In my 47th year of practice, I have seniority almost everywhere I go—at least in my professional life. That wasn’t always true, of course. In the beginning, my business acquaintances were all older than me, which I found very helpful. I had a great deal of respect for those who preceded me, and I owe much of my opportunities for success to them.
Since I graduated, much has changed. Today, there’s a shortage of food animal veterinarians in training. Ninety percent of veterinarians in training are women. Although their admission to these programs is long overdue, that number is astounding. Will they want to carry on the food animal practice, which can be very challenging physically?
There is the economic side, too. I would never have been able to economically justify food animal practice based on farm calls and examination fees. In the old days, we used chute work, drug sales, and hog cholera vaccination to subsidize the practice end of the business. Today, drug margins are reduced, and integrated swine operations have their own veterinarians on staff. In the meantime, a companion animal vet will generate substantially more income without leaving the office than a food animal practitioner generates.
I see new graduates who have concentrated their studies in specific areas and are not well-equipped for general practice. Furthermore, many of them graduate with what football coach Lou Holtz would have called an “entitlement mindset.”
There are some bright spots, though. Dr. John Thompson, Dean at Iowa State University, is trying to make a difference. I am also aware of faculty members who are making similar efforts at the University of Minnesota. The road is not easy because to be successful, you have to win over a tenured, bureaucratic staff who will not readily accept change.
I predict the food animal practitioner of tomorrow will be a production veterinarian who strikes a compromise between science and agribusiness. Our practice has always been production-oriented because we believed that was the future.
Today, the Pipestone System is a group of agribusinesses owned by farmers, veterinarians, and key employees. Our veterinary practice is one of those businesses. We manage and control these businesses as agribusiness persons who happen to be veterinarians.
We have always responded to change. We find change challenging and exciting. Within this framework, having seniority has been very rewarding and satisfying. |
