Animal Behavior Courses

It's important to learn about animal behavior to gain insight into understanding many of the environment’s challenges, such as how to save endangered species and how to evaluate the quality of a specific environment. Learning animal behavior offers perspectives on how our environment has evolved and continues to progress. Animal behavior is a broad subject in which you can learn about the world of both domesticated and wild animals to help raise them, care for them, or preserve their lives.‎

When learning about animal behavior, you’ll gain a comprehensive group of skills that pivot around the core ability to assess the welfare of all types of animals, from chickens and horses to dogs and chimpanzees. You can gain the skills to communicate with animals through understanding the nuances of animal psychology and form an understanding of the physiology and anatomy of animals and how they adjust to changing environments. You can also learn the varied skills of animal disease management, which includes reading vital signs, learning about behavioral diagnoses, treatments, cognitive behaviors, and the right hygiene and nutrition to support the health of all types of animals.‎

Many career opportunities can come from learning about animal behavior, including working in a veterinary practice or hospital. Through learning about animal behavior, you can also find career opportunities in zoos, research institutions, farms, shelters, wildlife refuges, animal control offices, and in any capacity that calls for the humane handling, treatment, and welfare of animals. You may also decide to seek opportunities in companies that design housing and toys for animals or work for a pet food manufacturer to create healthier alternatives after learning about animal behavior.‎

Taking online courses on Coursera can help you learn about animal behavior by exposing you to lessons from experienced veterinarians, animal science experts, and anthropologists. You may have the opportunity to learn about dog emotion and cognition, chimpanzee behavior and conservation, neurobiology, the care and management of horses, and chicken behavior and welfare.‎