VETERINARY MEDICINE AND THE ECONOMY
Veterinary medicine is now widely hailed as a career with great potential. The pet population is increasing, in part because so many people are moving to the suburbs. Thus, small animal clinics will be kept busy. Rural large animal practice will thrive because of greater scientific interest in the raising of livestock and poultry. Thus, there will be a need for more veterinarians.
PROMISING FIELDS IN VETERINARY MEDICINE
Because the field is so diversified, there are areas where the employment outlook is particularly promising. DVM graduates who go on to earn degrees in toxicology (the science of poisons and their effects), parasitology (that area of biology dealing with organisms that thrive within living creatures), laboratory animal medicine, and other specialties will find many jobs with corporations, in the public sector, and in veterinary military service. In addition, the veterinary field has expanded to include space medicine, international disease control, and food production.
WOMEN IN VETERINARY MEDICINE
The outlook for women in veterinary medicine is decidedly optimistic. More than half the students in veterinary schools are now women! Yet it was not very long ago that a woman in this field was considered an oddity. High school guidance counselors discouraged female students from pursuing veterinary medicine as a career because of their perceived lack of physical strength and the difficulty of the work.
But as the veterinary schools filled with women who began proving themselves on campus and later in practice, these fears of inadequacy diminished. Women are now considered ideal for the field because of their capacity for patience, tenderness, and understanding.
Where do women veterinarians choose to work? Most of them specialize in small animal medicine. A minority opt for a large animal specialty. Some go into single animal areas-they may enjoy cats so much that they go into feline medicine. The career, in general, appeals greatly to female high school students, who voted it ninth in popularity in a large selection of career choices. (Gallup Youth Survey, 1992)
SALARY EXPECTATIONS
Here are recent starting salary figures from the American Veterinary Medical Association.
Veterinarians in private practice can expect business overhead and expenses to consume a considerable percentage of gross income. On the other hand, a thriving practice run by an enthusiastic, conscientious, and businesslike practitioner will provide a comfortable living.
These figures are averages; those for beginners do not consider debt repayment for education. Income figures can also be considered to rise due to increases in the cost of animal health care, and in the general cost of living.
