In what is believed to be an Australian first, dairy equipment company WestfaliaSurge has employed a veterinarian who specialises in dairy cattle to help develop its products and provide advice to farmers. 

Dr Chris Fry has joined the company as technical manager and will oversee the development of all its products, including milking systems, automatic calf feeding systems, milk meters and animal identification systems.

He is also available to provide on-farm advice to WestfaliaSurge clients on cow-health and fertility matters relating to the company’s milking equipment and DairyPlan herd management software. 

Since he started with WestfaliaSurge, Dr Fry has visited numerous properties in Victoria and the South East of South Australia to meet farmers and familiarise himself with how the equipment works on the ground.

Dr Fry said he decided to take up the offer of working with the company when dairy farmer clients at his former veterinary practice at Myrtleford recommended the company to him.

“They think very highly of the company and it was described to me as the Rolls Royce of the dairy equipment world,” he said. “I saw it as a great opportunity to work for an international company at the cutting edge of its field.

“Now that I have started, I am really enjoying the challenge to help our clients achieve the best animal health and productivity outcomes.”

Dr Fry graduated with honours from Melbourne University in 1990. He has since worked in mixed practice for 14 years in Myrtleford, Deniliquin and Benalla.

He also spent two years in Papua New Guinea working for the agriculture department as Area Vet for the Northern and Islands regions, establishing a successful cattle tick eradication program.

His main interest as a veterinarian is dairy cattle and in 2001 he undertook a year-long correspondence course in ruminant nutrition offered by Sydney University’s Postgraduate Foundation.