Even though he doesn’t speak a word of Ukrainian, Airdrie vet Cody Creelman, was drawn to the online videos of Vadim Pryadko, who lives in a town called Khmelnitsky near the Polish border.

“We developed a relationship,” said Creelman. “We started talking about what type of practice he was at, what kind of school he went to, about his family. He had lots of questions about how we do things in the West in terms of cow medicine. He was keen to learn how to manage different diseases, our vaccination protocols, and antibiotic strategies.”

It all started when Creelman, also an avid videomaker, left a comment on Pryadko’s YouTube channel, saying that he wished he could understand the words in the video. Since Pryadko doesn’t speak English, he used Google Translate to add subtitles and to communicate with his new Alberta friend via the social networking sites Facebook and Google Plus.

“Our real connection is wanting to tell our story through the digital media,” said Creelman, 29. “As soon as I saw what a master he was at that, I was instantly drawn to what he could do.

Pryadko works for a large dairy, as well as at an equine stable. There are only a few veterinarians in his city of around 300,000, so he also treats dogs, cats, mules and horses.

His excellent videography skills made him a shoe-in for an annual video competition put on by diagnostic imaging company BCF Technology, which this year is offering a prize of an Easi-Scan portable ultrasound unit for cattle and equine veterinarians valued at US$14,000.

“Since he doesn’t speak English, he had no knowledge of the contest,” said Creelman, who entered his friend in the contest. “We collaborated together. He had all the muscle, I just had a couple of ideas for him.”

Read the full article on the Alberta Farmer Express website.