Lisa Mixter, a telecommunication, information studies and media sophomore, and veterinary technology junior Tiffany Bourassa prepare to milk a cow at the College of Veterinary Medicine annual open house Saturday afternoon. The center provided demonstrations to the public on cow milking, therapeutic riding and other teachings.
It was udder madness as hundreds of kids and parents anxiously awaited their turn to milk a cow, pet farm animals and stick their hands inside a cow’s stomach Saturday during the MSU College of Veterinary Medicine’s annual Vet-a-Visit.
The exhibits were a few of the many activities hosted by students and faculty at the Veterinary Medical Center.
William Berkowski, a volunteer and second-year veterinary medicine student, said the open house was a good chance for anyone who has a pet or wants to be a veterinarian to gain exposure to the field.
“The public gets to see the science behind how we care for their pets,” he said. “They can see what goes on behind closed doors.”
Berkowski helped with tours of the center’s radiology facilities, showing participants the instruments used to take X-rays and computed tomography, or CT, scans.
Other exhibits included a petting zoo, wildlife ward, horse dressage and horse treadmill, which is used at MSU to help diagnose respiratory diseases and assess lameness.
Tina Jimenez, a Davison, Mich., resident, said she came to Vet-a-Visit because her 8-year-old daughter Alyssa loves animals — particularly horses.
“She’s loved all of it, especially petting all the animals,” Jimenez said. “She wants to be a veterinarian when she grows up.”
Alicia Gour, a second-year veterinary medicine student and committee member for the food animal exhibits, said the event seemed more crowded than the estimated 6,000 people who attended last year’s open house.
Gour said one of the most popular exhibits, rumen fistula, gave participants the chance to put their hands in a hole that was put in one of a cow’s four stomachs to study how cows digest their food.
Gour said most people are genuinely interested in animals, and the open house gives them the opportunity to voice their questions.
“It’s great because many of these kids have never seen farm animals before,” she said.
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