Eleven students enrolled in the veterinary science class at Madison Central Highs School recently had two visitors from the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service. As a new 4-H Youth Development Agent, I made contact with the two county high schools' Agriculture Educators and let them know we would be happy to work with them if they had a need. Not long after, one of the educators from Madison Central asked if I would be willing to come deliver a lab experience for her Veterinary Science class. The class had been discussing parasites, and although I have limited experience with Fecal Egg Counts, I knew this was the lab we should plan to do with the students. Fecal egg counts are taken to determine the number of blood-sucking parasite eggs in the stool of small ruminant animals in Kentucky. In the commonwealth, we have the perfect storm for these parasites to wreack havoc on the digestive system of sheep and goats. Veterinarians have to conduct fecal floats to determine death-loss due to parasite load, and to know for sure which sheep and goats need to be treated with dewormer. The only dewormers marketed for small animals are beginning to have problems with resistance, so we really do not want to use the products more than we have to on animals that do not need it. Brandon Sears, the Madison County Extension Agent for Agriculture and Natural Resources, has a background with this particular procedure, so I knew I would need his help. I also contacted a local dairy goat producer and asked if we could harvest some fecal samples from his herd. 

Brandon rode out to the farm with me and helped me collect samples. We did a test run at the office to be sure our procedure and microscopes were working well. In short, feces is mixed with a salt or sugar water solution and then it is strained through a mesh strainer to separate liquid and eggs from plant debris the animals had eaten. Then the solution is placed on a slide and eggs are able to be spotted. These are counted and will allow us to determine if the groats need dewormed or not. 

We taught the students about the background and resistance issues with small ruminants, and the procedure for conducting Fecal Egg Counts.  More than this learning experience, they also got to see a hands-on procedure that veterinarians preform every day. This allowed them to make more informed decisions about whether or not this sis a career they would like to pursue. 

As the CEA for 4-H Youth Development, I was able to create and strengthen relationships with the Agriculture Educator, dairy goat producer, and our CEA for Agriculture and Natural Resources. The eleven students enrolled in the veterinary science class were given an opportunity to make a more informed decisions about future career endeavors, and learned about sustainable agriculture practices in Kentucky.