Students in Franklin County Technical School’s veterinary science program got some hands-on experience earlier this month, with the birth of three baby goats owned by their teacher, Kimberly Barry.
On March 1, Barry’s Nigerian dwarf goat was showing signs of labor while Barry was preparing to leave her farm in the morning, according to a Franklin Tech announcement. Barry decided to bring the goat with her to school so she could monitor it.
While her 10th-grade class was in session later that day, it became clear Addie was going to deliver, and the students gathered around to watch and assist in the birthing process.
“This was a great lesson in normal caprine birth and the steps that need to be taken immediately after kids are born,” Barry said in a statement. “One of the things we always stress at Franklin County Tech is giving our students real-world experiences in their fields of interest, and this experience was as ‘real-world’ as it gets. It was great for the students to see this birth up close and be able to ask questions about what they saw.”
Since then, students in Barry and Regina Parsons’ classes have been learning about postpartum care for both the newborn goats and their mother, as well as the normal behavior of kids and how to raise them in a safe and healthy environment. The mother rejected one of the kids, so the students also learned how to bottle-feed the newborn goats.
“Assisting in the birth of these goats and the subsequent care for them is something that these students won’t soon forget, and it was a special way for them to learn more about animal science,” Director of Career and Technical Education Matthew West said. “Our veterinary program has a long history of hands-on education and this is just the latest example of that.”