With the broiler chickens moved out, FFA decided something new was to happen, and Dec 10, 2024, the classroom introduced six female bunnies to the Shark Tank. However, that was not all, the class now has layer chickens in the greenhouse to produce eggs to help raise money for the FFA.
The teacher as well as FFA advisor, Ms. DeGroft, has the bunnies in the greenhouse for the students in the intro and advanced agriculture classes. DeGroft spoke, “The Chickens and rabbits came about wanting live animals in the Ag room for quite some time! I hope the chickens and rabbits will provide students with the opportunity for animal care and management practices outside of traditional pets like dogs and cats. We also plan to show rabbits and chickens at the fair where students will additionally learn small animal showmanship skills, compete in livestock showmanship and potentially, make money doing it.”
Each student has had a chance to take care of the rabbits. One of the students is Senior Rebeckah Ross, who had done a lot to keep the rabbits happy and in good health. She even took a rabbit home for the long Christmas break.
“I think that these rabbits will have an impact of responsibility outside of school. Not everyone works with them, but for those who do work with them, I hope it gives them a bit of responsibility that can help them both inside and outside of the classroom. If I could change one thing, I would probably change the cage situation. I really wish we could get them an actual hut to run around in instead of their cage. Hopefully, when we size down on the amount we have, we can let them run around a bit more.” Said Ross.
DeGroft concluded, “Our chickens now are ‘rainbow layers’ which means they lay all sorts of different colored eggs including bright blue and pink! This also provides a fun learning opportunity identifying eggs and which type of chicken laid them!”
With this addition to the Shark Tank, more learning opportunities benefit students. This chance allows the FFA students not only to show in contests, but also provides them with the skills for future endeavours.
