With more than 4,500 adult cows housed on-site, the John Fetrow Dairy Education Center offers the unique opportunity for students to practice clinical medicine and gain experience in the day-to-day management activities of a large dairy. In clinical rotations, students are exposed to a high case load of the common transition diseases, such as metritis, milk fever, mastitis, displaced abomasum, and lameness, allowing them to develop or improve skills in physical exam, palpation, diagnosis, therapy, surgery and case management. In addition, the dairy is a complex laboratory for learning about reproductive management, nutrition and feeding programs, milk quality, housing and welfare.
Student rotations at the John Fetrow Dairy Education Center
Senior veterinary students who are interested in dairy practice may elect to spend one or more rotations at the John Fetrow Dairy Education Center. Email [email protected] with questions or to check availability.
To apply, submit your resume, a 1-page letter of interest detailing your experience and interest in dairy production medicine, and a letter of reference from a faculty member to [email protected]
The rotations currently taught are described below:
Advanced Dairy Production Medicine (ADPM): 4 weeks
Program dates
July 8 - August 2, 2024
Production medicine is the application of a wide array of knowledge and skills to dairy herd management with the aim of optimizing animal health and welfare, production, and profitability on the dairy. Dairy veterinarians must utilize this wide variety of knowledge and skills to best serve their dairy clients in a constantly changing dairy economy. Simply diagnosing pregnancy, performing surgeries and treating sick cows will not be enough to maintain the veterinarian's role on the dairies of tomorrow.
New for 2024
Students who sign up and pay the deposit for the ADPM are invited to attend a 1 week clinical rotation the week following ADPM. This rotation will be taught by Dr. Cramer and focuses on hoof trimming and lameness. In this rotation we will spend 2 days working with cadaver feet and 2 days hoof trimming and treating lameness cases on live cows. The last day will include a farm visit to do a lameness herd investigation. This option is only for students who are also taking the advanced rotation. There is space for a maximum of 4 students in this rotation. Please indicate if you are interested in this option in your advance application letter.
Course description
This is a two-part rotation and students will be evaluated based on their participation and academic performance. DPM consists of two sections - asynchronous Overview and in-person Advanced. The Overview course is a not-for-credit async course to prepare students for necessary knowledge that will be built upon in the Advanced course. The four-week in-person Advanced program is designed to build further knowledge and skills in DPM for students who will go on to exclusively or predominantly practice dairy.
Students will visit multiple dairies to practice these skills, and will complete a group capstone project in which they will work more intensively with one dairy to develop not just recommendations, but work plans, protocols and partial budgets to help the dairy meet their goals. A key element of the capstone project is developing a working relationship with the on-farm team and practicing professional written and verbal communication skills.
Students who complete this program will have a working knowledge of DairyComp 305, and be able to thoroughly evaluate a dairy and provide recommendations regarding:
preventive medicine and disease control | reproductive programs |
animal husbandry and welfare | nutrition |
mastitis and milking system evaluation | epidemiology |
food safety | human resource management |
dairy records analysis | economic decision-making |
transition cow management | housing and facilities evaluation |
Faculty and guest presenters in this program include not just UMN CVM faculty, but also a variety of experts from other universities, private practice and industry.
Although students may have variable experience in dairy production medicine coming into the rotations, they are expected to have a strong interest in and commitment to dairy practice.
Please note, as these are not clinical (sick cow) rotations, students with limited clinical skills in dairy veterinary medicine should not forfeit all other opportunities for clinical education in favor of this program.
Course Fee
Advanced (in-person) and Overview (asynch): $1750
Housing not included, but assistance finding housing will be provided
Asynch ORPM is not for credit. Materials available online prior to start of in-person course.
If needed, students are encouraged to seek scholarship or grant assistance from sources like student organizations or from their own college. Students interested in this program are eligible for financial support from the AABP educational grant.
Applications deadline specific to DPM
Advanced (in-person) and Overview (asynch): $1750 USD with $500 USD deposit Due by Jan 1, 2024
ADPM plus lameness option: $2000 USD
Housing not included, but assistance finding housing will be provided. Asynch Overview course is not for credit. Materials available online prior to the start of in-person Advanced course.
If needed, students are encouraged to seek scholarship or grant assistance from sources like student organizations or from their own college. Students interested in this program are eligible for financial support from the AABP educational grant.
Apply
Application Deadline November 1st, 2023
(You will be notified by December 1st if you are selected)
To apply, please submit your resume, a 1-page letter of interest detailing your experience and interest in dairy production medicine, and a letter of reference from a faculty member to:
Jessica Yost
John Fetrow Dairy Education Center
43475 County Rd. 15
Nicollet, MN 56082
Email:
Phone: 507-258-8886[email protected]
Dairy On-Farm Clinical (DOFC): 2 weeks
Students participate in the daily screening and physical examination of recently fresh cows, identify and treat sick cows, perform surgeries and necropsies. In addition, students may participate in ongoing health monitoring programs, such as calf serum total protein or dry cow urine pH monitoring. In the afternoons, students and faculty engage in discussions on relevant dairy cow medicine topics. Students live at the facility during this rotation so they are available at all hours to participate in clinical care, follow up on cases, and respond to emergencies.
Available dates for Dairy On Farm Clinical:
- June 24 - July 5, 2024
- Sept. 30 - Oct. 11, 2024
- Nov. 11 - 22, 2024
- Mar. 3 - 14, 2025
- Apr. 14 -26, 2025
We will accept outside students if slots are not filled with UMN students. Email us with interest and we will notify when UMN schedules are set.
Bovine Theriogenology & Lameness Overview (BTLO): 2 weeks
This rotation will focus on improving students’ clinical skills in the areas of bovine reproductive and foot health. Students will be taught topics related to diagnostics, treatment and management of reproductive and foot diseases of dairy cows, topics related to reproductive and lameness management of bovine herds, and on-farm data analysis related to reproductive and foot health performance. The theriogenology aspect of this rotation will focus on giving students extensive practice in palpation on a large commercial dairy. The lameness portion will focus on teaching proper functional and therapeutic trimming skills using cadaver specimens. This course will use a combination of hand-on clinical training and interactive case based, student led discussion. Students interested in more advanced training should follow up this rotation by taking the Bovine Theriogenology & Lameness Advanced rotation.
Bovine Theriogenology & Lameness Advanced (BTLA): 2 weeks
This rotation will focus on providing opportunities for students to receive advanced training and clinical skills in the areas of bovine reproductive and foot health. This rotation will build on the skills and knowledge introduced in Bovine Theriogenology and Lameness Overview. Students will be exposed to additional palpation and ultrasonography of the reproductive tract, as well as advanced hoof trimming techniques on live cows. These experiences will be tailored to allow the student to gain both proficiency and efficiency in both diagnosis/treatment and preventative practices. This rotation is geared to students who see themselves working in an exclusively bovine practice. The rotation will use a combination of laboratories, on-farm activities, discussion and assignments.
Available dates for Bovine Theriogenology & Lameness Rotations:
Overview
- Aug. 19 - 30, 2024
- Sept. 16 - 27, 2024
- Oct. 14 - 25, 2024
Advanced
- Nov. 11 - 22, 2024
- Mar. 17 - 28, 2025
We will accept outside students if slots are not filled with UMN students. Email us with interest and we will notify when UMN schedules are set.