CityU Farm— world-class training for vet students

By : Michael Gibb

Located in Lam Tsuen, Tai Po, CityU Farm is a groundbreaking facility for training students in areas of veterinary medicine and for promoting One Health, public health, research into zoonotic diseases, and animal welfare.

“This facility is a first of its kind in Asia, embodying the ideals, spirit and mission of the long-term CityU project to transform Hong Kong into an innovative hub for research and training in veterinary medicine and life sciences,” says President Way Kuo, who first initiated plans for a vet school at CityU in 2008.

CityU Farm is equipped with state-of-the-art technologies and facilities, such as the latest research-based features for maximising cow comfort and welfare, as well as one of the world’s most advanced filtration systems for water purification, making the farm sustainable and environmentally friendly. It is an ideal facility for training students enrolled on our unique six-year Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) programme.

(From left) Professor Vanessa Barrs, Mr Lester Garson Huang, Dr Choi Yuk-lin, Dr Chung Shui-ming, Mr Michael TH Lee, President Way Kuo, and Professor Christian Wagner, CityU Provost, at the opening ceremony of CityU Farm. “The farm provides unique opportunities for our students to gain expertise in all aspects of bovine medicine and dairy production,” says Professor Vanessa Barrs, Chair Professor of Companion Animal Health and Disease in the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences and Acting Dean of the Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences.

“As Hong Kong’s only working dairy farm, this is an exceptional facility that will provide our students with great opportunities for education in bovine medicine and cattle husbandry,” she adds.

Specifically, taking care of dairy cows will cultivate students’ practicalities of animal husbandry and farm management, says Dr Eryl Done, Farm Manager.

“Dairy cows require more daily care and attention than other farm animal species. The students will gain hands-on experience milking the cows twice a day, feeding them daily and cleaning their beds frequently. From these interactions, the students will gain the animal handling and stockmanship skills which form the foundation upon which they can add their veterinary skills and knowledge,” he says.

CityU Farm replicates the production systems that veterinary students will encounter on commercial dairy farms worldwide in their future careers. The students will learn the necessary skills to develop further when seeing the practice of farm animal veterinarians across the globe.

Guests join a CityU Farm tour.

 

 

There was a huge amount of support for CityU farm at the opening ceremony in November 2022, which was attended by Dr Chung Shui-ming, CityU Pro-Chancellor; Mr Lester Garson Huang, Council Chairman, CityU; President Way Kuo; Dr Choi Yuk-lin, Secretary for Education, HKSAR Government; and Mr Michael T H Lee, Chairman, Hong Kong Jockey Club. Delivering a video message at the ceremony was Mr Carlson Tong Ka-shing, Chairman of the University Grants Committee (UGC).

Dr Choi commended the CityU team for their concerted efforts to promote the revolutionary development of veterinary education in Hong Kong. “Sparing no effort in cementing its position as one of the key players in the local and regional higher education landscape, CityU has boosted Hong Kong’s status as an innovative hub to further the frontiers of veterinary medicine and life sciences,” she says.

President Kuo says he is confident that thanks to the Farm, CityU will continue to give back to society and work to improve people’s lives through training, innovation and public education about One Health.

“Since 2008, CityU has established the School of Energy and Environment and the Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences (JCC). Now with the CityU Farm, we take a further step forward for the ideal of the human-animal-environment trinity,” he says.