Number of veterinarians

IBISWorld forecasts the number of veterinarians to increase by 3.5% in 2023-24, to 15,042. Trends in working from home and hybrid workplaces, coupled with the desire to make life more joyful post-pandemic, have increased the number of households with pets. Additionally, there has been a consumer shift regarding pets as family members rather than just companion animals. Subsequently, demand for veterinary services has climbed. Even so, there has been a national veterinarian shortage in recent years years as demand for veterinarians outstrips supply, putting additional strain on those still working in the industry. A limited number of universities that provide relevant student courses has contributed to this trend, constraining the number of graduates entering the profession.

Australia reports one of the world's highest rates of pet ownership, with nearly 70% of households owning a pet. For this reason, growth in the number of households over the past five years has contributed to a rise in pet ownership. Given the high rate of pet ownership per household, this is likely to increase the number of pets requiring treatment, boosting the number of veterinarians over the period. Australia's livestock industries endured difficult circumstances, as drought conditions over the two years through 2019-20 raised the cost of maintaining heard sizes, forcing them to decrease heard sizes. Even so, heavier rainfall in more recent years has prompted farmers to undertake herd rebuilding activities, placing upward pressure on the growth in the number of veterinarians.

The share of female workers in this profession has grown strongly since the 1970s and now represents over 65% of all veterinarians. Driving this shift has been the changing fundamental composition of the veterinary sector. The focus has shifted from working with cattle, traditionally undertaken by male employees working in rural locations, to servicing the urban household market and working mainly with cats and dogs. These types of practices have grown to account for over half of services in the Veterinary Services industry. Veterinarians require significant university training to perform the variety of specialised tasks required, including administering and prescribing drugs, performing surgery, and advising clients on animal health, nutrition and care. Addressing veterinary shortages is challenging, as expanding the existing group requires importing vets, which yields its own accreditation complexities.To address the issue of veterinary shortages, it is difficult to enlarge the cohort without importing vets, which have their own accreditation challenges There are only seven tertiary institutions in Australia that teach veterinary science. Therefore, limitations in the number of schools that provide veterinary study have restricted graduates from entering the profession. Additionally, the degrees are costly due to the requirement for farms to have a large variety of animals to examine and a vast array of specialist equipment to train on. Overall, IBISWorld forecasts the number of veterinarians to expand at a compound annual rate of 2.7% over the five years through 2023-24.