A coordinated teaching program for future dairy practitioners at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, School of Veterinary Medicine

Abstract

The University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine (UW-SVM) has implemented a variety of strategies to optimize teaching in dairy herd medicine. These include the provision of opportunities for dairy cow handling and management using a dairy teaching herd for veterinary students throughout the four-year curriculum, exposure for all students in their final year to a substantial first-opinion dairy case load using a private practice-based ambulatory clinic rotation, and, finally, the teaching of dairy herd health management and problem solving in a group of four final-year elective production medicine clinical rotations. On average, since 1986, 32.6% of each graduating class attended at least one elective production medicine rotation, with a range from 19.0% to 43.4%. For those University of Wisconsin students who could be traced, 65% were still actively involved in some aspect of dairy practice, representing a range of between seven and 17 students per year since the start of the program. The advantages and disadvantages of operating a "regional center of excellence" for training students from out-of-state institutions are discussed.