At Kin Vet, we’re passionate about engaging with our community and inspiring young minds about the world of animal care. Recently, Joy and Connie, two of our dedicated veterinary nurses from Swayne and Partners’ Long Melford branch, had the pleasure of visiting Hartest CE Primary School in Suffolk to deliver a fun and educational session for children aged 4 to 7.
The visit took place on Wednesday 25 June, and included pupils from Reception, Year 1 and Year 2. With a class of 15 eager learners, the morning was filled with curiosity, excitement and lots of questions about what it’s like to work with animals.
Joy and Connie brought along a selection of veterinary tools and props to show the children, sparking conversation about how vets help pets stay healthy and happy. From learning how to listen to a pet’s heartbeat to understanding how we care for poorly animals, the children were fully engaged throughout the session.
The children even had the opportunity to dress up in real veterinary scrubs, giving them a feel for what it’s like to be part of a veterinary team. They also helped to bandage toy dog models, practising the kind of care vets provide to injured pets and showing great enthusiasm as they role-played their new skills.
Joy Fortis, Head Veterinary Nurse at Kin Vet, commented “It was a great opportunity to be able to talk to the children about the work that veterinary teams do to look after animals. The class were so engaged and talked lots about what they had learnt. It was a brilliant morning, and we hope that we have inspired some enthusiastic young minds to eventually join us in the profession.”
One of the children excitedly told Joy about a litter of puppies his family had recently bred, while the class was fascinated by an x-ray image showing a pregnant dog with one large puppy inside! They all enjoyed listening to their own heartbeats using a stethoscope, just to check they were alive, and took turns scanning one of the teddies for a microchip.
There was lots of enthusiasm as the children shared stories about their own pets at home and one pupil proudly told our nurses all about her pet snake. Joy and Connie loved hearing about the animals the children cared for and enjoyed answering questions about some of the more unusual patients they’ve treated over the years.
It was clear that this was a class full of animal lovers and we’re delighted to hear how much the children enjoyed the experience and want to give a special thanks to the staff at Hartest CE Primary School for welcoming us so warmly, and to the parents for granting photo permissions, enabling us to share a few snapshots of the visit on our website and social media.
At Kin Vet, our goal is not just to care for pets, but to support the people in our community too, whether they’re long-time clients or the next generation of animal carers. Get in touch with our team at Kin Vet to find a practice near you, gain helpful advice or join the Kin Care club.