TiHo Teaching and Research Farm

Recently we had the pleasure of visiting TiHo Teaching and Research Farm Ruthe with Dr. Surie.  It's so interesting to see what is emphasized in the education system for veterinary students in Germany. They are required to spend two weeks on the teaching and research farm in order to study and actively participate  in the care of a variety of farm animals. They are responsible for the health and maintenance of the poultry, swine, and cattle during their time there. I think this is a great opportunity for the students who aren't familiar with agriculture to get some hands on experience. I feel like this would be extremely beneficial for students in the United States, because there is a giant disconnect between the processing of food and the consumer. The role of agriculture is the most basic and important aspect of a society, and it is vital for the everyone to understand not only the role they play, but how the entire process functions. 

In these last few weeks, we've learned that Germany's animal right laws are much more strict and modern than in the United States. For example, they aren't allowed to cage chickens anymore for egg production. Dr. Surie explained the difficult balance between the need for maximum production and animal welfare. Ultimately, caging hens is the most efficient method for egg production, but it is completely lacking in regards to welfare for the chicken. Because of the laws established for Germany, they are forced 

to buy eggs from other countries because the consumers don't want to pay the extra cost associated with the new production methods. This interaction has destroyed the egg production in Germany. Thus, the balance has favored animal welfare in this circumstance. 

On a lighter note, there were several things I enjoyed seeing on the research farm. They had a massive turkey production, which I haven't seen before. When 

Dr. Surie explained the efficiency of the poultry production at the farm, it was astounding. They are on such a tight schedule and it seems to run flawlessly. I guess I shouldn't be so surprised, since we are in Germany, haha. Even the pubic transportation is run by precise clockwork here. 

I was also amazed by the 'Robo-Milker'. Germany mainly has dairy cattle, and we've had the chance to visit several places with dairy cattle. But this facility was the only time we've seen technology this advanced. Cows are able to be milked whenever they please; the machine runs completely without human interaction. This way, the animals trust the system and freely go into the chute. The milker finds the teats with a camera, cleans them, and then milks each one. The machine calculates the milk production from each teat and can determine if the cow is allowed to milked based on time between milkings. It was a very impressive piece of equipment and I can see how this could help boost production and the general health of the cows. 

One thing that Dr. Surie discussed was also fairly interesting to me. He believes that companion animals are not useful to society and they actually are detrimental in some cases. He feels that all animals should have a practical purpose. I fully understand why he has this point of view, based on the condition of agriculture in today's society, but I also reminded myself that he is in the role of the farmer, not the veterinarian. From my point of view, both small and large animal medicine are important to my career. As an companion animal owner and veterinary student, I find this concept almost inconceivable. From ancient times, people have been domesticating animals not only for food and production, but also for companionship. Though it is more logical to maintain animals only for practical purposes, we will always be drawn to animals for other reasons and they will continue to serve us as companions. Of course, this is only my opinion and I respect his point of view as well. 

Overall, the TiHo Teaching and Research Farm Ruthe with Dr. Surie was a blast. We got to see a higher level of production and how the students experience farm agriculture in relation to veterinary medicine. I'll always remember Dr. Surie's fun disposition and his passion for farm animal production.