EMS Placements

Hey

I'm starting Vet med in September (RVC Accelerated Vet Med) so I'm allowed to start my EMS placements this summer. Trouble is I dont know how to find them!

Can anyone recommend any placements for any of the categories (dairy / pig / horses) around the SE area. I live in London, and have heard there are places in Hertfordshire, but not sure how to find them.

Or even wildlife parks / other placements that will be good for the 4 weeks of other placements. I know about Paradise wildlife park but not sure if that will count.

Thanks!

Reply 1

Angry cucumber

Hi,

I really wouldn't worry at this stage. RVC will give you lots of guidance when you get there as well as a list of contacts :smile:

Relax and wait and see :smile:

Reply 2

ouchthathurts

Definitely worth getting some out of the way, you'll want a break during the summer before 3rd year starts rather than just doing placements for 12 weeks solid. Do you drive/how easy is it for you to travel to placements?

Dairy...
Fold Farm springs to mind as being easy to get to as it's just outside Barnet and definitely take AHEMS students as I've seen them about on visits to the farm. Think they do dairy for ice cream (or they did at least) and must have reasonable numbers based on their youngstock and the fact they've got themselves a rotary parlour. Other than that I can't think of any/many others off the top of my head, there's a fair few smallholders with some beef but even then they're unlikely to have enough stock to count as a placement anyway. Maybe consider going away? I went down to a farm in Somerset for a fortnight where they milked around 600, great fun, lovely area and people, loads of free booze and some cash at the end of it too. If you really want to stay close(ish) to London then Kent might not be a bad shout for dairy farms.

As for horses, just google riding schools in the area or something? Should be able to find places within London, Lee Valley for instance.

Pigs... maybe have to go further away.

Reply 3

evian.

Original post by Angry cucumber

Hi,

I really wouldn't worry at this stage. RVC will give you lots of guidance when you get there as well as a list of contacts :smile:

Relax and wait and see :smile:

I thought that, but as I'm on the accelerated course I have to get the 12 weeks done in the first year rather than the two years the normal course gets. So is gonna be a struggle to fit in the 12 weeks if I don't get a few weeks in this summer! :/

Reply 4

evian.

Original post by ouchthathurts

Ah thats great thanks I'll look into Fold Farm. Yeh can drive, but wanted to find a few placements closer to London for the ones before uni where I'm still a bit more nervous / unsure about what to expect. Once I know a bit more than I'll start looking at further away ones, so will probably keep the pigs (and lambing of course) until during the course holidays.

So the horses, its basically just riding stables / schools?

Reply 5

ouchthathurts

Original post by evian.

Pretty much, I think when I did it there had to be 25 horses stabled at the yard/school as the only requirement. Cows was 100 milking, sheep 200 lambing, 60 breeding sows on pig farms.

If you have a bad experience don't let it put you off, some people get on well on farms, others don't. Some farms are good, some not so good, a very small minority are just plain dreadful. It really does vary, Fold Farm from what I know of it is actually quite good, it's got a couple of flaws but nothing too major.

Reply 6

kookabura

As someone who has done the G&T course at RVC (started in 2010, graduated last summer), I would def recommend trying to get at least a couple of weeks done in advance if you can (I did four weeks before). It is do able fitting it all in during the year/summer, but it's tight and doesn't leave you much lee way for holidays, or anything going wrong.

London Equestrian Centre is good for horses if you have minimal equine experience already (so plenty of chance to handle then, tack them up, groom them etc), helping lead them in kids lessons and normally one lesson free for each week you are there. If you have horsey experience already you would prob gain less from it.

Reply 7

Bazza17

Original post by ouchthathurts

I know this was a while ago, but I don't suppose you have contact details for the farm in Somerset? I'm in desperate need of placements before starting my GEP year in Edinburgh in August!