Purdue Veterinary Medicine Hosts Successful Small Ruminant Producer Workshop

Purdue Farm Animal Hospital clinicians who participated in the Small Animal Ruminant Producer Workshop November 23: (left-right) Dr. Heather Bornheim, presenter; Dr. Yumi Hayasaka, moderator; Dr. Camilla Jamieson, presenter, who also helped with planning; and Dr. Laura May, organizer.
Purdue Farm Animal Hospital clinicians who participated in the Small Animal Ruminant Producer Workshop November 23: (left-right) Dr. Heather Bornheim, presenter; Dr. Yumi Hayasaka, moderator; Dr. Camilla Jamieson, presenter, who also helped with planning; and Dr. Laura May, organizer.

Purdue Farm Animal Hospital clinicians put out the welcome mat on a recent Saturday morning for goat and sheep producers from across Indiana as well as Illinois who were looking for practical help and guidance in their roles as commercial and show stock producers. A special half-day Small Ruminant Producer Workshop hosted by the Purdue University Veterinary Hospital on November 23 attracted more than 60 attendees, representing 28 farms. They found just what they were looking for as the team of Purdue experts who participated addressed a variety of topics.

Dr. Laura May, visiting assistant professor of farm animal internal medicine, welcomed attendees at the start of the workshop in Lynn 1136.
Dr. Laura May, visiting assistant professor of farm animal internal medicine, welcomed attendees at the start of the workshop in Lynn 1136.

The workshop was organized by a Purdue Veterinary Medicine alumna, Dr. Laura May, of the DVM Class of 2019, who serves as a visiting assistant professor of farm animal internal medicine. “Our goal was to bring together sheep and goat producers with Purdue Extension educators to discuss topics applicable for both commercial and show stock producers,” Dr. May said.

The program included presentations on a variety of topics. The engaging line-up of featured speakers included:

  • Dr. Camilla Jamieson, clinical assistant professor of large animal emergency and critical care, who gave a talk entitled, “Urolithiasis Management and Prevention,” and also helped with planning the workshop.
  • Dr. Heather Bornheim, farm animal medicine and surgery clinician, who spoke on the topic of “Parasite Management in your Herd.”
  • Cora Reinbolt, Purdue extension educator for Community Development and Agriculture and Natural Resources for Bartholomew County, who gave a presentation highlighting Indiana Farm Extension Resources.
Purdue Extension Educator Cora Reinbolt talks with a workshop attendee before her presentation on Indiana Farm Extension Resources.
Purdue Extension Educator Cora Reinbolt talks with a workshop attendee before her presentation on Indiana Farm Extension Resources.

The workshop also featured a detailed trailer safety demonstration led by Robin Ridgway, PhD, director of environmental health and safety regulatory compliance in Purdue’s Environmental and Ecological Engineering Department. With a trailer hitched to a heavy duty pick-up parked adjacent to Lynn Hall as a teaching aid, Ridgway covered everything from pointers about the hitch assembly and properly hitching the trailer to a vehicle, to tire safety and trailer care and maintenance, to emergency trailer brakes and safety chains.

Trailer safety expert Robin Ridgway, who serves as Purdue director of environmental health and safety compliance, discusses safety chains during her trailer safety demonstration outside Lynn Hall.
Trailer safety expert Robin Ridgway, who serves as Purdue director of environmental health and safety compliance, discusses safety chains during her trailer safety demonstration outside Lynn Hall.

Attendees also had the opportunity to tour the Farm Animal Hospital. The successful workshop was made possible through a sponsorship by the Indiana Dairy Goat Association.

Writer(s): Kevin Doerr, Andrea Kellogg | pvmnews@purdue.edu

Recent Stories

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

This week, sincere gratitude is shared with Abby Props who is the Pathology Laboratory Supervisor in the Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory.

Student Landscape Project Benefits Animals at Purdue Veterinary Hospital

A student-led landscape redesign project has taken root at Purdue University, in the form of outdoor upgrades at the Purdue University Veterinary Hospital. Originally developed by Mary Schultz, a graduating senior in the College of Agriculture’s Horticulture and Landscape Architecture program, the project reimagined outdoor spaces used for animal recovery, training, and enrichment. This summer, the hospital implemented one of the recommendations, which involved replacing natural turf in an outdoor dog run with a new synthetic material.

Purdue Veterinary Medicine Welcomes New Students

As the heat and long days of summer subsided and the start of a new school year approached, the sense of excitement and new beginnings pervaded Lynn Hall over the last couple of weeks with the arrival of Purdue Veterinary Medicine’s new DVM and Veterinary Technology students. The DVM students in the Class of 2029 participated in a week-long onboarding program that started Monday, August 18, while the Veterinary Technology students in the first and second years of the program were welcomed with an Ice Cream Social and orientation program at the start of the fall semester.

Approaching Purdue Veterinary Conference Mixes CE and Celebration in September

The start of a new academic year signals the approach of the annual Purdue Veterinary Conference and the last chance to get an early-bird discount on registration. The conference is scheduled for September 16-20 on Purdue University’s West Lafayette campus, and features a variety of specialized tracks as well as special events. Early bird registration ends September 1, and late fees will apply as of September 2.

Purdue College of Veterinary Medicine Names New Senior Director of Admissions and Student Success

A key Purdue Veterinary Medicine staff member who has played a vital role in admissions and recruitment will now serve as the new senior director of admissions and student success. Lori Stout has been promoted to the position and Dean Bret Marsh announced the appointment Tuesday, August 26.

Lecture Hall Murals by Acclaimed Artist Continue to Inspire Lynn Hall Visitors

Two murals by artist Harry Boone have been part of Lynn Hall’s large lecture hall for more than 20 years. Commissioned in 1998, the works continue to leave a lasting impression, and Boone recently returned to campus to see them again.