Sleepy Eye FFA members competed at Tracy, Minnesota for the Region VI Companion Animals, Fish & Wildlife, Vet Science Career Development Events (CDE’s) on Tuesday, February 24th.
Three members competed in the Companion Animal CDE including: Lily Uys (15th place individual), Briella Walser, and Arianna Guerra. The team placed 8th out of 16 teams and advanced to state competition in April.
The Companion Animal team members were tested on their knowledge of common pets, pet health, vet science terms & skills, and animal anatomy. An identification of different species including: dogs, cats, birds, fish, parasites, rabbits, and other animals kept as pets is also a large part of the contest.
The Fish & Wildlife competitors included: Rylan Trebesch, Jacob Fulmer, Robert Romberg, Noah Rossbach, Eli Christensen, Kyle Nelson, Santi Martinez Paredes, Cameron Moore, and McCoy Marti. The team placed 9th out of 17 teams.
The Fish & Wildlife contest consists of three parts: identification (mammals, fish, birds, insects, reptiles/amphibians), a knowledge test, and a current events activity on Biological Indicators in Habitat Monitoring.
New this year was the Vet. Science contest where four Sleepy Eye FFA members competed. These members were: Natalie Fulmer, Camryn Maher, Alexis Hoffman, and Anders Coulson. The team placed 4th out of 11 teams and will be advancing to the state contest in April.
The Vet. Science contest tests members on identification of breeds of both large and small animals as well as anatomy and physiology, veterinary terms, nutrition, health care and diseases, reproduction, genetics, safety, handling, sanitation, and facilities.