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From the Detroit Free Press. Anyone able to comment on why SDSU does not have a vet school? Seems like it would be of some value.
http://www.freep.com/news/statewire/...1_20050219.htm
Looming problem in rural America: Who will care for the cows?
The situation is scary in South Dakota, where "we have five cows for every man, woman and child," said Dr. Sam Holland, the state veterinarian.
"What do you do when your ranch is 70 miles from town and there's only one vet in town, and during the calving season the vet may be called to go three different directions at the same time?" Holland says. "There have been cases where ranchers have lost some livestock because they just couldn't get medical attention in a timely way."
The shortage showed in Michigan when state and federal veterinarians were needed to help test cattle because of a recent bovine tuberculosis outbreak. "We just didn't have enough vets to handle the workload," said Ernie Birchmeier, a livestock specialist with the Michigan Farm Bureau.
A few states have debt relief programs, including Pennsylvania and Texas. South Dakota has no vet school, but offers tuition assistance for residents who earn veterinary degrees at Iowa State University and return home to practice.
Thorp, 43, who is recruiting another partner, isn't optimistic that such programs will work. She says few young people today will put up with the hassles of large animal medicine: long hours, middle-of-the-night emergencies, dirty and physically demanding labor.
She's been kicked a few times, and suffered a cracked rib a couple of years ago in a run-in with a cow.
Driving home after her day of farm calls, Thorp has blood and manure stains on her overalls. She has performed rectal exams on dozens of cows ("I think it's cool -- loved it in school and I still do"
, castrated four young bulls and dehorned another after coaxing them into a holding chute, changed a bandage on a skittish horse with a cut leg and prescribed medication for a wheezy 22-year-old mare with chronic allergies.
Although weary, Thorp is chipper. She grew up on a small family farm and decided as an 8-year-old that she would be a vet.
"I went to my class reunion and I was the only person at my table still doing large animal," she says. "One of my friends said, "I can't believe you're stupid enough to still be doing that.' I guess it's like being a farmer -- it's either in your blood or it's not. It's been in mine from the beginning."
http://www.freep.com/news/statewire/...1_20050219.htm
Looming problem in rural America: Who will care for the cows?
The situation is scary in South Dakota, where "we have five cows for every man, woman and child," said Dr. Sam Holland, the state veterinarian.
"What do you do when your ranch is 70 miles from town and there's only one vet in town, and during the calving season the vet may be called to go three different directions at the same time?" Holland says. "There have been cases where ranchers have lost some livestock because they just couldn't get medical attention in a timely way."
The shortage showed in Michigan when state and federal veterinarians were needed to help test cattle because of a recent bovine tuberculosis outbreak. "We just didn't have enough vets to handle the workload," said Ernie Birchmeier, a livestock specialist with the Michigan Farm Bureau.
A few states have debt relief programs, including Pennsylvania and Texas. South Dakota has no vet school, but offers tuition assistance for residents who earn veterinary degrees at Iowa State University and return home to practice.
Thorp, 43, who is recruiting another partner, isn't optimistic that such programs will work. She says few young people today will put up with the hassles of large animal medicine: long hours, middle-of-the-night emergencies, dirty and physically demanding labor.
She's been kicked a few times, and suffered a cracked rib a couple of years ago in a run-in with a cow.
Driving home after her day of farm calls, Thorp has blood and manure stains on her overalls. She has performed rectal exams on dozens of cows ("I think it's cool -- loved it in school and I still do"
, castrated four young bulls and dehorned another after coaxing them into a holding chute, changed a bandage on a skittish horse with a cut leg and prescribed medication for a wheezy 22-year-old mare with chronic allergies. Although weary, Thorp is chipper. She grew up on a small family farm and decided as an 8-year-old that she would be a vet.
"I went to my class reunion and I was the only person at my table still doing large animal," she says. "One of my friends said, "I can't believe you're stupid enough to still be doing that.' I guess it's like being a farmer -- it's either in your blood or it's not. It's been in mine from the beginning."
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