Some 20 years ago, when I was a fresh-faced new-grad vet, Mark came to a few of us with the words: “I’ve got an idea you could help me with…”
There have been times I’ve regretted saying “yes” to a Mark Bryan idea. This definitely wasn’t one of them. The concept was two-fold. Wintering and farming stock in Southland is very different from what most vet students experience in the North Island. Meanwhile, Southland is a long way from New Zealand’s only vet school, and expensive for students to get to – yet the region, and the South Island more broadly, needs vets.
So began a collaboration between VetSouth, Massey University and the Dairy Cattle Vets branch of the New Zealand Veterinary Association. The aim was to give a small group of fifth (final)-year vet students a glimpse into life, farming and veterinary work in the deep south.
With significant funding from all three parties, we were able to bring 16 students – plus a long-suffering Massey staff chaperone – down to Southland, in mini vans, for five days. And so, the ‘Swede Safari’ was born.
We were in for a ride, as the students made the most of their time away from lecture theatres, spending their days out on farms and their nights experiencing some good old southern hospitality (and a few questionably named RTDs) at the Middle Pub in Winton (thankfully, publicans Chubbs and Nancy were ok with the light nudity that followed said RTDs...).
Suffice to say, it was a success and we decided we would have to repeat the event every year!
Over the years, we have tried hard to combine some solid teaching with plenty of fun, whilst avoiding hospital trips, and it seems to have been a recipe for success. The students leave with a much better appreciation of what Southland is all about and some of them even come back when they graduate, to indulge in more of what vetting in Southland has to offer.
Of course, none of this would have been possible without the generous farmers who have opened their farms and shared their time and knowledge. Students are always struck by how willing Southland farmers are to share what they know – and by the privilege of being welcomed onto their farms. It’s an important glimpse into the reciprocal bond that can be fostered between a rural vet and farmer, and the value each brings to the other.
Somehow, we’re now 20 years down the track. The vet curriculum at Massey has changed, and Swede Safari has adapted with it. With vet class sizes more than doubling recently, it may need to evolve again, but we’re working on ways to keep it going.
