Veterinary School Is Undisputed ‘Top Dog’

Winners from veterinary schools in Jerusalem and France receive their ‘Top Dog’ prizes from Hill’s Pet Nutrition (left to right: Dr. Michel Meunier, Mr. Pierre Fabing, Mr. Gili Savariego, Dr. Hein Meyer) Throughout most of 2012, vet students across Europe, Africa and the Middle East have been tirelessly voting for their veterinary school’s place on the leader board in the Hill’s Top Dog competition. Now the results have been revealed, confirming that the generous 10,000 EUR grand prize has gone to Israel and the 2,000 EUR prize to France. A truly student-focused event, the competition aimed to identify the vet school that its students rated top-notch. With these significant prizes at stake, the suspense had reached fever pitch by the time 24 selected students from the top 10 winning vet schools descended on Barcelona, courtesy of Hill’s Pet Nutrition, to hear the results. Timed to take place at the Southern European Veterinary Conference (SEVC), the award ceremony was the highlight of a four-day educational trip and the winners were announced at an eagerly anticipated awards dinner on 19th October. The winning school was the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Koret School of Veterinary Medicine) who won the grand prize of 10,000 EUR and it was gratefully received on behalf of the school’s student association by student Gili Savariego who said, "I would like to express my gratitude for the amazing Barcelona experience. Everything was perfect and truly unforgettable. My thanks and warmest wishes go to our wonderful hosts Hill’s and the Spanish vets and students." The second place for prize of 2,000 EUR received by Pierre Fabing went to the École Nationale Vétérinaire d'Alfort in Paris, while the remaining eight schools took home the fifth edition of the textbook, Small Animal Clinical Nutrition. Janeth Ciudad, Hill’s Assistant Veterinary Affairs Manager in Spain, commented, “The Spanish students acted as hosts and were also really motivated and enthusiastic about the possibility of having a winner from the Spanish vet schools. Although a finalist, Las Palmas vet school was, unfortunately, not one of the winners but the Spanish students were still happy for the winner and very grateful for the opportunity Hill´s gave them to participate in such an amazing event.” While all that remains for the prize winners is to decide how the student association spends the funds to benefit students, Hill’s also ensured that the nominated student representatives from France, Germany, Israel, Spain, Sweden, Ireland and the UK were given the opportunity to develop a global perspective through networking with their fellow students and vets from across Europe and further afield. Their itinerary included attendance at SEVC, a bespoke interactive workshop on teamwork and communication and a tour of Barcelona to learn about the historic significance of the city. For those veterinary schools that missed out this year, there is still an opportunity to scoop a generous prize, as Hill’s Top Dog will return again next year, allowing students to once again nominate their school and challenge the current champions.

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