Where knowledge and science meet ethics and compassion

HAS Online Courses

The following are online human-animal studies courses:

Vicki Hendricks

Animal-Human Interaction in Literature - Fully Online Course. Animals in literature have always captivated readers. The evolution of animal-human relationships from the 19th century to the present offers an interesting field of study, including animals as symbols, concepts of ownership versus companionship, cooperation and conflict in nature, suffering and morality, and literalist anthropomorphism as opposed to otherness-in-connection. Poe's "The Black Cat," Tolstoy's Strider: The Story of a Horse, London's The Call of the Wild, Woolf's Flush: A Biography and contemporary works Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand, The Life of Pi by Yann Martel, and The Dogs of Babel by Carolyn Parkhurst are the selected texts for discussion and written analysis.

California State University, Bakersfield

Carol Raupp

People, and Other Animals. Examines peoples' attitudes toward other animal species and the current psychological research describing our differing relationships with companion animals, animals used for food, animals used in research, sports, or entertainment, and so-called "wild" animals. This course is now available online to students everywhere.

Camden County College

Phil Arkow

The Survey Course in Animal-Assisted Therapy & Animal-Assisted Activities at Camden County College is a general orientation certificate course-- the starting point for individuals seeking an introduction to the human-animal bond and its therapeutic applications. Students typically are people who have pets that they think might qualify to be therapy animals, people seeking new career and volunteer opportunities, and professionals in such fields as health care, allied health, humane and human services, social work, and a wide array of therapies.

Harcum College

Phil Arkow

Animal Assisted Therapy and Activities. This is a new, comprehensive Introduction to Animal-Assisted Therapy & Activities on-line course. This 10-week course, taught by internationally renowned human-animal bond and AAT author Phil Arkow, offers a Certificate of Completion; this Certificate may be eligible for employer reimbursement and Continuing Education Units depending upon the requirements of the student's employer and/or professional association.

Humane Society University

Aubrey Fine

Introduction to Animal Assisted Interventions. Animal assisted interventions and animal therapy programs have the capacity to improve empathy, self-esteem, and animal care knowledge. This course will review theories animal assisted interventions, and specific therapeutic techniques as they apply to several different populations will be discussed. Dog training, mechanisms of change, and program outcomes will also be examined. Students will have an opportunity to observe an actual animal assisted intervention, interview the animal handler involved, and integrate newly gained knowledge of theories, practice, and evaluation of these programs.

Humane Society University

Aubrey Fine

The Role of Animals in the Lives of Children. The literature is filled with commentaries and research findings attesting the value of animals in the lives of children. This course will review theories of human-animal bond and animal assisted interventions for children in therapeutic environments and in the home. Specific animal assisted programs for children with physical and developmental disabilities will be explored. Attention will be given to best practice approaches in developing AAI programs and methods for program evaluation. The role of animals in schools and humane education will also be discussed. Students will have an opportunity to write a proposal for an animal assisted program for children integrating newly gained knowledge of theories, practice, and evaluation of these programs.

Humane Society University

Aubrey Fine

Animal Assisted Interventions for Youth-At-Risk. Animal assisted activities and animal assisted therapy programs may have the capacity to improve social and cognitive skills, to improve awareness of animal care needs, and to reduce aggression and other problem behaviors among emotionally troubled, economically disadvantaged, adjudicated and other youth-at-risk. Shelter-based dog training programs also may have the capacity to improve adoption chances and reduce relinquishment. The course examines the convergence of theories of human-animal bond and the analysis of the risk and protective factors related to youth violence. Specific animal assisted programs for youth-at-risk, mechanisms of change, best practices, program-related animal welfare issues, and program outcomes will be examined.

Humane Society University

Marion Copeland

Animals in Literature: Animal Voices, Human Visions. Literature provides insight into human attitudes toward nonhuman animals; it also uses nonhumans as a means of examining and understanding what it means to be human. More significantly for Animal Studies, literature can provide a lens through which human animals may learn more about their nonhuman neighbors, offering insights into their biology, behavior, and culture, as well as into the difficulties they encounter while surviving in the evolving habitats all living beings contribute to and share. Works of animal literature have been shown to raise consciousness about animals as well as to encourage both empathy with nonhumans and active participation in animal welfare and animal rights movements. The four thematic areas into which the course is divided reflect these concerns. When literary portraits of the lives of nonhumans are accurate and empathetic, they allow humans to use the powers of their metamorphic imaginations, the basis of our ability to pretend, to inhabit nonhuman worlds (The title of the course has recently been revised to reflect this and will soon be in the catalog as "The Literary Animal: Raising Consciousness Through Fiction." Such narrative imaginings should provide, according to legal scholar Martha Nussbaum, the basis of human behavior toward others, human and nonhuman.

