If you love working with animals, from horses to cows to baby piglets, as well as dogs and cats, you can do it here 24/7! We have one of the top rated animal science majors in the country, and the only one in SoCal. It’s the place to start if you want to be a vet – but other “tracks” prepare us for careers in animal-related business like managing horse or dairy farms, and animal nutrition and food safety.
Classes and Labs
Animal Science students help run the world famous Arabian horse farm – from the breeding programs to the monthly Arabian shows for the public. Breed your “own” mare and be there when she foals – all for college credit.
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We study genetics, physiology, nutrition, immunology – and apply what we learn working with all kinds of animals handson: dogs, cats, horses, cows, pigs, goats, and some exotics too.
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Do you know what part of a steer “carne asada” comes from and why it’s so tasty? Meat Science gets you into fields like food marketing and food safety. We sell the beef we raise at the campus Farm Store.
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Clubs and Events
Do you ride? English or Western? We have clubs for all styles, from jumping to rodeo. Cal Poly teams compete in IHSA shows. It’s the biggest intercollegiate equestrian organization. We almost always send teams to the nationals.
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Our Pre-Vet Club is really active. This year we went to Mississippi for the national Symposium of college Pre- Vet clubs, and to Las Vegas for the Western Veterinary Conference where we networked and saw labs and lectures about the future of veterinary medicine.
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We give back to the community in lots of ways. Our students and faculty participated in a fund raiser for Danny’s Farm, a working farm for kids and adults who have autism and other developmental disabilities.
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Other Cool Stuff
Our campus is surrounded by 1,500 acres of green pastures where our prizewinning herds of livestock graze. Check out the scene and meet some of the players on th horseback video tour.
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For a Zoology lab we handled rattlesnakes near Camp Pendleton. We also visited the Wolf Park, a Ferret Farm (where we cleaned ears) and even had a behind-the-scenes tour of the Aquarium of the Pacific where they’re doing important research.
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Our pets are part of campus life. We have dog park days, dress them up for Halloween, and bring them to our animal CPR demonstrations for the public.
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