DairyKind

This week I led a clinical forum at the American Association of Bovine Practitioners annual meeting. We talked about redefining the role of the veterinarian in animal welfare. Here are 3 key points: 1. The terms animal welfare and animal abuse are not well defined. Veterinarians often have a different definition than clients. And the general public has yet another definition. We cannot let this divide us. We cannot spend so much time arguing over terminology that we miss the point. The goal is and should be the same: to provide the best for the animals in our care. 2. Seeing things from each other‘s perspective and collaborating together will only enhance animal welfare. Because we all have the same goal, but come at it from different viewpoints, by working together, we can achieve more than we could on our own. Instead of reacting defensively, stop and think: Why did they see it this way? What can I learn from this? If I approach this problem a different way, how would that change the outcome? 3. We are improving animal welfare by making big changes and also by making little changes. Our impact comes not only directly but indirectly. The veterinarian who diagnoses and treats a sick cow is improving animal welfare. The farmer who installs fans to help cool their cows is improving animal welfare. The employee who notices a water trough is broken and calls the maintenance team to fix it is improving animal welfare. We are all a team working together and we should be proud of the efforts we are making to care for the cows. But we should also always be striving to do more. Thank you to AABP for this opportunity. I will be the chair of the Animal Welfare Committee through this great organization and look forward to continuing to contribute to these discussions!