When 2,500 show cows march in to Madison’s World Dairy Expo each year, the potential for disease to spread rapidly is serious. That’s why our student volunteers have been instrumental in ensuring biosecurity at the event.
The volunteer program was developed in 2010 when Expo management wanted to increase the event’s biosecurity, a tall order for the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture’s small Trade and Consumer Protection team. Today, under the leadership of our faculty, more than 80 veterinary medical students examine the cattle’s health papers and match them with ID tags, safeguarding against critical disease transmission.
The program highlights our commitment to both animal welfare and the motivation of our veterinary medical students to learn and engage in important animal care practices that will become even more crucial in the future.