Guest Blog - Izzy Simpson, Glasgow Veterinary Student

We have been thrilled to welcome Izzy (@izzysimpson101) on placement as a 1st year vet student. The time flew by far too quickly and we are looking forward to seeing her grow into a bright and accomplished vet and hope it's not too long before we see her again!

On the 8th June I began my 2 week placement at Seaton farms which turned out to be my best placement ever. I study veterinary medicine at Glasgow University and during first year we have to complete 2 weeks on a dairy farm. Due to Covid-19 how far I could travel was limited as staying overnight could not be an option. I began to search 'cheshire farms' on google and instagram and came across Kellys instagram 'cheshirefarmwife', which I instantly fell in love with due to the pictures of the farm, calves, cows and children. I received a quick and welcoming reply from Kelly and spoke to Ed on the phone to agree dates and details. As a vegetarian and animal lover I was apprehensive as to how I would find the placement, but the moment I stepped on the farm it was clear the family and workers loved and respected the animals more than I could ever imagine. I was welcomed so warmly and treated with such kindness that I spent all my days smiling and all my nights telling my family about my day. They worked so hard to ensure that everything was perfect, tailoring to the needs of each individual cow, heifer and calf. Every visitor and vet that I met told me how amazing this farm was - the nutrition, health and happiness of the animals was spot on. Whilst there I learnt about nutrition, how to move cows, milking, feeding calves, feeding heifers, Artificial Insemination, weighing heifers, DA (displaced abdomen), separating cows in terms of their period of lactation, using the crush, administering drugs and boluses, PD (pregnancy diagnosis) and so much more. Nothing was too much to ask of Kelly and Ed and they did everything with a smile. Their children, William, George and Betsy, were absolutely gorgeous and made my time there even better. It completely changed my opinion of farming and I now have even more respect for farming families. After years of hearing negative comments and watching documentaries that are completely one sided I now realise that the horror stories people tell are only from a small percentage of farms. Unfortunately, in every profession there are always a small percentage of people that do not do the right thing. I happily drank the milk from the tanker and used it alongside the eggs from the chickens they so kindly gave me to make the nicest pancakes ever! Overall, I cannot emphasise enough what a lovely family this is and what an incredible farm. I learnt so much that went beyond the veterinary and animal side of things to life skills I will never forget. It gave me an insight into how to juggle such a demanding job whilst running a house, being part of a family and having friends. I will be eternally grateful for how they changed my opinion on farming and how they made me feel as a person due to their kind nature. They have without a doubt changed my future for the better and I do believe the world would be a better place if there were more families like the Seatons!

To follow more of Izzy's journey head over to Instagram @izzysimpson101