Anii O’Farrill

FFA Veterinary Competition

FFA (Future Farmers of America) holds an annual competition for veterinary services.

Groups of 4 students are given a written answer test, a demo/practical potion, or an identification

test for breeds and diseases. I was the group member who had to do all three activities.

Prior to the competition I completed practice tests online, studied the various breeds of all

types of animals, studied animal diseases, and physically practiced many veterinary techniques. I

made group power points and quizlets to go over with my team in order for us to prepare for the

competition. The questions ranged from anatomy and physiology, clinical procedures,

identification, health and safety, medical terminology, and veterinary math applications. I tested

my teammates on oral communication of explanation with their tone and speaking without

hesitation. As well as verbally, I had to test them on non-verbal communication where we keep

gestures and mannerisms from being distracting, make clean eye contact, and attention to detail.

As the day of the competition arrived, my teammates and I got on the bus and studied on

our way to the testing site. We asked, answered, and demonstrated multiple questions that were

subject to be asked at the time of the test. As we arrive to our destination, we were separated into

our testing groups and taken into multiple rooms to be tested. We took a written answer test,

identification test, and to demonstrate a task. As I was the group leader, I was to do short

varieties of all three tests while my teammates did long portions of their area. One judge in

particular complimented me on my thoroughness in demonstrating how to prepare a shot for an

animal. We did not win overall, but as we tried our best, we were happy with our results as we

gave it our all.