Country vet shortage growing concern for farmers

Farmers say it's becoming increasingly difficult to find large animal veterinarians, despite calls for increased training and targeted skilled migration.

Shane Kilby, a Dubbo cattle producer, plans to bring the issue to the NSW Farmers Annual Conference next week.

“As a livestock producer it’s vital to have a good relationship with a large animal veterinary practice so you can get the care you need, when you need it,” Mrs Kilby said.

“Vets are indispensable for us, whether it’s pregnancy testing, calving or even just looking in on a sick animal.

“Sadly we’re seeing a decline in the number of large animal vets across the state and while those that are around do their best to fit you in, we can’t let the numbers continue to slip.”

While the number of registered veterinarians increased by 3% per year on average, they were predominantly moving into small animal practise as pet ownership increased.

Mrs Kilby stated that a motion to the Annual Conference from the NSW Farmers Dubbo Branch would call for investment in a variety of measures such as financial incentives to attract vets to western NSW, ongoing tax incentives for vets to work in rural areas, and more training places aimed at large animal vets.

“If we could get the same sort of HECS forgiveness for vets that teachers, doctors and nurses can access, we might get more vets into western NSW,” Mrs Kilby said.

“We would also like to see increased migration of skilled vets to plug the gaps in the short term, and really do more to train more vets for the future, maybe by reviewing the selection criteria for entry into veterinary science.”

(Source: Beef Central )