Humane Society University

Marion Copeland

Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Animal Studies. Animal Studies, a rapidly growing and evolving field, provides an interdisciplinary approach to examining both human-animal relations (the changing roles of animals in society and of the evolution of human attitudes to other animals) and the animals themselves. The February 2008 Minding Animals Conference Newsletter (www.mindinganimals.com) announced that "The new transdisciplinary field of Animal Studies has arrived." The first conference convened in July 2009, brought together animal theorists and scientists from a broad range of academic disciplines, with government officials from several nations, representatives from non government organizations and representatives from industry, to examine the interrelationships between human and nonhuman animals from cultural, historical, geographical, environmental, representational (arts and literature), moral, legal and political perspectives. By 2011 Minding Animals Conferences are scheduled in major cities all around the planet. Further updates can be found at: http://www.aasg.org.au/bulletins While a bit less ambitious, this course, drawing through interview and publications on the expertise of scholars in a sampling of the disciplines currently involved in Animal Studies, examines what each discipline contributes to Animal Studies and, in turn, what Animal Studies is contributing to the disciplines considered, and how these combined endeavors serve to enhance understanding and improve the welfare and status of nonhuman animals.

Humane Society University

Aubrey Fine, Bernie Unti

Understanding the Human-Animal Bond. This course provides an interdisciplinary examination of the human animal relationship. Topics include relationships with pets, psychological and physiological benefits of companion animals, concern for animal rights and animal welfare, the role of animals in children's lives and in schools, and demographic differences in people's relationships with animals.

Humane Society University

Leslie Irvine, Merriellyn Maldonado

Sociology of Animal Abuse. The sociological approach to animal abuse examines human cruelty to animals from several perspectives. How do different groups arrive at definitions of animal abuse, and what claims are made by various groups, whether psychologists, legal scholars, or activists, to have a particular definition of abuse recognized? The course also critically examines the potential and contextual impact of cruelty to animals on people. Individualized forms of animal abuse, such as cruelty and neglect, and institutionalized abuses such as the use of animals for research, hunting, and food are also examined.

Humane Society University

Nathan Nobis

Animals and Ethics. This course provides an overview of the current debates about the nature and extent of our moral obligations to animals. Topics include general theories of ethics and their implications for animals, moral argument analysis, animal minds, and the uses of animals for food, clothing, experimentation, entertainment, hunting, as companions, and other purposes.

Humane Society University

Kitty Block, Michael Greger, Kelly O'Meara, Andrew Rowan, Sarah Stewart, Teresa Telecky

Global Animal Issues. Animal welfare advocacy has typically been focused locally (e.g. shelters) and nationally (e.g. changing laws and corporate behavior). However, in the past thirty years, a significant international advocacy movement has emerged that is promoting animal welfare issues to international agencies and developing coalitions to prevent animal suffering across the globe. This course tracks the development of the international animal protection movement and examines its tactics and impact over a range of issues.

Humane Society University

Jonathan Balcombe, Jennifer Calkins

Animal Behavior, Animal Minds, and Animal Protection. The study of animal behavior (ethology), particularly the study of animal minds (cognitive ethology), offers important insights for animal welfare and animal protection. Knowledge (and beliefs) about animal minds inform how we treat animals in the wide variety of venues in which animals are used (food, clothing, education, research, and entertainment). This course takes a comparative, ecological, and evolutionary view of animals and animal behavior, discussing a wide range of species and contexts.

Humane Society University

Sarah Bexell

Animal Protection and the Environment. This course examines the convergence and divergence of animal protection and environmental movement interests, which have far-reaching strategic and policy implications for animals. Factory farming, climate change, hunting, and sustainability are among the topics considered.

Loyola Marymount University

George Jacobs

Teaching about the Interaction of Humans and Other Animals. Human interactions with our fellow animals have a major impact on other animals and on us. This course explores how these interactions can be included in our teaching. Topics include a debate about animals in schools, exploring literature, movies, tv and cartoon interactions as well as food, disease, communities and service learning. Online Course

Massey University

Mary Murray and Peter Beatson

Animals and Society. This course will explore relationships between animals and human societies historically and contemporarily. Thecourse will consider ways in which social, political, economic and cultural relationships, institutions and dynamics have shaped and have been shaped by the human-animal configuration.

Major topics include the domestication of animals; hunting; farming; the use of animals in research; companion animals; conservation; animals in spectacle; sport and entertainment; animals and folklore; animals and film; the animal welfare and animal rights movements; and ethical issues in the human animal relationship. Thecourse is available to internal and distance learning students.

Mercy College

Boria Sax

Animals in Literature. This graduate-level course covers animals in literature around the world.

