Perspectives on curriculum needs in laboratory-animal medicine

Both the United States and Canada have projected shortages of qualified laboratory-animal veterinarians within the next 10 years. This gap is occurring because of retirement, increased regulatory requirements for research animal oversight, and insufficient numbers of veterinarians entering this field. One of the primary means of increasing student interest in nontraditional practice areas, such as laboratory animal medicine, is to ensure that they have appropriate exposure to the topic during their basic clinical training. We outline a recommended curriculum for laboratory animal medicine for North American veterinary medical colleges, which provides strategies for integrating comparative medicine material into the curriculum, incorporates flexibility for a range of delivery methods, and suggests potential resources that may be used to develop this material.