TURNERS FALLS — School Committee members got an inside look at the new veterinary sciences building at Franklin County Technical School last week.

Principal Brian Spadafino guided the cohort of members through the 4,800-square-foot building on the northeast side of campus. The tour began in a front lobby that acts as a study space for students, and the center of the building includes exam rooms, a dental room, a grooming space, a kennel and a surgery room that serves as a classroom space.

A pen outside the veterinary clinic has already become home to some goats, with the indoor space housing a snake called Mr. Slithers, a cockatiel called Frankie and a tortoise named Willow. The kennel and grooming room have seen frequent use from students and faculty who bring their animals in, but veterinary care hasn’t begun yet.

As the committee members milled around the space, Spadafino and Business Manager Russ Kaubris provided details on the creation of the building, with Kaubris explaining the total cost came in just under $1.5 million. That figure includes a $275,000 grant from the state Skills Capital Grant Program that helped buy equipment for the space. The remaining money came from capital funds that were raised from Franklin Tech member towns over several years.

Currently, the school maintains a partnership with regional veterinarian and agricultural programs to help secure hands-on experience for students enrolled in the Veterinary and Animal Science Program. Two instructors visit campus and take the students to partnering veterinarian and agricultural centers, helping to train young students in the veterinary field before they seek a higher education or veterinary assistant positions.

Spadafino said once the building becomes operational, roughly 25 students will be using the facility.

“They’ll be doing a lot of grooming, a lot of vitals, [nail] clippings, they’ll work with the animals outside in the pens … they’ll do some low-level exams, but they are not doing what a veterinarian or a vet tech would do,” he explained.

The school is in the process of hiring a veterinarian to work on campus. Spadafino said once that person is on site, the space can become fully operational as a clinic.

“The building is being used, but we just don’t have the veterinarian that’s on site now to make it a full clinic,” he said. “We’re fully enrolled with three sophomores, juniors and seniors, and we anticipate having a full freshman class in December when they choose their shops.”

The building is anticipated to become fully operational in the new year, with the earliest estimate starting after the holidays.

Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.