| Summary: | The objective was to compare farm veterinary surgeons’ and dairy farmers’ opinions on
herd health plans and herd health and production management with the aim of discovering
and better understanding the differences. Two comparable questionnaires, one for farm
veterinarians and one for dairy farmers, were distributed throughout the UK. While listing
the ‘major roles’ of the veterinarian on the farm, veterinarians considered ‘optimising milk
production’, ‘decreasing overall cost’ and ‘being an independent adviser’ as important
roles, but these were not seem to be perceived as such by the farmers. In addition, when
presenting themselves to clients, veterinarians seemed to favour the ‘friend of the farmer’
approach; a much smaller proportion of farmers seemed to prefer this approach. The majority
of farm respondents (98 of 121; 81 per cent) valued the discussions with their veterinarian,
and it was apparent from the relatively small proportion of veterinarians instigating a
discussion on farm (33 of 125; 26 per cent) that there is the opportunity for a more proactive
approach from veterinarians. The study underlines that ‘demonstrating cost-effectiveness’ is
still a main concern for veterinarians and farmers and identifies areas that can be improved
by more training and effective communication.
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