06/08/06 Wanted: more food animal veterinarians

Because of Idaho's strong agricultural influence the state does have enough food animal veterinarians. More than 11 hundred vets are licensed in Idaho, 575 of them actually practice here today. But a new report says there could be a nationwide shortage of food animal vets within ten years and its coming at a time when avian flu, BSE and hoof and mouth are reasons for concern. Doctor Peter Chenoweth of Kansas State University says there are plenty of vet students but they can make more money in urban areas treating pets. So there are concerns about enough large animal vets in the event of a disease outbreak. CHENOWETH "This is going to be immensely expensive to the nation as well as to the confidence with which people regard their food supply." That's why there's talk of incentives or subsidies to get veterinary students to set up practice in rural areas. CHENOWETH "It may be a problem of either retaining them or insuring that when they graduate they have reasonably good jobs that are fulfilling and pay at least enough for them to repay their loans and to survive." Idaho Veterinary Medical Association's Vicky Smith says today more than 70 percent of the vet students are women and most of them prefer to work in urban areas with small animals. Today's Idaho Ag News Bill Scott