New Zealand Veterinary Association

Animal welfare has emerged as a central issue nationally and internationally. Veterinarians and professionals from a wide variety of disciplines increasingly need to know how the law applies to animals in everything from routine pet care and provision of animal health and welfare services, to urban and farm management, transport, food safety, biosecurity, environmental management and international trade. The New Zealand Veterinary Association offers a number of online courses aimed at veterinary students and veterinarians, including Animal Welfare and the Law, Animal Welfare in Agriculture, and Animal Welfare and Client Confidentiality.

North Carolina State University

Gary Comstock

Open Seminar in Research Ethics. This is an online course in research ethics that has a module on the use of animals in research.

State University of Illinois at Springfield

Boria Sax

Animals in Human Civilization. This class covers folklore, literature, religion, history, artificial intelligence, and other fields to consider social, religious, and philosophical perspectives on animals throughout history. Students also explore the ways in which animals have served as metaphors for social divisions such as tribe, gender, class, and race.

Following are online degree programs:

American College of Applied Science

Companion Animal Behavior Counseling Degree Program

This clinical graduate degree program for professionals is the first of its kind offered by a U.S. college or university and is designed with the working adult learner in mind. The program employs a scientist/practitioner model following the principles of applied behavior analysis and evidence based practice. It is designed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the field of companion animal behavior and provides graduates with the necessary knowledge, task, and leadership skill sets to work as applied animal behaviorists servicing over 150 million companion animals and their caregivers in the U.S. alone. The curricula explores companion animal behavior including learned and heritable behavior, species-specific behavior, functional assessment and analysis of behavior problems, measurement of behavior using quantifiable methodologies, development of positive behavioral intervention plans, psychopharmacological intervention, caregiver counseling and ethical practice. Additional learner outcomes include a thorough understanding of the societal value of the human-animal bond as well as the cultural and ethical issues related to companion animal welfare while recognizing companion animals as members of the family unit. Students enrolled in this program are required to work with certain animal species associated with the curricula, e.g. dogs, cats, horses, birds, small mammals and reptiles, etc. in academic residency, field project or externship courses.

Arizona State University

Understanding and treating animal abuse

In Partnership with Animals and Society Institute, the Arizona State University School of Social Work in the College of Public Programs present 3 new online courses:

Human-Other Animal Relationships
Assessment and Treatment of Juvenile Animal Abuse
Assessment and Treatment of Adult Animal Abuse
The courses may be taken individually for CEUs only or, in sequence, as part of the "Treating Animal Abuse Professional Development Certification Program."

Bircham International University

Animal Assisted Therapy

Program delivered by distance learning higher education up to a maximum of 15 credits. This module may be combined or completed with other online university courses from this faculty. This program provides an overview of the many ways in which animals can be used to assist therapists. Coverage includes how animals can assist specific patient populations (children, the disabled, AIDS patients, etc.), how animals can aid in specific settings (hospitals, prisons, independent practice, etc.), and how professionals can best select appropriate animals (species, breed, and individual temperament) and design an AAT program. Humans have long had a special bond with animals, initially as work animals, then as pets, and now more frequently as therapeutic companions. Animals help the sick recover more quickly and help the aged live longer and more satisfying lives. Specially trained animals are now helping stroke victims, the handicapped, and others to regain or build lost faculties. Courses in the module include human-animal support services, animal assisted therapy, the animal human bond, domestic animals, and animal behavior.

Humane Society University

Animal Studies, Animal Policy and Advocacy, Humane Leadership, and Animal Assisted Interventions Degrees and Certificates

Based in Washington, DC, HSU's College of Arts & Sciences is the first higher education institution in the country licensed to confer Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Animal Studies, Animal Policy and Advocacy, and Humane Leadership. Graduate Certificates are also offered in the aforementioned majors along with Animal Assisted Interventions. Coursework for these programs can be completed exclusively online, though onsite courses are also an option.

Humane Society University School of Professional Development

Certificates in Humane Education, Advocacy, Shelter Management

Humane Society University is proud to offer an online professional development program for classroom teachers, school administrators, youth outreach professionals, shelter directors, humane education specialists, and humane law enforcement officers committed to humane education. The Certified Humane Education Specialist (CHES) program features a prerequisite mini-course and a choice of seven full self-paced courses that guide participants in conducting effective teacher in-services, exploring storytelling as a teaching device, identifying the connections between humane education and the preschool curriculum, middle-school and high-school service learning, character education, and working in underserved areas. Course content is based on extensive research, and courses are centered on engaging activities with a wealth of practical tips and field-tested strategies for working with children, teens, school faculty, and youth leaders. Enhance your credentials and become more confident and comfortable at advancing humane education within your own community!

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