Laura Eden
Originally from a none-farming background, I have found myself immersed in agriculture, with a focussed interest on small ruminant production systems. After graduating from the University of Nottingham, I returned to North Yorkshire to work at an independent practice as a farm animal veterinary surgeon. When faced with the opportunity to work with a commercial dairy goat herd, I approached the challenge with enthusiasm. I am extremely grateful to my joint sponsors The Milking Goat Association and The British Goat Society for supporting my Nuffield Scholarship.
Exploring the factors that contribute to improving the overall resilience of our dairy goats
Milking Goat Association
British Goat Society
Study Overview
Working as a ruminant vet has highlighted to me that goats are often an over-looked species in British farming, yet one that plays a significant role in worldwide farming. This inspired me to apply for a Nuffield Scholarship to increase the appreciation and awareness of dairy goats and exhibit their value within British agriculture.
By exploring the factors that contribute to a more resilient dairy goat, I am looking forward to learning more about how the goat dairy industry can utilise these factors in order to improve efficiency, sustainability and overall healthier production animals. By resilience, I am not only referring to the individual animals within the herd, but also considering the resilience of the industry as a whole.
Dairy goats deserve recognition as production animals, and the multitude of factors driving their resilience are playing a considerable role towards the species’ success. With a greater understanding of this, I am hoping to accumulate my findings and apply them directly within the UK dairy goat industry.