Here's an update on shortage of rural veterinarians

A shortage of rural veterinarians is growing worse every year, and with no one to replace them, longtime rural vets are prevented from retiring, writes Susannah Jacob of The New York Times, picking up on a trend noted her previously. Most veterinary graduates want small-animal practices in urban areas, Jacob reports. The problem seems amplified in Texas, where eight areas that can span five counties were designated as "shortage areas" for vets last year. The national shortage has prompted the U.S. Department of Agriculture to start a program to repay student loans of vet-school graduates if they work in a rural area with a vet shortage.

Jacob reports there are many possible reasons why veterinary graduates don't want to locate to rural areas. Many think it's harder to make a living in rural areas, and grew up in urban or suburban areas where their relationship to animals "is rooted in the afternoons they volunteered in animal shelters rather than working with cattle," Jacob reports. Schedules in urban areas are also predictable, and the opportunity to make more money appeal more to graduates with no ties to rural areas. (Read more) Another reason, as we have previously reported, may be the increasing prevalence of women vets and their preference for small-animal practices.