In our home all the kids are interested in animals but then again, what child is not? However, Our 4 year old is especially interested in them and seems to have a gift with them. She is already a very compassionate child so always does well with children and animals. So, when we heard of the Texas A & M Veterinary School’s open house, we thought it would be a fun morning. So we loaded up the car and took the short drive to College Station. It did not disappoint. While we do have some suggestions for improvement, the overall experience was enjoyable and we will be back next year for this FREE annual event.
Texas A & M’s Veterinary School’s open house started with us receiving a flier with their program and schedule. Unfortunately, we were on a tight schedule and this was a last minute trip so we were not fully prepared for everything. Therefore, we did not get to experience all of that the open house had to offer. Next year we will start out earlier and have ample time to see all the exhibits and shows. We took tours of the small and large animal clinics. We viewed some of the outdoor exhibits and enjoyed the animals.
The children were unanimous in agreeing that the Canine Connect Agility show where the dogs went through an obstacle course was the favorite event of the day. However, there were many events, something for everyone to enjoy. View their website for a complete listing of the exhibits, discussions and demonstrations. This is a family-friendly event and everyone from the youngest children to adults will get something out of it and learn something interesting.
For those who are interesting in attending in coming years, we suggest putting this on your radar early and preparing for it with your children. You can join their Facebook Page and get updates so you have plenty of time to start discussing this with your kids. We also suggest getting there early to enjoy all there is to offer and bringing a picnic lunch, water and snacks. This is a free event and quite popular so you will likely wait in some lines and you will definitely do a lot of walking. Prepare accordingly.
The website for the event does have some links on it but we would love to see some recommended links for further information about specific areas of veterinary medicine that are featured during the event, or simply have some short explanations of what everything is. For younger children, the tour guide’s explanations may be a bit over their head or distractions may cause them to miss some important information. However, with some data available beforehand, the tours will solidify the learned material in a fun way.
The other suggestion is to work a bit on directions. There needed to be more signs or even people available to direct visitors. For those who are unfamiliar with Texas A & M, getting around such a large area can be confusing especially with children in tow. Plus, it would be really convenient to look at a sign with some arrows pointing in the general direction of exhibits as a reminder of what is available and where things are. There were a few exhibits we saw simply because there were people milling about but had it not been for them we might have missed it. As an adult with plenty of time and no distractions it is easy to keep referring to the schedule and look at a map while checking things off but with kids this is not quite as easy. Regardless, these are minor issues and it is likely that each year improves as it gains in popularity.
For more information on this exciting event, go to Texas A & M’s Veterinary School open house website located at http://vetmed.tamu.edu/open-house.
