Elements and Performance Criteria

RANGE STATEMENT
The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.
Animal care workplace tasks may include:
assisting in heath care of animals
enclosure and bed cleaning and bedding replacement
equipment and consumables stocktake and ordering
exercising animals
feeding and watering animals
following environmentally sustainable work practices
grooming and animal cleaning
information collection, record and resource update
observing animal behaviour and reporting
taking messages and relaying information to appropriate person
cleaning workplace and equipment.
OHS risks when working with animals may include:
animal bites, envenomation, kicks, scratches and crush injuries
biological hazardous waste and sharps disposal
handling of chemicals and medicines
gas leakage
inhalation of aerosol particles
intraocular contamination
manual handling, including carrying, lifting and shifting
needle pricks and cuts from other sharps
release of infective agents (animal and human)
slippery or uneven work surfaces
zoonoses.
Daily workplace information and documentation may include:
accident and incident records
animal feeding, health and treatment records
animal identification and history
OHS and emergency procedures and contact information
equipment inventory, damage and repairs registers
provisions records of current stock and items used and items required
staff work roster.
Characteristics of animal behaviour may include:
indicators of stress:
aggressive behaviour
subdued behaviour
trembling
vocalisation
confidence and willingness to be approached gestures:
relaxed body tone and tail wagging
standing still or remaining sitting or laying down when approached
defensive gestures:
defending territory, other animals or food
growling, barking, hissing and spitting
hair on topline being raised
lunging forward
pecking
striking out with paws
submissive gestures:
lowering body
rolling onto back
tail between legs
turning away from handler.

EVIDENCE GUIDE
The Evidence Guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.
Overview of assessment

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit
The evidence required to demonstrate competence in this unit must be relevant to workplace operations and satisfy all of the requirements of the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge and the range statement of this unit. Assessors should ensure that candidates can:
confirm industry terminology used to describe daily work routines and to report observations and activities to supervisor
clean work areas and animal housing in accordance with OHS and organisation policies and procedures
assist in the preparation and distribution of food under supervision
relate basic animal behaviour to animal categories and report observations of live animal behaviour and health status to supervisor.

The skills and knowledge required to assist in the care of animals must be transferable to a range of work environments and contexts and include the ability to deal with unplanned events.
Context of and specific resources for assessment
Assessment of this unit is to be practical in nature and will most appropriately be assessed in an animal care workplace or in a situation that reproduces normal work conditions. Workplaces can include pet shops, breeding or boarding kennels and catteries, aviaries, companion animal training, grooming establishments, domestic animal zoos, mobile animal facilities and veterinary practices.

There must be access to a range of quiet, well-handled domestic animals as well as relevant information, equipment and/or resources to enable one to demonstrate competence.
Method of assessment
To ensure consistency in one's performance, competency should be demonstrated on more than one occasion over a period of time in order to cover a variety of circumstances and where possible, over a number of assessment activities.

Suggested strategies for this unit are:
written and/or oral assessment of candidate's required knowledge
observed, documented and first-hand testimonial evidence of candidate's application of practical tasks
simulation exercises that reproduce normal work conditions
third-party evidence
portfolio.

This unit may be assessed in a holistic way with other units of competency relevant to the industry sector, workplace and job role.
Guidance information for assessment
Assessment methods should reflect workplace demands (e.g. literacy and numeracy demands) and the needs of particular target groups (e.g. people with disabilities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, women, people with a language background other than English, youth and people from low socioeconomic backgrounds).