USDA has established a loan program to address a production veterinarian shortage.
As more veterinarians retire, there are not enough younger ones to replace them, especially in rural America.
The State Veterinarian for Idaho says that many grad students face enormous debt, and working with production animals does not pay well while working in a small animal clinic does.
According to Scott Leibsle, “Some people don’t want to move and take on $250,000 of debt to live in a town with a population of 1,500 people. The fact is small animal veterinarians can see 40 to 50 patients in a day because they drive to them, a large animal veterinarian has to drive from one facility, one farm or ranch to another.”
Students can get up to $25,000 dollars to pay off their debt, but Leibsle says that rural and ag states should consider state-run programs, with incentives to serve under-represented areas.
“It has become a real problem, and I get phone calls all of the time from people who say, ‘I can’t get a veterinarian that can come out and see my animals, and the next vet is 100 miles away, and I don’t know what to do.’ And, it’s an issue that I think that needs to have some more attention brought to it.”