Source: DR. HAILEY MUELLER VETERINARY SERVICES LLC submitted to NRP
KS242_ DR. HAILEY MUELLER VETERINARY SERVICES, LLC – RURAL BOVINE SERVICES & EDUCATION
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
ACTIVE
Funding Source
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1032715
Grant No.
2024-70024-43133
Cumulative Award Amt.
$125,000.00
Proposal No.
2024-04801
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Aug 1, 2024
Project End Date
Jul 31, 2027
Grant Year
2024
Program Code
[VSGPR]- Veterinary Services Grant Program Rural Practice Enhancement Grants
Recipient Organization
DR. HAILEY MUELLER VETERINARY SERVICES LLC
5436 CR 3950
INDEPENDENCE,KS 67301
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Due to being a rural veterinary shortage area with a low veterinarian retention rate, South East Kansasproducers are often left without services their livestock need, and with a jaded outlook on veterinarians staying in the area. Currently, the ratio of veterinarians to cattle cited in the shortage nomination is 1:13,794. This gap in needs and providers, as well as trust in veterinary practices, leaves room for animal health and welfare issues to arise. As noted in the area nomination form, this is of particular interest to the area because two counties are border counties for interstate movement. Funding to allow the practice to update its truck with vet box, purchase a portable tilt chute, and purchase a point of care analyzer for in field diagnostics will be beneficial in several ways. First, these items willgreatly increase the quality and safety of the practice for both patients and employees. It will alsoenhance education for the local veterinary nursing program. Enabling us to offer safer, highly effective, and expand services willpositively impact producers and future animal health professionals as well as visiting students.For Dr. Hailey Mueller Veterinary Services, LLC there are three main objectives for entering into a Rural Practice Enhancement Project in shortage area KS 242. 1- Increase availability and quality of large animal services to the shortage area. 2- Add services and build more relationships with producers, such that animal health and welfare are improved. 3- Utilize equipment that enhances safety and sustainability of veterinarians to practice large or mixed animal practice long term.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
3113310116070%
3113610116010%
3113810116010%
3113820116010%
Goals / Objectives
For Dr. Hailey Mueller Veterinary Services, LLC there are three main objectives for entering into a Rural Practice Enhancement Project in shortage area KS 242. 1- Increase availability and quality of large animal services to the shortage area (increase large animal clients serviced in the area of need by at least 20%). 2- Add services (cattle herd and foot work) and build more relationships with producers (incrase cattle clientele by at least 20%), such that animal health and welfare are improved. 3- Utilize equipment that enhances safety and sustainability of veterinarians to practice large or mixed animal practice long term (put into practice a safe cattle handing/processing system). These goals will be accomplished using grant funding to purchase a truck with vet box, portable cattle chute, and a portable blood chemistry analyzer.
Project Methods
As this project is a rural practice enchancement, no specific sceintific method will be utilized. Rather, tracking or resulted increases in services offered, producers reached and students hosted will be done. Specific invoice line items exist in the practice management software (Idexx Neo) reflects each service or item invoiced for and the location that it is done based on travel zones. Number of uses and revenue from the equipment can and will be easily tracked. Numbers of visiting students and their experiences will also be documented.

Progress 08/01/24 to 07/31/25

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience of this project focuses on livestock producers and ranchers within a 60 miles radius of Sycamore/Independence KS were targeted. Bovine, small ruminant, and swine producers were all engaged and served within this area. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Due to the new equipment and outreach, there has been an increase inveterinary technician and veterinary student shadowing as well as externships for credit. 29 shadow days, one career fair and two student externships were completed during this reporting period. Many of these students were specifically seekingrural practice large animal experience and exposure. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Speaking at animalhealth night for Kansas State Research and extension; takingthe chute to a career day for a hands on display for students interested in veterinary medicine or agriculture; updates and photos posted on social media regularly showing use of the chute and servies offered. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Continued outreach and advertising to further expand services for livestock within the area of need and potentially attract an associate veterinarian to increase doctoravailabilty and decrease work hours for sustainability. Continue to attend career days and speak at county extension events for public outreach. Expand advertisement from social media to print to reach an olderpopulation.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The portable cattle chute was used for 14 new clients that did not have any facilities and would have had veterinary services rendered otherwise. The truck and vet box were used for a total of 705 on site visits since the beginning of utilization and a total of ~19,700 miles. Ithas been used to pull the cattle chute 550 miles and equine stocks for 3,000 miles. Many of theses services were rendered for people that do not have the ability to haul their animals in to a facility, or animals that had health problems that prevented traveling. Foot trim services were added, perviously there were many people that requested cattle foot services that had to be declined due to safety concerns. Most notabily, bovine services increased 67% andSmall Ruminant incresed 57% year over year for the grant reporting period.

Publications