Clinical Skills Lab Welcomes Life Size Palpation Cow

December 13, 2019

Two students hold model calves in front of the cow model surrounded by Daniella Buchanan and two other students in the Clinical Skills Lab — Pictured (left-right) Floyd Williams, of the DVM Class of 2022; Clinical Skills Laboratory Manager Danielle Buchanan; and Oscar Ramirez, Timothy Stohlman, and Mariana Barragan, all of the DVM Class of 2023, pose with the new cow model, which came complete with two model calves.

Purdue Veterinary Medicine’s Clinical Skills Laboratory recently acquired a life-size palpation cow that will provide veterinary medicine and veterinary nursing students more life-like learning opportunities. The Hereford Model Dystocia Simulator, like many other animal models in the lab, was purchased through an instructional equipment grant.

The cow and horse models face the camera standing side by side — The new life-size palpation cow will be kept with the horse model in the Clinical Skills Lab.

With the model, DVM and veterinary nursing students will be able to learn about uterine palpation, and how to assist during a bovine dystocia. The model allows students to practice placing obstetric chains and manipulating abnormal calf presentations in the birth canal. This opportunity to practice will help students better understand techniques that can be used to successfully deliver a calf during a difficult birth. Additionally, the model has a functional udder, which gives students the opportunity to learn how to milk a cow or perform a mastitis test.

Clinical Skills Laboratory Manager Danielle Buchanan, RVT, VTS (SAIM) said providing students with access to a more realistic learning option is very important. “Prior to the development of clinical skills labs in veterinary schools, students had to get creative if they wanted opportunities to practice skills. Now, we have models for them to practice on providing them more opportunities to gain confidence and mastery of skills before treating a live animal for the first time,” Danielle explained.

A student practices palpation on the cow model as another students looks into the cow model from above and Danielle looks on — DVM students Floyd Williams and Timothy Stohlman practice uterine palpation and calf delivery with the cow model while Clinical Skills Laboratory Manager Danielle Buchanan provides encouragement and instruction.

Writer(s): Maya Sanaba, PVM Communications Intern | pvmnews@purdue.edu

Recent Stories

“Paws Up” for Jennifer Danaher – brought to you by the PVM Wellness Committee

This week we express our gratitude to Jennifer Danaher, who is department secretary for Veterinary Clinical Sciences.

‘Purdue Pursuits’: A PVM angle on Purdue’s teaching and learning reading groups

Crafting meaningful and engaging course experiences has been at the top of Dielson Vieira’s mind ever since he joined the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine’s faculty in 2024. As a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Vieira is already adept at applying innovative teaching practices to classroom environments, but that doesn’t stop him from seeking out new ideas, approaches and perspectives — insights he gains through outlets like Purdue’s teaching and learning reading groups.

Top tier biology journal publishes PVM study that unlocks secrets of a drug-resistant fungal pathogen, which causes serious infections in humans

Though the name “Candida auris” is far from a household term, public health experts know it well because the multi-drug-resistant fungal pathogen, which causes serious human infections, has been classified as an urgent threat by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Antibiotic Threats Report (2019). Dr. Shankar Thangamani, Associate Professor of Microbiology and University Faculty Scholar in the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Comparative Pathobiology, is researching C. auris, aided by a 2.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). New research findings, just published in Nature Microbiology, show how C. auris adapts and evades the immune system.

In Print: ‘Translational Research Methods for Tauopathies’

A just-published 300-page volume edited by Jessica Fortin, Purdue assistant professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Basic Medical Sciences, provides a significant new resource for researchers studying a group of neurodegenerative diseases known as tauopathies. “Translational Research Methods for Tauopathies” provides detailed protocols intentionally selected to serve as a basis for research laboratories seeking to further treatments for such debilitating neurodegenerative diseases as Alzheimer’s and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).

It’s Almost Here!

Though the annual Purdue Veterinary Conference is almost upon us, there’s still time to register and take advantage of this time-honored College of Veterinary Medicine fall tradition that combines excellent continuing education with fun opportunities for reconnecting with colleagues and classmates, networking, and learning about the latest veterinary trends and products. The 2026 Purdue Veterinary Conference takes place September 23–26 on the Purdue University campus. The annual event has something for everyone, from veterinarians to veterinary technicians, faculty, staff and students.