Junior Vet School

So many kids say they want to a vet when they grow up! At JVAH we strive to encourage and strengthen this interest in veterinary medicine and start recruiting and training the next generation of veterinary professionals early. Our doctors and staff are passionate about what we do, and we hope to share that excitement with young people in our community.

In pursuit of this goal, we host “Junior Vet School” twice a year. This is a FREE community outreach event that we put on at our clinic for children 4-12 years old. The goal of Junior Vet School is to introduce kids to the field of veterinary medicine in a fun, hands-on way. About 100 kids attend each time, and they rotate through different stations led by our doctors and staff, such as:

• Teddy Bear Surgery – The kids scrub in and gown up for a mock foreign body surgery performed on stuffed animals, with the help of one of our vets.
• Physical Exam – We go through the steps of a physical exam on a real dog and learn how to take a history.
• Bandaging – We demonstrate wound cleaning and bandaging on a real dog, and the kids practice placing bandages on stuffed animals.
• Diagnostics – We discuss some of the tests we do on our patients, like bloodwork, and look at cool x-rays of things like GI foreign bodies, fractures, pregnancy, and exotic animals.
• Dentistry – The kids practice cleaning teeth, using real dentistry equipment on a dog skull. We also show them how we take dental x-rays on dogs and cats and talk about the importance of dental care in our pets.

We have such a great time putting on Junior Vet School, and the feedback from attendees has been so positive. We hope to continue this JVAH tradition for years to come. Registration is open to all our clients and their families. Make sure we have your email address to receive an invitation!