What’s yellow, fuzzy, and oh, soooo cute? Ducklings, of course!

The incubation and hatching of these cute little things is a rite of passage at Northstar Career Center where embryology lessons are hands-on.

Each year, Henrico County 4-H provides the Career Center with a dozen fertilized eggs. Students of the Veterinary Assisting program care for the eggs until they hatch into ducklings. The project starts with the students setting up an incubator to track embryo growth over a two-week period during the Spring. Using a candling technique in which they shine strong light under the eggs, they watch the shadow of embryo growth underneath. When the time is right, students witness the eggs hatch and follow their progress as they “fluff up” with feathers.

“Specifically with the Embryology project, I love to do ducks! 4H gives us all the supplies needed and work with local farmers to get eggs,” says Tricia Doria, who heads up the school’s program. “My students get to name their duck if hatched. They usually almost double in size in 10 days.”

Once the ducklings’ coats change from fuzz to fluff they’re ready to swim. Veterinary assisting students take the lead in teaching their fellow K-12 students and sharing their experience with the embryology project. Seated around a baby swimming pool, they take turns fielding questions about the care and feeding of juvenile water fowl.

The Veterinary Assisting program is not for the faint of heart, nor is it for every student. Not every duckling hatches from an egg and not all of those that do will survive. Some years, only a quarter of the embryos may make it. The program requires students to build tolerance for varying environmental conditions, and a willingness to deal with the dirtier side of nature such as odor and excrement.

While working with animals can be a physically and emotionally demanding job, the field is projected to grow at a rate of 19 percent by 2033, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. When Northstar graduates exit the program, they have real world work experience and are prepared to work in clinics, animal hospitals, and research laboratories.

When the ducklings are just ten days old, they are returned to Henrico 4-H who distributes the ducks back to local farmers.