close

4-H members, parents meet their vets

3 min read
1 / 3
From left, Carlos Gonzalez, Tom Gillespie, Aundria Del Pino and Amelia Anderson local veterinarians, have a round table discussion during "Meet Your Veterinarian Day" at the 4-H room at North Fort Myers Community Park. CHUCK BALLARO
2 / 3
Roy Beckford, of the Lee County UFIFAS Extension Services, poses a question to local veterinarians during "Meet Your Veterinarian Day" at the 4-H room at North Fort Myers Community Park. CHUCK BALLARO
3 / 3
Alysia Taylor, of North Fort Myers, asks a question during "Meet Your Veterinarian Day" at the 4-H room at North Fort Myers Community Park. CHUCK BALLARO

The 4-H Club room at the North Fort Myers Community Park was packed recently as numerous veterinarians throughout Lee County spoke to young 4-H members and their parents.

The University of Florida, IFAS Lee County Extension, in collaboration with the Lee County 4-H Program and the Southwest Florida Goat Club, hosted the inaugural Meet your Veterinarian Day, and judging by the response, the event held Aug. 30 could very well become annual.

The event was targeted to livestock owners and owners of exotic mammalian pets, but also focused on attracting local 4-H youth and their club and project leaders to meet with area veterinarians.

Roy Beckford, extension director, said he was approached by a 4-H leader with the idea of having a forum to bridge the gap between the 4-H Club and local vets.

“We wanted to improve interaction and create channels of information for members who aspire to be veterinarians,” Beckford said. “We put this together to satisfy that objective.”

Among the topics the four vets discussed included when you need to call a vet and how to make a career in veterinary medicine.

People also learned goat producing was a bigger industry than they thought.

The vets also took questions from parents and had a panel discussion on a variety of topics, many of which involved goats.

“It’s encouraging to see this many young kids interested in livestock and veterinary medicine,” said veterinarian Tom Gillespie. “I hope this grows.”

After the discussion, the 4-H kids networked with the vets, asking them questions about their field without the pressure of everyone watching.

Penny Beigh, vice president of the goat club and co-leader of 4-H, said the event was “doggone cool.”

“This has been a resounding success and will be even better next year,” Beigh said. “I didn’t know there were that many goat producers on the tax rolls. I think that’s neat.”

It was also a learning experience for the kids, such as Madison Allen, 14, who took the time to apparently adopt a four-week old kitten that one of the vets brought for the trip.

“I learned being a vet is a lot harder work than I thought and that it’s worth it because they really seem to enjoy what they do,” Allen said. “It was cool. It’s not what I expected it to be.”

Beckford said he plans to do this again next year, only with a broader view as he expects more participation.

“We want to invite local livestock producers so you open it up inclusive of 4-H,” Beckford said. “These kids become livestock producers, college graduates and vets themselves, so there is continuity beyond the 4-H community.”

The University of Florida/ IFAS Lee County Extension offers educational programs through an arrangement between the Lee County Board of County Commissioners, the University of Florida and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Local extension agents are off-campus faculty members of the University of Florida.