Kansas and the nation face a veterinarian shortage, and state agriculture experts are collaborating to draw more vets to practice in rural areas. Kansas State University officials are supporting programs that introduce veterinary students to rural lifestyles and gathering data to understand where shortages exist, said Brad White, director of K-State’s Beef Cattle Institute and director of the Veterinary Training Program for Rural Kansas. The United States has lost about 90% of its food animal veterinarians since the 1940s, according to a 2023 Johns Hopkins study. But it is challenging to get a handle on specific needs within the state, White said. About 2,500 licensed vets practice in Kansas, a number that has been steady for a few years, according to a survey published last year by the Farm Journal Foundation and the Kansas Department of Agriculture. The difficulty is tracking specific areas in Kansas that have veterinary shortages and in what practice areas those shortages are occurring, White said. Veterinarians may have mixed animal practices, meaning they care for large and companion animals, or they may specialize, he said.
Read more: Hays Daily News
