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Junior Vet Program

The Bowmanville Veterinary Clinic Junior Vet Program

Junior Vet Program session at Bowmanville Veterinary Clinic
Junior Vet Program session at Bowmanville Veterinary Clinic

This is a very unique and popular program that introduces children ages 10 - 14 to veterinary medicine. We hold these six- week sessions twice yearly, once in the spring and once in the fall. The sessions are held on Tuesday evenings from 7:15 - 8:30 pm. There is no charge for the program and all evenings are run with with volunteer help of the clinic Veterinarians and Registered Veterinary Technicians. We now have over 300 graduates! These sessions are extremely popular and fill up quickly. Please call the clinic for more details.

Week 1

Introductory Session - The students will meet our team of Registered Veterinary Technicians who will be taking them through the next 6 weeks of this program. They will have a tour of the clinic and will help us perform a full physical exam on an animal, while we explain about vaccines, different types of exams, nail trimming, ear cleaning and much more.

Week 2

Diagnostics - This week we will describe how diagnostics tie in with the physical exam. We will discuss such topics as bloodwork, fecals, urinalysis, radiographs, EKG machine and ultrasound.

Week 3

Common Diseases - We will describe the most commonly seen medical cases/conditions in both cats and dogs. We will also go over some basic animal first aid so that the students will know what to do in an emergency situation.

Week 4

Puppy Week! - This week we will be visited by some puppies! We will discuss how to choose the best puppy for you, what to look for, different breeds for different lifestyles, nutritional needs and the costs that go along with owning a pet. Puppy training is also a big part of tonight's session.

Week 5

Surgery - Tonight the students will be able to observe a surgery performed by one of our veterinarians. They will see how an animal is restrained, how an IV catheter is placed, the use of the monitoring equipment that we use during anesthesia. They will see how pain medication is given and why it is important to use. They will observe how the animal recovers after surgery.

Week 6

Final night - We will do an overview of what the students have learned and then we will have a visit from some exotic creatures. They will learn how exotic pets differ in their needs from our domestic dogs and cats. We will go through different restraints and the various nutritional needs of these animals.

This is a very popular program and fills up quickly so give us a call! The sessions run every spring and fall.