• Article Photo. Caleb Svoboda and Mr. Fleming watch and wait for the piglets to be born.
    Caleb Svoboda and Mr. Fleming watch and wait for the piglets to be born.
  • Article Photo.
  • Article Photo. FFA members watch and wait for a sow in labor to give birth on Friday.
    FFA members watch and wait for a sow in labor to give birth on Friday.
  • Article Photo. Dale, one of the new chicks recently hatched at VSHS.
    Dale, one of the new chicks recently hatched at VSHS.
  • Article Photo.
  • Article Photo. A chick fights its way through its shell on Friday; several hatched in the VSHS FFA room this week.
    A chick fights its way through its shell on Friday; several hatched in the VSHS FFA room this week.

When a high school is the only one in its state to have an on-site animal learning lab on campus, it's bound to make history. 

History is indeed in the making at Vinton-Shellsburg today, where Agriculture Science students and others have been anxiously awaiting the birth of the first piglets on the high school campus.

A sow belonging to the Fleming family is expected to give birth today. Scott Fleming, the husband of VS FFA Advisor Louise Fleming, brought the sow to the ag learning center (nicknamed "The Barn") earlier this week.

"We induced her yesterday," said Mr. Fleming, adding that the births of the piglets is expected at any moment. 

Mrs. Fleming said that while other school districts are in the process of trying to build learning labs, she believes that V-S is the only one in the state with a on-campus facility.

The Ag Science students are engaged in hands-on learning through a variety of lessons. 

In the classroom, a group of chicks is currently hatching. The goal is to raise the hens and hopefully see some of them begin laying eggs before the end of the school year.

"We will be learning how to grade eggs," said the teacher.

But first, the chicks will be sexed and sorted; city rules prohibit the roosters, so they will be removed from the school. 

The school media team is attempting to show the birth of the piglets on a live video camera feed.

Click HERE to see that video stream.