St. Petersburg College’s Veterinary Technology faculty and students have had an exciting summer so far, with some teaching at community events in June, and others traveling to Zimbabwe to learn.

Educating local children

SPC faculty member Ryan O’Shea, who developed the camp program, along with other SPC faculty Janet Modrakovic, Dr. Megan Branham, and Trish Gorham, spent the last week of June talking to kids at Largo Recreation Parks and Arts Veterinary Science Camp, teaching the students about the many aspects of veterinary science and animal careers. They also taught basic animal first aid, animal care, surgical preparation (gowning, gloving, etc.) and many other topics.

On June 30, 17 campers took a field trip to SPC’s Vet Tech Campus, where they were able to engage with our animals, watch Vet Tech student Adriana Inamagua demonstrate cat clicker training, meet our SynDaver surgical training model dogs, Ozzie and Harriett, learn about radiology and radiographs, and more.

Earlier in the month, SPC Vet Tech Faculty member Nikki Riggs spent the day at Fluff’s Animal Rescue speaking to their summer camp participants, introducing them to what a veterinary nursing technician is and how to become one. She brought some special guests for them to meet, as well: Captain Crunch, a ball python; Mercy, a bearded dragon; and ferrets Portobello and Noodle. The kids loved meeting our animals and were also able to listen to their heartbeats with a stethoscope. They had great questions and were very interested in learning about the skill set and roles of veterinary technicians in practice and other areas. In a few years, we hope to see them all again, as students!

Studying abroad

More than 20 Veterinary Technology students and faculty spent two weeks in June studying abroad in the Republic of Zimbabwe, located in southeast Africa. They immersed in the culture, learned about conservation efforts and wildlife medicine and ate great food. They toured the University of Zimbabwe Veterinary School and visited a private game reserve, the Antelope Park, where they engaged with elephants, zebras, giraffes and lions. They also visited the Painted Dog Sanctuary, a conservation center that helps the less than 7,000 painted dogs left on the continent. Some nights the group slept in tents, waking up to the sounds of roaring lions! Please visit SPC’s Study Abroad Zimbabwe blog and learn about the experience directly from our students. As you can see in the photos, we made sure they knew where we were from!

This summer has certainly been one of teaching and learning for the SPC Veterinary Technology Center!