A Closer Look at How Zoetis Promotes the Veterinary Profession

In the second article in a series on Our Six Social Responsibilities, we look at examples of how Zoetis promotes the veterinary profession.

Veterinary professionals are key customers for Zoetis around the world and play a critically important role in society as stewards of animal and public health. Zoetis is proud of our six-decade partnership with practicing professionals, students, organizations, and collaborations. Together, we help advance veterinary education, research and career development, and help elevate the profession in emerging markets.

Supporting the next generation of veterinary professionals

Zoetis and the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges announced the 315 winners of the 2017 Zoetis Veterinary Student Scholarship Program in March.  The program, which awards annual scholarships to second and third-year U.S. and Caribbean veterinary students to help offset the cost of education, is in its eighth year. Since 2010, nearly $6 million in scholarship funding has been awarded to more than 2,700 exceptional veterinary students.

The scholarships help veterinary students offset the costs of tuition, where they average veterinary student leaves school with more than $152,000 in debt¹.

Zoetis is also actively involved in supporting students outside of the U.S. by providing scholarships through the Chinese Veterinary Medical Association and academic mobility funding through the African Small Companion Animal Network (AFSCAN).

Zoetis Commitment to Veterinarians^TM

In the U.S., Zoetis continues to expand the Commitment to Veterinarians (C2V) program that supports current and future professionals in the industry.

“Commitment to Veterinarians is the platform where we connect with veterinary professionals as a trusted partner and support them through the unique challenges they face every day,” said Dr. Christine Jenkins, Chief U.S. Veterinary Medical Officer at Zoetis. “We intentionally focus our C2V content on unbranded, non-product related topics to help drive real conversations and advice for those who raise and care for animals.”

Veterinarians and industry professionals can engage with the C2V program online and through social media, where helpful tips, resources, and industry inspiration are shared on a regular basis.

Improving veterinary standards worldwide

Zoetis plays an important role in the long-term growth and success of the veterinary profession in geographies where it is established, and places where it is still emerging. In Africa, Zoetis is the co-founder of the African Small Companion Animal Network (AFSCAN) with the World Small Animal Veterinary Association Foundation (WSAVAF). AFSCAN’s focus is to advance the standards of small animal veterinary care across Africa.

Since the establishment of the organization in 2014, AFSCAN Ambassadors and Zoetis colleagues have been working together to create a sustainable network of companion animal veterinarians in Africa. Past initiatives have included the founding of many regional veterinary associations, creating a distance learning education program, and initiating academic funding and research programs relevant to small animals in the African continent.

In 2017, Zoetis is continuing to support new and existing AFSCAN initiatives under the leadership of Dr. Gabriel Varga, Regional Director, Sub-Saharan Africa at Zoetis.

“Africa is the world’s second largest continent, home to some of the world’s fastest growing countries that are unfortunately plagued by many dangerous diseases,” said Dr. Varga. “We’ve made tremendous progress advancing veterinary standards in the continent with AFSCAN over the past three years and continue to identify more opportunities to train and support small animal veterinarians in the region.”