Trainee vets display bare-faced cheek

Trainee vets from Massey University have stripped off and posed for a fund-raising calendar.

Thanks to strategically placed animals, hay bales and other items, the veterinarian students were able to keep their modesty for the Barely There photoshoot that will this year raise money for Assistance Dogs New Zealand.

It is the 11th year Massey students have bared all. Organiser Mia Payne, 32, said the shoot was a "fantastic tradition" that had developed within New Zealand's only veterinary school.

Fifty students braved the nude shoot, from a class of about 100, and others helped behind the scenes.

"No one was pressured to do it," said Payne. "Some helped by picking up the robes off the ground from people in the shoot so they wouldn't be so exposed."

Payne said it was a bonding experience. "I was so nervous, as you sat in class with these people for a year-and-a-half.

"But later in the shoot, you're like, 'Oh, this is all right'," she said.

Money raised by the sale of the calendars will go towards a class trip for the Palmerston North-based students and 10 per cent of profits will go to the charity that trains dogs to help families and individuals whose lives are affected by a variety of disabilities.

The calendars will go on sale on April 13 for $15.