California
Dairypalooza!
Dairypalooza! is a week-long immersive learning experience designed exclusively for college students. The mission is simple but profound: To inspire the next generation of dairy professionals by opening doors to exciting career possibilities that stretch far beyond the dairy farm gate and starting to make animal welfare a habit of thought at every step in the process.
The Goal:
Sowing Seeds of Compassion
Funding provided: $2,746
Believe it or not, animal welfare is not foundational to the teaching in every animal husbandry curriculum. Dairypalooza! is sowing seeds of compassion in future dairy professionals as we discussed the opportunities and challenges of animal welfare in dairy systems of all shapes and sizes.
The Outcomes:
Taking the cows point of view
The first step to providing optimal welfare is being willing to take the cows point of view. Dairypalooza! allowed students to consider the cows perspective in a variety of systems and management conditions.
What Paloozers Are Saying
“To see how they are being taken care of from start to finish really changes your perspective on how animals should be taken care of."
“Learning about animal welfare helps students understand the struggles of farmers, learning about how efficient technology is and the pros and cons of maintaining milk production, and lastly how science comes into play."
“I understand now that I can take the knowledge gained here and in school, collaborate with farmers to improve animal welfare.”
- Dairypalooza! Participants