New film for animal-free surgical courses
- News
On the 1st of March, the International Network for Humane Education InterNICHE presented the new documentary "Surgery and the SynDaver Canine". The film shows in detail the versatile surgical procedures that can be trained using this highly advanced, realistic dog model. Doctors Against Animal Experiments supported the production of the film with 15,000 euros and inspired a foundation, which provided a further 10,000 euros.
The film "Surgery and the SynDaver Canine" is the first part of a documentary series showing how veterinary medicine can be taught without animal experiments or use. The series, produced by InterNICHE, uses case studies from various countries to highlight the innovative and humane possibilities for studying veterinary medicine in an animal-free manner.
The standalone episode, "Surgery and the SynDaver Canine," specifically examines veterinary surgery training and effective approaches to meeting educational objectives. SynDaver is an US company that develops surgical training models for human and veterinary medicine. The documentary focuses on the company's life-like synthetic dog training model with multiple functions as a case study and includes interviews with professors and developers, demonstrations of surgical techniques and live exercises with students.
The film emphasizes that non-animal training models like the SynDaver Canine offer significant advantages when it comes to training technical skills and even mastering emotional management in stressful situations. This approach is consistent with the nature of medicine as an art and science that emphasizes healing rather than causing harm. By replacing animal experiments with these non-animal methods, students can better prepare themselves for clinical learning experiences with animal patients in the later stages of their studies and for their role as practitioners after graduation.
Doctors Against Animal Experiments supported the production of the film, which is now available in more than 15 languages. The aim is to distribute the film directly to veterinary faculties around the world to reach professors, students and the general public.