CNN video/Large animal Vet shortage

[Libby Z]

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I am an OT student, but saw this video on CNN. I thought you Vet students would find it interesting:

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2008/08/10/keilar.wanted.good.vets.cnn

Libby

 

[Jochebed]

Yay VMRCVM! :-D

 

[ckgilabert]

i was thinking about getting into large animal/food animal because i thought it would be pretty interesting that you help prevent massive outbreaks of zoonotic diseases.

also...i dont know if i could handle knowing someone's pet for over 10 years and then euthanize it when it gets old and sick. 🙁 i still get soo sad over it. And farmers...from what i see, they dont seem to get emotionally attached. if you have to put down 1 of thousands of dairy cows, it just doesnt seem to bad, you know?

 

[WhtsThFrequency]

Yay VMRCVM! :-D

I love our foodie crew. They're great people. I've even begun to consider doing at least a few years of clinical (gasp!!!) large animal med/mixed rural med at some point in my career because of what I've learned from all of them.

 

[Jochebed]

Yay VMRCVM! :-D

I love our foodie crew. They're great people. I've even begun to consider doing at least a few years of clinical (gasp!!!) large animal med/mixed rural med at some point in my career because of what I've learned from all of them.

Yea, I took a leap and declared food animal...most of my experience is small animal but I really love food animal too. I figure most of our curriculum is SA based, if I decide to go mixed later or whatever I won't have a problem. We'll see. 🙂

 

[Electrophile]

Since I'm interested in holistic nutrition and there is going to be a bigger and bigger demand for organic/free range/"naturally" raised meat, milk, and eggs, I'd like to be a resource for the small family/hobby farmers out there. Talking to the producers at the farmers market, sounds like they would appreciated someone to consult with on meeting nutrition and husbandry needs for that particular market.

 

[tealamutt]

And farmers...from what i see, they dont seem to get emotionally attached. if you have to put down 1 of thousands of dairy cows, it just doesnt seem to bad, you know?

While this tends to be somewhat true, I have had two of the crustiest, mankiest ranchers on earth cry like babies and cut locks of hair from horses we had to put down for them... euth. is euth. and you can't escape it no matter what you do. That being said, food animal med does tend to rock and to me, the people you get to work with are the best part!

 

[theunraveler]

does thi$ mean there i$ alot of money in that field? $_$ 😀

 

[laurafinn]

does thi$ mean there i$ alot of money in that field? $_$ 😀

Nope, in the US, the pay for many large animal jobs is low. That's part (minor or major, depends on who you talk to) of the reason there's a shortage. Yes, there are certain fields in LA where you can make better money, but generally you'll be better served going into smallies if money's your priority.


PS: Kindly post in standard English, just as the rest of the posters in this forum do. It's common courtesy.

 

[StealthDog]

Electrophile, why aren't you in northern MN this weekend? 😉

http://www.bwcaw-vetconf.com/index.html

 

[Electrophile]

Awww, that does look like a sweet topic! Is it too late to drive up? 😉 If you hear about any more of these kinds of conferences, let me know! 😀

 

[Jochebed]

Nope, in the US, the pay for many large animal jobs is low.

I call foul - that's NOT true!!!

According to a study published in JAVMA in December 2007 (this study is performed every year and published in JAVMA) starting salaries for NEW 2007 graduates entering large animal exclusive private practice was comparable to that of ALL OTHER private practice types, except equine exclusive. EQUINE EXCLUSIVE actually had the lowest starting salary. For 2006 graduates, large animal exclusive practitioners had the HIGHEST starting salaries. But for any practice type, other than equine exclusive, there is only about a $5000 a year difference in starting pay.

~~~
Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
December 15, 2007, Vol. 231, No. 12, Pages 1813-1816
Employment, starting salaries, and educational indebtedness of year-2007 graduates of US veterinary medical colleges
~~~

The idea that large animal exclusive or mixed practice veterinarians get paid much less than small animal practitioners is a MYTH. And it is this MYTH that keeps people out of the business, not any factual basis.

Plus, large animal veterinarians often get to live and practice in areas of the country where the cost of living is cheaper, compared to small animal veterinarians which are concentrated in more developed areas.

As the video also mentioned, many states and localities are exploring educational debt repayment plans for large animal veterinarians who practice in underserved areas.

The idea that large animal veterinarians are paid far lower wages than their small animal counterparts simply isn't true.