By Estella Rosebush, Reporter
The New Brunswick government is addressing the future of veterinary services in the province.
According to the Department of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour (PETL) and Agriculture, Aquaculture and Fisheries (AAF), the departments conducted a feasibility study and said the province will maintain responsibility for provincial veterinary and foreign animal disease laboratory services, while large-animal veterinary care will be transitioned to the private sector.
“New Brunswick aligns with most other provinces in Canada in terms of management, oversight and support for animal health and welfare for the agriculture sector,” Pat Finnigan, Minister of AAF, said in the release.
To carry this shift Carleton AgriSolutions Inc. will assume delivery of large-animal services next year across the province through an agreement with New Brunswick-based veterinarians. The Hartland-based company already serves farms in New Brunswick.
“Producers have told us that timely access to veterinary care for their animals is a significant concern, especially in rural, and remote areas,” Finnigan said.
To support the transition, the provincial government said it will invest up to $1.2 million into the Veterinary Services Assistance Program. This program will aim to support travel costs for eligible food and fur producers especially in rural areas and is expected to roll out on April 1, 2027.
The release said two additional programs aim to increase recruitment, retention, and professional development for veterinarians, including the Food Production Veterinary Training Support Program and the Food Production Veterinarian Tuition Reimbursement Program.
Despite these intended supports, concerns about the shift in veterinary responsibility have been raised in the wake of the original announcement. In March, Dr. Melanie Eagan told The Courier that governmental cuts could leave large-animal owners without access to veterinary care.
“And most (if not all) of the large-animal vets who are in private practice are not taking on new clients,” Dr. Eagan said, speaking to The Courier. “So, if you have large animals and there’s an emergency, there is no one to help.”
She noted that a lack of attention to large animals can be detrimental, citing “difficult births, broken legs, horses with colic, bad infections, bad lacerations, infected, broken teeth, diseases. No veterinary care for any of these things will lead to suffering and death.”
Her concerns stood in contrast to the government’s position at the time. “The costs of delivering these services are significant to the taxpayers of New Brunswick,” Finnigan said in the release.
The province plans to meet regularly with provincial veterinarians to assist in the transitional phase.
