Breeding, Management and Morphological Evaluation

The course offers fundamental and comprehensive preparation on canine, feline and equine morphological and functional judgement, breeding and management, with a special focus on welfare, prevention and control of the problems that might occur on farm. Students will acquire theoretical and operational skills necessary to evaluate, breed, train and manage dogs, cats, horses and donkeys in different breeding contexts.
Learning objective of the course is also to assess, understand and analyze the hazards of their care and management in order to propose, on ethical and scientifically rigorous basis, effective and feasible solutions.

At the end of the course the student will have to prove that they have achieved:
1. Knowledge and understanding: the student must know and understand the main methods of judgment, breeding, management and training of dogs, cats and horses;
2. Applying knowledge and understanding: the student must be able to apply the knowledge acquired by critically discussing cases presented during the course and must be able to propose solutions that respect animal welfare and are scientifically rigorous;
3. Making judgements: the student must be able to study in a critical and proactive way, analysing the teaching material provided by the teacher and the recommended texts. The practical lessons will specifically help to develop critical and judgemental skills on problems that may be faced on-farm and on the relationships existing between different aspects of their management;
4. Communication: the student is expected to present the acquired knowledge in a clear and orderly way, using the appropriate specific terminology concerning the management of their breeding. The group work will contribute to the development of the student's ability to correctly communicate/transmit what has been learned;
5. Life-long learning: at the end of the course, which integrates theoretical and practical training, students will acquire the ability to deal more critically and autonomously with the management of their breeding, even in rapidly changing contexts other than those presented during the course.