Veterinary medicine

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Veterinary medicine is the application of medical, diagnostic, and therapeutic principles to companion, domestic, exotic, wildlife, and production animals. Veterinary Science is concerned with the scientific basis of animal production, health and disease. It requires the acquisition and application of scientific knowledge in several disciplines and uses technical skills towards the solution of animal production, health, management and welfare problems.

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Veterinary medicine is informally as old as the human/animal bond but in recent years has expanded exponentially because of the availability of advanced diagnostic and therapeutic techniques for most species. Animals nowadays often receive advanced medical, dental, and surgical care including insulin injections, root canals, hip replacements, cataract extractions, and pacemakers.

Veterinarians assist in ensuring the quality, quantity, and security of food supplies by working to maintain the health of livestock and inspecting the meat itself. Veterinary scientists are very important in chemical, biological, and pharmacological research.

In many countries, equine veterinary medicine is also a specialized field. Clinical work with horses involves mainly locomotor and orthopaedic problems, digestive tract conditions (including equine colic, which is a major cause of death among domesticated horses), and respiratory tract infections and disorders.

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Education in veterinary medicine

Many universities worldwide confer undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in veterinary medicine. In most countries, veterinary practitioners are regulated and registered on a national or state level. While the duration and exact content of undergraduate degrees in veterinary medicine varies, they are typically from 4 to 7 years in duration. They consist of several introductory years which may include some "pre-vet" or general scientific training. These pre-clinical years provide a basis in veterinary anatomy, biochemistry, pharmacology, pathology, parasitology, animal breeding, botany, animal feeding and nutrition, radiology, virology, microbiology, zoology, animal physiology, physics, chemistry and other important subject areas. The final years of most veterinary medicine degrees consist of a greater proportion of practical clinical work (e.g. internal medicine, dentistry, surgery, obstetrics), in which students are guided to apply the theory they have learned in a supervised environment. When students complete their education, they are normally granted a diploma as Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) or a Veterinariae Medicinae Doctoris (VMD).

Admission into veterinary medical school is competitive. According to the US Department of Labor, 1 in 3 applicants was accepted into a veterinary program in 2002. Prerequisites for admission include the undergraduate studies listed above and extensive veterinary experience (typically about 500 or more hours) in private practice or other veterinary environment. The average veterinary medical student has an undergraduate GPA of 3.53 [1] and a GRE score of approximately 1600.

While veterinary medicine is conventionally practiced distinctly from human medicine, the emerging interdisciplinary field of conservation medicine involves both, employing multidisciplinary teams that include medical doctors, veterinarians, environmental scientists, and other researchers and clinicians. In 2004, Australia's Murdoch University School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences started courses for a Master degree as well as a Postgraduate Certificate in Veterinary Conservation Medicine.

As in the human medical field, veterinary medicine (in practice) requires a diverse group of individuals to meet the need of patients. In addition to veterinarians, many veterinary hospitals utilize a team of veterinary nurses and veterinary assistants to completely care for healing, critical and well animals. Veterinary nurses are generally registered as "veterinary technicians" in most states and are legally qualified to assist veterinarians in many medical procedures. Veterinary assistants, who are not licensed by most states, but can well-trained at facilities such as The School for Veterinary Assistants, are also becoming increasingly in-demand in the veterinary industry due to a wide range of treatments and services being offered to meet the higher expectations of pet owners in the United States.

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External links

Veterinarian Software Information Clearinghouse - Presents a list of veterinary software packages and reviews of major systems
Ask A Librarian - Website for locating Human Medical and Health and Veterinary Information
Quick & Dirty Vet School Application Guide - Website with information and links about the application process for vet school.