Legacy Series: Dr. Temple Grandin; Colorado State University

Podcast Topic

Gathering for another Legacies Series to honor a true industry leader and pioneer Dr. Temple Grandin.

Guests:

Dr. Temple Grandin, Betsy Lerner

Co-Host: Kari Estes, Balchem

Episode 64: Real Science Exchange: Legacy Series: Dr. Temple Grandin

Timestamps

Dr. Grandin, an animal science professor at Colorado State University and a well-known author and speaker, has been featured on national public radio stations, Time Magazine, The New York Times, Discover Magazine, Forbes, USA Today and others. In fact, her movie titled Temple Grandin sharing much of her life story is an Emmy Award-winning movie.

While Dr. Grandin’s career has been nothing shy of exceptional, she led the conversation by explaining how her trials and tribulations at a young age with autism ultimately led her to where she is today. 8:40

After not speaking until the age of four, Dr. Grandin mentioned she began questioning how people think and their behaviors in her mid-twenties. 10:28

Scott Sorrell, podcast host and director of global marketing for Balchem, then asked about any new research on autism and what niche skills the autistic brain gives people. 14:37

Sharing a few stories and examples, Dr. Grandin mentioned that attention to detail, thinking in specific instances and extreme object visualization are all key characteristics of autism. 17:34

Also joining the conversation is Betsy Lerner, an author who previously worked with Dr. Grandin. She described the questionnaire for people to find out what kind of thinker they are, adding that Dr. Grandin scored 16 out of 18 in the visual thinker category, and she scored four out of 18. 18:41

Not only has Dr. Grandin focused her career on understandpeople’s behavior, but animals as well. Opposite of humans, Dr. Grandin added that animals live in a sensory-based world. She mentioned Betsy gave her the book “The Immense World,” which solely focuses on animal sense and living in a sensory-baked world. 28:12

With decades of knowledge and research, Sorrell asked Dr. Grandin what advice she would have for pet or animal owners. 30:20

Dr. Grandin shared it’s no surprise that animals have emotions like fear, anger, separation anxiety and a few others. She went on to add her experience helping producers understand why certain behaviors trigger cows while handled. 36:40

Dr. Grandin said her big career breakthrough started after working with an Arizona farm magazine to write firsthand experiences from ag events and cattle topics that eventually led to speaking opportunities. 43:58

As the industry continues to shift, so does the future of animal handling and behavioral studies. Dr. Grandin shared the story of touring a new cattle handling facility with a slick floor just this last year, adding this is just one of the things she shares in her resources about the basics of cattle behavior and safety. 48:11

Betsy closed by sharing she truly believes Dr. Grandin is an inspiration to everyone she meets. She added that while traveling to Colorado, Dr. Grandin was honored for her years of service and Betsy met many of Dr. Grandin’s students. While it was no surprise, Betsy mentioned each student said Temple truly changed their lives and believes she has made the world a better place. 55:08

Life is all about helping people and finding practical solutions, and Dr. Grandin closed by adding that’s truly what makes her happy. 59:13

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