Sparsholt College’s 450 acre countryside campus has become a hive of activity in the first half of 2020 as the Animal Management Centre and working farm welcomes the arrival of lots of baby animals!
The annual arrival of the College lambs, calves and piglets kick-started the spring season as students got hands on delivering the young on our sheep and dairy units prior to Lockdown.
Studying and gaining practical experience on a working farm is a key aspect of our Agriculture courses, and gives our students an edge when applying for work in the industry.
Over at the Animal Management Centre, the college’s Edwards’s Pheasants are sitting on eggs which, if they hatch successfully, will help boost the global count of this critically endangered species.
Alongside this egg-citing news, our resident Gundi have introduced twins into their little pack, making six altogether. This unusual North African rodent species is only found at two zoos in the UK, and provides a vital source of education on desert mammals.
In our Exotics Department, 22 new baby Emperor Scorpions were welcomed all at once! Due to their docile nature and large size, this species is becoming increasingly popular as a pet. However this has been having a detrimental effect on their numbers in the wild. Captive breeding is therefore important to take pressure off the wild population.
Students studying Zoo and Animal Management at Sparsholt College have access to over 1200 animals across 200 species at the on-site Animal Management Centre. Learning to care for and help young animals develop from Sparsholt’s hard working experts alongside conservation of endangered species and pet trading, plays a key role in their studies.
A further £2 million investment in animal and zoo facilities has been granted to Sparsholt College, and in 2020 phase 4 development is beginning on a brand new Animal Health and Welfare Research Centre. The state-of-the-art centre will facilitate advanced welfare practices and digital technology and will add to the range of techniques, skills and industry know-how of our students.
All our teams are working as usual so you can still apply for courses in all of these exciting subject areas at here.