05/20/2026
We truly think this needs to be looked at and changed as these vets are important to each and every one of us!🚨 What are other Canadian provinces doing to address livestock veterinary shortages? 🚨
Across Canada, governments are recognizing veterinary shortages as a threat to:
🐄 Livestock health
🍽️ Food security
🦠 Disease surveillance
🚨 Emergency response
🌾 Rural communities
🧪 Diagnostic capacity
👨👩👧👦 Public health
…and they are INVESTING in solutions.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s current plan is to phase out Provincial Veterinary Services over 3 years, including ending field veterinarian positions by March 2027.
Here’s what other provinces are doing:
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🇧🇨 British Columbia
💰 $1.4M Recruitment & Retention Program
💰 $300K Veterinary Student Placement Program
Supports:
✔️ Hiring bonuses
✔️ Herd health support
✔️ Recruitment expenses
✔️ Telemedicine
✔️ Student placements
✔️ Locum support
🔑 Focus: Recruitment • Retention • Rural access
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🇦🇱 Alberta
💰 $68.5M Veterinary Learning Commons
💰 $9.5M / 3 years Veterinary diagnostic lab support
💰 $250K Recruitment & retention pilot
🔑 Focus: Education • Diagnostics • Rural recruitment • Disease response
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🇴🇳 Ontario
💰 $14.7M over 2 years
Supporting:
✔️ Veterinary education
✔️ Increased training capacity
✔️ Rural & livestock shortages
💰 Up to $5M potential Veterinary Incentive Program
💰 $4M Livestock Veterinary Innovation Initiative
Supporting:
✔️ Telemedicine
✔️ Rural veterinary access
✔️ Workforce retention
🔑 Ontario’s approach: Building veterinary systems
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🇲🇧 Manitoba
💰 $134M+ over 5 years
➡️ Approx. $26.8M/year
Additional investments:
💰 $8.3M workforce development
💰 $2M Rural Veterinary Service Districts
💰 >$1M Northern & remote veterinary care
💰 ~$9.6–10.6M/year
Animal Health & Welfare budget
Supporting:
✔️ Diagnostics
✔️ Disease surveillance
✔️ Welfare enforcement
✔️ Preparedness
🔑 Manitoba’s approach: Investment & expansion
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🇳🇸 Nova Scotia
💰 ~$50.8M over 5 years
➡️ Approx. $10.16M/year
Supporting:
✔️ Veterinary education
✔️ Retention initiatives
✔️ Disease surveillance
✔️ Herd health programs
✔️ Emergency response
🔑 Nova Scotia’s approach: Investment & support
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🇸🇰 Saskatchewan
💰 $13.2M in 2024–25
Supporting:
✔️ Veterinary education
✔️ Rural recruitment
✔️ Workforce expansion
Expanded seats:
📈 20 → 25
Additional:
💰 $687K
Veterinary workforce development
💰 Up to $20K
Loan forgiveness
🔑 Saskatchewan’s approach: Building workforce capacity
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🇾🇹 Yukon
💰 Veterinary Services Program
➡️ Up to $1K per premises annually
Supporting:
✔️ Diagnostics
✔️ Consultations
✔️ Travel costs
✔️ Farm calls
Government-supported capacity also includes:
✔️ Disease surveillance
✔️ Emergency response
✔️ Biosecurity
✔️ Producer support
🔑 Yukon’s approach: Maintaining veterinary capacity
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🇶🇨 Quebec
💰 $101M investment
Supporting:
✔️ Veterinary infrastructure
✔️ Expanded education
✔️ Regional training
✔️ Public animal health
Added:
📈 25 veterinary seats
Increasing capacity to:
➡️ 121 veterinary students/year
🔑 Quebec’s approach: Major investment & expansion
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🇳🇱 Newfoundland & Labrador
Unlike most provinces, Newfoundland continues direct government-operated livestock veterinary services.
💰 ~$4.37M annual Animal Health budget (2024–25)
Supporting:
✔️ Government veterinary services
✔️ 24-hour emergency veterinary response
✔️ Veterinary pharmacy services
✔️ Disease surveillance
✔️ Diagnostics
✔️ Food safety programs
✔️ Animal welfare
✔️ Chief Veterinary Officer functions
✔️ Preparedness & outbreak response
Additional investment:
💰 $500K
Animal Health Laboratory equipment upgrades
Supporting:
✔️ Diagnostic testing
✔️ Food safety
✔️ Laboratory capacity
🔑 Key takeaway:
Newfoundland continues direct government investment in veterinary capacity, rather than eliminating services.
Interesting comparison:
➡️ Newfoundland maintains government veterinary services with annual spending in a similar range to the ~$4M shortfall cited in New Brunswick.
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🇳🇧 New Brunswick
Current plan:
❓ Phase out Provincial Veterinary Services over 3 years
❓ End field veterinarian positions by March 2027
Government has pointed to approximately:
❓ ~$4M shortfall
Yet across Canada, provinces are investing millions — and in some cases hundreds of millions — into veterinary systems.
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🔑 The argument is NOT that New Brunswick’s Provincial Veterinary Services are perfect.
The argument is:
✔️ The model has value
✔️ The infrastructure already exists
✔️ The expertise already exists
✔️ The veterinarians already exist
✔️ Stakeholders have repeatedly indicated willingness to pay increased fees to help bridge funding shortfalls
✔️ Stakeholders have indicated willingness to work collaboratively toward solutions
Because these services protect:
🐄 Livestock health
🥛 Food production
🦠 Disease surveillance
🚨 Emergency response
🌾 Rural communities
🧪 Diagnostics
🍽️ Food security
👨👩👧👦 Public health
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📢 The question becomes:
If stakeholders are willing to help bridge funding gaps…
If shortages of large-animal veterinarians already exist…
If experienced veterinarians are beginning to leave…
If other provinces are investing heavily to strengthen veterinary systems…
Why dismantle an existing model instead of improving it?
Perhaps the answer is:
➡️ Better management
➡️ Recruitment & retention strategies
➡️ Transparent planning
➡️ Genuine collaboration with stakeholders
➡️ Sustainable funding solutions
➡️ Modernizing how New Brunswick manages and supports Provincial Veterinary Services — not reducing veterinary capacity
⭐ Keep what works. Improve what doesn’t. Build for the future. ⭐
Because once veterinary capacity is lost, rebuilding it may cost far more than preserving it.
