to administer medications, including orally, in the eyes and ears, and by injection.

Lesson 20: The Euthanasia Process
Research the euthanasia process from the client's perspective, and learn how to make it as comfortable as possible.

Lesson 21: Taking Blood Samples
Learn the locations of the veins, how to take blood samples, and how to restrain for the procedure.

Lesson 22: Interpreting Blood Tests and Handling Blood
Discover what blood tests tell us about disease, and see how to do a packed cell volume and blood smear.

Lesson 23: Urine Collection, Handling, and Interpretation
Learn how to collect urine, what elements we measure in a urinalysis, and what the results mean.

Lesson 24: Tests: Serology, Scrapings, Smears, Flotations, and Necropsies
Explore the diagnostic tests commonly performed in the hospital, including serological tests, skin scrapings and cytology, fecal flotations and smears, and cultures; and see what your role will be in necropsies (post-mortem exams).

Lesson 25: Radiographs and Personal Safety
Learn how to produce high-quality radiographic images and how to protect yourself while taking them.

Lesson 26: Radiographic Positioning
Learn how to position an animal to get the correct radiographic view.

Lesson 27: Pain Recognition and Emergency Care
Discover how to recognize and alleviate pain in animals, and explore how to deal with common emergencies you'll see in a veterinary hospital.

Lesson 28: Dentistry: Charting, Tooth Disease, and Dental Care
Learn how to chart teeth, what diseases teeth suffer from, how a veterinarian does teeth cleaning and extractions, and how to educate clients about home dental care.

Lesson 29: External Parasites: Fleas, Ticks, Mites, and More
Explore the life cycles, diagnosis, and treatment options for external parasites including fleas, ticks, mites, lice, and ringworm.

Lesson 30: Parasites of the Gastrointestinal Tract and Heart
Learn about the worms that infest dogs and cats, their life cycles, and how we can control them.

Lesson 31: Poisonings in Pets
Investigate substances that can poison pets, including foods and household chemicals, and learn how to treat pets that have ingested poisons.

Lesson 32: Surgery: Preparing the Patient
Learn the names of surgical instruments and how to prepare a patient for surgery, and follow the events during anesthesia induction.

Lesson 33: Surgery: Your Role During and After
Learn how to prepare and handle packs, discover how to monitor patients under anesthesia and look after them once they wake up, and get a behind-the-scenes look at a complete surgery.

Lesson 34: The Job Search and Future Opportunities
Learn how to prepare an effective resume and be your best in an interview, and explore ideas for advancing your skills.

A high school diploma or equivalent is recommended but not essential.

This program is compatible with Windows, Mac, and a variety of browsers and browser versions. You will need Adobe Flash and Adobe Reader. You will need an Internet connection (high-speed is recommended) and email capability. 

Your tuition for this program includes this textbook:

• Tasks for the Veterinary Assistant, by Paula Pattengale

Jeff Grognet has been a companion animal veterinarian for over 25 years. He is a pioneer in the field of veterinary assistant teaching, having developed his first course over 20 years ago. This progressed to four short courses and finally the development of this veterinary assistant program. Jeff practices with his wife at a veterinary hospital in British Columbia, Canada. He has published thousands of articles on animal health topics for newspapers and magazines