Cert in Animal Care at Sheridan College in Oakville, Canada is a certificate in Animal Science programme. The programme runs for 1 year, delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition for international students is CAD 20,117 per year (CAD 5,160 per year for local students).
This one-year certificate prepares students for roles across settings such as grooming businesses, animal shelters, veterinary clinics, wildlife rehabilitation facilities, dog daycares, pet shops and zoos. Coursework spans animal anatomy, nutrition, domestic and exotic animal science, grooming, nursing procedures and handling, with supervised practice on live animals covering restraint technique, husbandry, feeding, grooming and veterinary simulation exercises. A two-week placement at an animal facility at the end of the second semester gives front-line experience working with and observing the care of animals, and lab activities are based at a campus animal centre holding Good Animal Practice Certification from the Canadian Council on Animal Care.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Direct entry requires an Ontario Secondary School Diploma or equivalent with one English, Grade 12 (ENG4C or ENG4U); no minimum course grade is published, and selection is based on the average of an applicant's six highest senior-level credits. Applicants aged 19 or older who lack the prerequisite may apply as mature students through Academic Upgrading. A strong background in sciences and math is considered an asset, and prior experience in the animal-care field is strongly recommended. Field placement requires proof of completed rabies pre-exposure immunization, and placement agencies may additionally require a criminal record check, a vulnerable sector check and/or a current immunization record. Applicants whose first language is not English must meet Sheridan's institution-wide English Proficiency Requirement for certificate and diploma programs: IELTS Academic overall 6.0 (no band below 5.5), TOEFL iBT overall 80 (no section below 20), PTE Academic overall 58 (no section below 49), or Duolingo English Test overall 105 (no sub-score below 85).
Application Details
Start Date:Sheridan runs three terms a year - Fall starting in September, Winter in January and Spring/Summer in May. For 2026-27 the Fall term ran 8 September to 18 December 2026, Winter runs 6 January to 16 April 2027, and Spring/Summer runs 3 May to 13 August 2027. On 6 September 2026 this program's own page listed intakes in September 2026 and January 2027 at the Davis Campus in Brampton. Sheridan's Start date table also carries a separate Domestic and International status for each intake (Available, Waitlisted or Closed) that changes as seats fill, so check this program's page on sheridancollege.ca before you apply.
Application Deadline:Sheridan publishes no deadline of its own for this program; the dates below are the college-wide ones. DOMESTIC APPLICANTS (Canadian citizens and permanent residents) apply through ontariocolleges.ca, which opened the Fall 2027 application on 26 September 2026 - Sheridan says it starts receiving those applications in early October for the academic year that follows. The equal consideration date is 1 February: apply on or before it and your file is weighed alongside every other one received by then for a Fall-term start, so for the cycle now open that means 1 February 2027 for entry in September 2027. Sheridan still accepts applications after that date wherever a program has not filled, but they are handled in the order they arrive, which leaves little room in high-demand programs. First offers for a September start may go out from 1 November; programs that require a portfolio, audition or resume begin issuing decisions later in March, and offers for the Winter and Spring/Summer intakes are made on a rolling basis. Confirm a Fall offer at ontariocolleges.ca by 1 May, or by the date printed on an offer issued after that, then pay the tuition deposit three months before the term begins. INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS apply instead through Sheridan's own International Application Portal, and Sheridan publishes no deadline for them - its Important Dates table carries only a note that the international dates are still to be posted. What limits an international application in practice is space: Sheridan tells international applicants to check that a program still has room before applying, and every program page shows a separate International status for each intake. Apply as early as you can and leave time for a study permit. Confirm the current dates at sheridancollege.ca and ontariocolleges.ca before you apply.
