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Short abstract:

Livestock veterinarians are a key actor in xenotransplantation science. But, most of them never planned to work in animal science. In this talk, I’ll show how a mix of socioeconomic and political factors in agriculture and research influence their subjectification processes.

Long abstract:

Xenotransplantation science is an experimental field where scientists aim to use gene-edited (GE) pigs as “organ suppliers” for humans needing transplantation. In Germany where I conduct fieldwork, xenotransplantation is still in the proof-of-concept stage, meaning that scientists are carrying out experiments to prove that GE porcine biomaterials could be biomedical therapies for humans. This science depends upon creating, caring for, experimenting upon, and killing GE pigs. The actors responsible for these tasks are mainly livestock veterinarians who have been hired to work at biotechnology research facilities. However, as trained livestock – namely pig – veterinarians, they did not necessarily envision themselves working in experimental animal science.

In this talk, I’ll showcase how livestock veterinarians come to find themselves situated in xenotransplantation science, how they make sense of their roles, and what types of subjectification processes (Sigl 2019) they experience. Through ethnographic research, I trace how livestock veterinarians both enjoy their work in xenotransplantation science but simultaneously question their position within an interdisciplinary and hierarchical scientific structure. While some claim, “I’m just a stupid pig vet!” others feel they are “100% scientists.” What emerges from my analysis is how a nuanced combination of socioeconomic and political factors in both agriculture and research influences my interlocutors’ decisions to enter xenotransplantation science. Consequently, their transition from livestock (pig) practices into the research sector points to a broader phenomenon in Germany, namely a lack of rural livestock veterinarians. To conclude, I question: how are livestock veterinarians valued in contemporary sectors like agriculture and research?