Farm animal

On a dairy farm, you’re likely to be assisting with the milking process and feeding calves, depending on the farm system. Cows are milked after having their calves, become pregnant again while they're milking and then have a dry period where they aren't milked just prior to calving again -this means if a farm practices batch calving, there will be a period where the milking herd is quite small and you may not get to be as involved, so ask the farmer how many cows are milking before you go! Dairy farmers are also usually really happy to take on students and many of them will be keen to teach you, so even if yo're asked to get there for the 6am start, try and smile your way through it and you will learn a lot!

Most dairy farms will have a routine vet visit every few weeks too. The vet will normally scan cows to see if they’re pregnant and look at any other cows the farmer is concerned about. This is a great chance to see the work you would do as a farm vet, ask more in-depth questions or maybe get some practical experience looking at ultrasound scans or injecting cattle. (Ask the farm vet if they take work experience students too!). You may get to help with other things, such as bTB testing. 

[Photo from Esme Chappers]

What's something exciting your business offLambing placements are generally very practical and rewarding. You may be asked to help muck out pens, feed the sheep and help take them to the fields. If you get to do some lambing yourself you will be watching sheep for signs that they’re about to give birth, assisting with tricky births or looking after newborn lambs. You may be given some long hours so try and make sure you have enough clothes and food to keep you going. Overalls and waterproofs are absolutely essential too. Obviously these placements will be around Feb-April so be organised when finding placements, but generally these farms are more than happy to take on students - you will need to complete at least a week of lambing for EMS at vet school so it is worth finding a good placement that you could go back to.

[Photo from Ellie Green]

If you can get to work on a pig farm, it is worth it! The pig production cycle can be complicated depending on the breeding system and product produced. Some farms will have every stage of the pigs on their farm and some will only have those of a certain age (e.g. growing weaned pigs). If you can find a farrowing unit, you will be able to see lots of piglets being born. They usually need less intervention when compared to the ruminant species, but the piglets will need some care from you afterwards! But be prepared, you might be asked to get involved in the mucking out (or even jet washing of pens in some cases), but this is outweighed by how involved you can get e.g. vaccinating. Make sure you know what type of farm you are going to so you know what to expect before you go e.g. outdoor vs indoor farms. 

[Photo from Clare MacMillen]