Australian veterinarians who work with horses: an analysis

To define and describe the population of Australian veterinarians who work with horses.

Questionnaires were mailed to 866 veterinarians who had been identified as working with horses, and 87% were completed and returned. Data were entered onto an Excel spreadsheet, and analysed using the SAS System for Windows.

About 12% of Australia's veterinarians were doing all the veterinary work with horses, and about 3% worked exclusively (> 90%) with horses, but did more than half (58%) of the horse work. Veterinarians working with horses included more males (80%) than the veterinary population as a whole (approximately 60%). Males had an average age of 47 years, females 35. Almost all (94%) worked in private practice, with 31% being employees, 28% partners and 41% sole owners. Females were more likely to be employees than males. Males reported working 55 hours/week; females 49. More females (44%) than males (16%) had worked less than full-time for more than a year. Males expected to work for another 12 years in full-time equivalents, and females for 16. One quarter (24%) saw only horses, but treated 58% of total horse cases. One-half had < 25% horses, and 29% had < 10% of horses in their caseloads. More of the older (54% of those aged > 60) than younger respondents (27% of those < 40) had grown up on farms with animals. One-quarter (24%) decided to become a veterinarian while in primary school, and females decided at a younger age than males. Overall, younger respondents decided at a younger age than did their older counterparts. A veterinarian contributed to the decision for 21% of these veterinarians.

In this survey, Australian veterinarians who work with horses were found to be typically male, and advanced in their careers. As these older veterinarians retire, there may not be enough veterinarians who are committed to and competent with horses to take their places.