4-H Veterinary Science Program

Each year the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine invites 9th-12th grade 4-Hers exhibiting at the Indiana State Fair in Veterinary Sciences to participate in Purdue Veterinary Medicine's Open House. 4-Hers exhibit and discuss their projects with Open House visitors, members of the College of Veterinary Medicine Admissions committee, faculty, staff, and students. The exhibition is followed by a student panel where 4-Hers can ask current veterinary students about their experiences. Participants are given information on careers as veterinary technicians/ technologists and doctors of veterinary medicine. 4-Hers are then presented a certificate of participation. For more information, please contact your 4-H leader.

2017 Presentations

Rachel 170420

How to Spay a Dog

My 4-H poster was created with photos from the day I spent job-shadowing Dr. Jan Yerk in Remington, Indiana. Beginning with the necessary supplies, and concluding with recovery, the photos illustrate the procedure for spaying a dog.

Lauren Brinson

Raising Baby Pigs

My poster outlines the key factors in raising baby pigs. It also presents the reasoning behind procedures such as ear notching, cutting teeth, giving injections, and proper nutrition. The poster provides a chart of steps completed to ensure that the piglets remain healthy and continue growing.

Annalyssa Crain

Horse Diseases- Bacterial; Viral

My poster gives a brief overview of bacterial and viral diseases. I discussed three diseases for each: Lyme disease, Tetanus, Strangles, West Nile, Equine Influenza, and Rabies. I made a list of bullet points containing key information such as whether or not it is contagious, symptoms, and prevention through possible vaccines. Lastly, I provided pictures with captions showing what a horse with that disease may look like.

Eilee Deniston

Swell Cell Organelles

My project is over an animal cell. My board displays a picture of a cell with every organelle within that cell. I also listed and added pictures of the different types of organelles and their functions.

Kelsi Denu

Cattle Vital Signs

This poster discusses the vital signs of a healthy and an unhealthy cow. My poster tells you how to check cow vital signs such as temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate and skin.

McKenzie Ellegood

Cloning

My project is about cloning, how it works, and what kind of processes happen during cloning. My project also talks about Dolly the Sheep and her creation.

Jessica Fauquher

The Heart of the Problem

My poster explains the disease of heartworms. It shows the differences between a healthy heart and a heartworm-accumulated heart. The cycle of the process is illustrated. Treatment and prevention are also described.

Olivia Groves

Intervertebral Disc Disease

It can be a hit or miss whether a canine or other animal tests positive for certain disease. By vaccinating your animals, they have a lower chance of getting or carrying the disease. This may help stop the disease.

Mekyna Hall

Getting Technical

My project displays just a few technical advances in the veterinary medical field. It includes a brief description along with a picture exhibiting each advancement.

Audrey Hirsch

Happy Birds Biosecurity: Keeping your Flock Happy and Healthy

Biosecurity is the step you take to decrease the chance of disease coming in contact with your flock. An absolute must in biosecurity is following exact measures to keep your birds safe and knowing what to look for in order to prevent the spread of a disease.

Bethany Hobson

Puppy What: Puppy Yum – Puppy Yuck

“Puppy What” is a teaching aid to help inform kids of all ages about what is and is not safe for dogs to consume.

Courtney Jackman

Introducing the K-laser

I chose to do my project on the K-laser because it is changing the face of medical innovation. The K-laser is fast, easy, and a safe way of healing cuts, wounds, arthritis and much more.

Jolie Klimczak

Communication Code Red

My project is about how the vet business deals with communication. It shows how important communication is when dealing with customers, since it is essential in this field.

Nate Ladd

Signs of Illness

My poster informs about the different signs of illness that an animal may show. It not only displays the general appearance and/or attitude that an animal may display, but also signs that may appear physically on the coat, skin, feet, legs, mucous membranes, etc.

Chesney Loehr

Chew, Poo, Moo

My project focuses on the cow’s digestive system. My poster shows a diagram of a cow and the four parts of their stomach they have. It discusses the functions of each and the process the food goes through.

Matthew McMillan

When Good Feeds Go Bad

For my project, I wanted to know what conditions are ideal for feeds and which conditions to avoid. I put different types of feed in five different conditions and tracked the changes.

Libby Nobles

What’s Eating You?

My poster describes how to tell if your horse has lice, what causes an outbreak of lice, how an outbreak can be prevented, the different types of treatments, and the two different types of lice.

Leea Persinger

Equine Dentistry

My project covers the following aspects of equine dentistry: dental anatomy of the horse’s head and tooth, Triadan chart, how teeth change as a horse gets older and why you “float” horses’ teeth.

Kathleen Potter

Exercise Induced Pulmonary Hemorrhage

The topic of my project is EIPH or Exercise Induced Pulmonary Hemorrhage. EIPH is bleeding into the lungs and airways of hoses when undergoing strenuous exercise for short periods of time. My project discusses preventative techniques and provides important background into this condition.

Gabrielle Reid

Spa Day on the Farm

My poster is about some of my farm animals and how I get them ready to show. The information included in this poster are frequently asked questions about the animals along with visual aids.

McKenzie Roth

Contagion

This project is about contagious diseases and biosecurity. Contagious diseases are transmitted between animals or from place to place. We take action using biosecurity to prevent disease transmission.

Patrice Serianni

Diagnosing and Treating Cardiomyopathy in Cats

This project is about feline cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart in cats. There are three types of cardiomyopathy: dilated, hypertrophic, and restrictive. This project discusses ways to diagnose, treat, and prevent this potentially fatal disease. Interactive activities to facilitate learning and fuel discussion are included.

Wyatt Shinn

Hit the Zone

This project explains the areas where shots should be administered in beef cattle. It explains why giving shots the right way and in the correct area is vital. It also shows what effect shots have on a profitable beef herd.

Anna Taylor

Lions and Tigers and Bears: A day with an Animal Sanctuary Veterinarian

Black Pine Sanctuary is home for exotic animals. Keeping the animals healthy is a top priority and that is where Dr. Scott Taylor comes in. Because exotic animals are wild and unpredictable, Dr. Taylor must use keen observation to know whether or not the animals are healthy and when problems arise.

Emma Townsend

Avian Flu 911!

This poster talks about the cause, symptoms, and the effects the avian flu has on the poultry industry. It explains the different biosecurity measures poultry owners can take to prevent their flock from being infected.

Becca VanSlyke

ID ME

This project is about the importance of why we ID animals. I give a brief description of different types of identification to use on animals. There are six different ones I explain with the pros and cons of each, and what types of animals they are used on.

Isabella Von Seggern

A Spoonful of Sugar

This poster is about the administration of medication to animals and the methods that are used.

Lucy Wahnsiedler

Wildly Fun: Keeping the Wild in Captive Animals through Animal Enrichment

This teaching aid highlights the importance of animal enrichment for captive animals in a zoo setting. It also provides information about how enrichment items must be created, approved, and monitored by veterinarians; zookeepers, and other zoo staff.

Emily Waling

Dog Language

This poster is about dog body language. I describe ten different dog behaviors along with visual representations which include stance and attitude. I also explain safety risks associated with each type of behavior.

Shelby Whitaker

A Look Inside Pet X-ray!

This project is an information board that explains different topics about pet radiology. Some of the information includes different types of animal radiology such as CT scans, magnetic resonance imaging, and ultrasound scans. This board provides information about the types of bone fractures and reasons for broken bones in pets.