Nebraska launched a program aimed at attracting veterinarians to rural, production-animal practices more than a year ago.
So far, only two of the 13 available grants have been awarded.
Nationally, the number of food animal veterinarians has dropped 90% since World War II, according to a 2023 report by the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future. This has left less than 2% of veterinarians today working exclusively with food animals.
In Nebraska, a 2024 survey by the Nebraska Veterinary Medical Association, which drew 205 responses, found that a significant share of practices in the state reported needing additional veterinarians — particularly for livestock — and many respondents said they expect to retire within the next five to 10 years.
Nebraska has two programs aimed at addressing that gap. A state grant aims to attract veterinarians across the nation who are willing to practice in Nebraska’s rural areas, and a University of Nebraska-Lincoln scholarship pipeline aims to recruit incoming freshman.
The Nebraska Production Animal Rural Veterinarian Grant Program, run by the Nebraska Department of Labor, offers $150,000 grants to recent veterinary school graduates or new practicing veterinarians who commit to working in rural Nebraska — defined as any county with fewer than 40,000 people — for at least eight years. Recipients must work in a practice that dedicates at least 80% of its hours to production animals, and the grant isn't paid out until all eight years are completed.
Katie Thurber, commissioner of the Nebraska Department of Labor, said the program was designed to work alongside an earlier initiative — the Nebraska Elite 11 Veterinarian Program, which began two years ago and covers full tuition through veterinary school for 11 Nebraska students in each graduating class in exchange for an eight-year commitment to rural production-animal practice.
"This was designed to fill that gap while we are running [Elite 11] participants through their schooling programs," Thurber said. "I think that part is really neat — the immediate return on investment. We've grown by two, which isn't fully solving the gap, but it is highlighting that Nebraska's prioritizing this area."
Thurber said the grant program's goal is to award three to five grants per year. So far, two have been awarded, two more applications are pending, and 10 other applicants didn't meet the program's qualifications.
"I think it was always intended to award in a – slower growth, by design," Thurber said. "A lot of the first year was the timing. So, we didn't tie it in advance enough to graduation. People had plans for where they were going."
The Department of Labor is now working with veterinary programs across the country to market the Nebraska grant earlier, so veterinary medicine students are aware of the opportunity when they start vet school.
"We are working closely in partnership with the University of Nebraska, but also with all of the vet programs across the country to try and make sure that everyone is aware of this opportunity and that we are marketing it as they're starting in veterinary school, so that they consider Nebraska day one," Thurber said.
The Elite 11 pipeline
Thomas Burkey, interim dean of UNL's College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, said the need for the Elite 11 program comes down to the scale of Nebraska's livestock industry.
"The livestock industry in Nebraska is driven by more than $20 billion in cash receipts, and that was in 2024," Burkey said. "That highlights the importance of veterinary services to the state."
While Burkey said most of the data on Nebraska's shortage is anecdotal, conversations with veterinarians across the state point to a shrinking workforce and little interest from new graduates.
"Visiting with the veterinarians within the state of Nebraska, they indicate that there's a dwindling number," Burkey said. "It's harder to find students that are coming with the doctor of veterinary medicine degree that are interested in taking over practices in rural areas."
The program has enrolled three cohorts of 20 students since 2024, with about 60 students entering the pipeline by fall 2026. From each cohort, 11 students are ultimately selected as the “Elite 11” to receive full tuition through veterinary school. Burkey said the program's first cohort will be juniors this fall, meaning the earliest graduates are still several years away from entering practice.
He said the combination of programs may be enough to address the shortage. But with a years-long wait for students completing their degrees, he said it's too early to tell.
“I think this will move the needle... but at this point, I think it's a little bit too early to draw a line whether that is actually going to happen or not,” Burkey said. “But I think things are looking good based on the interest that we have in the Elite 11 program.”