Province asks Dal to consider offering doctor of veterinary medicine program

The Nova Scotia government has asked Dalhousie University to consider starting a doctor of veterinary medicine program at the school's agricultural campus in Truro, N.S.

The suggestion was made in Dalhousie's new funding agreement with the Department of Advanced Education, which outlines the stipulations attached to Dalhousie's government funding, as well as strategic goals for the future.

The department declined an interview, instead sending a statement that said the idea of the new program is "very early in the assessment process and is being evaluated as an option to help increase the capacity to train veterinarians in Nova Scotia to address the growing labour market need."

"Veterinarians play a pivotal role in the local agriculture industry, supporting public health, the environment, food security and safety. And Nova Scotia needs more veterinarians," reads the statement.

An element of particular interest is the increasing need for large animal veterinarians, the funding agreement said.

Dalhousie also declined an interview with CBC News. In a statement, the university said it was pleased to receive the request from the department and noted "the alignment and opportunity to build on existing infrastructure and capacity at our agriculture campus."

"We recognize the importance of veterinary education and animal health to the region and will continue to explore this possibility in collaboration with our government partners," Dalhousie's statement reads.

Closest program is in P.E.I.

Nova Scotia does not currently have a DVM program, although both Dalhousie and Université Sainte-Anne offer pre-veterinary studies. The closest DVM program to Nova Scotia is at the University of Prince Edward Island's Atlantic Veterinary College, and it is the only such program in Atlantic Canada.

The Nova Scotia government funds seats at UPEI for Nova Scotians who want to become veterinarians, and in fall 2024 increased funding to support 24 seats, up from 16 seats.

The province's five-year agreement with the Atlantic Veterinary College requires Nova Scotians admitted to the program to do at least six weeks of their clinical rotation in Nova Scotia in their final year of study. Graduates are also required to provide three years of service in Nova Scotia when they are licensed.

Nova Scotia has had a funding agreement with the college since 1983. The current five-year, $50.8-million agreement includes the cost of the seats for Nova Scotia students, as well as some funding for capital improvements.

"We've had a positive partnership with the University of Prince Edward Island for many years and are looking to continue that for many more," the department said.

A spokesperson for the college said they had not heard about the potential for a new program in Nova Scotia. The college declined an interview about how a potential new program would affect it.

Need for veterinarians

Dr. Penny Richards, the Nova Scotia representative of the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association, says the province does need more veterinarians, especially in rural areas and for large animals.

But she says the time and cost it would take to start a new school are significant.

And, Richards says, the veterinarian shortage extends to professors and teachers.

"Most of the vet schools struggle to compete and keep staff, so even staffing another school would be a whole other issue," she says.

Richards says measures such as increasing the number of seats and implementing service agreements for new grads — as Nova Scotia has done — would make a difference faster.

The CVMA has asked the federal government to put more money into the testing of foreign veterinarians.

"There are veterinarians in many, many countries that would be really suited to work here that want to immigrate here, and we are just terribly bottlenecked with years of testing," Richards says.

Nova Scotia has approximately 500 veterinarians.