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Dennis Murphy

For the students, by the students

Dr. Temple Grandin visits MU
Jessica Pollard, Corner Post Staff

November 12, 2003 - Students, faculty and community members flocked to Keller Auditorium on Wednesday night to hear the inspiring words and gifted skills of Dr. Temple Grandin.

The event started around 7:00 p.m. with CAFNR Student Council President, Matt Hill, thanking everyone for attending. He introduced Grandin, who came from Colorado State University where she currently holds the position of associate professor of animal science.

Grandin opened with a few words about her life as an autistic person. Autism is a neurological disorder which is characterized primarily by immature portions of the brain which do not function properly. She explained that with autism, each memory that a person has goes into a specific "box" in the brain where it is stored. People with autism are "visual thinkers"; they don't think in terms of writing or words but rather pictures and 3-D images.

Grandin spoke about how her condition helps her relate to animals that she works with. For instance, she told the story of how she actually gets down in the chutes with the cattle in the moving facilities to get a specific handle on what they are seeing and feeling inside the chutes. She compared autism with animals in that both focus on little details, whereas normal people do not always pick up on the minimal things.

While focusing on her experiences handling both small and large animals, Grandin also gave examples of some of the ways that she works with animals, specifically cattle, to help calm and relax them. She also discussed various techniques that she uses to herd and move cattle more effectively, humanely and efficiently. One of her main points of discussion was the idea of "keeping an animal calm." If an animal is riled up and aggressive, it is better to stop and give them a period to cool down, rather than keep pushing until ultimately a disaster occurs. However, she pointed out that it is much easier if "you don't get the animal excited in the first place."

Grandin stressed the "power of behavior" and keyed on the fact that animals that are treated inhumanely tend to produce less, have a lower weight gain and have a higher tendency to be aggressive. "Fear is a very strong stressor," said Grandin. Stress equates to fear, physical stress and pain. She discussed the importance of getting on the animal's level and working with them in a more humane way, rather than yelling, screaming or using forceful tactics to prod them along. "I am not a fan of rough training methods," stated Grandin.

Grandin concluded her speech by hitting on several breeding methods that have sparked some serious controversy in recent years. She answered questions pertaining to this topic as well as all other aspects of her presentation.

There were both good and bad feelings about the presentation as a whole but overall, most people who attended felt that Grandin was an inspiring individual and an excellent example of someone who did not let her hardships get in the way of her dreams. For more information about Grandin and humane animal practices, please visit her website at www.grandin.com.

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