In January, the Lethbridge Pet Hospital officially opened its doors.
Since then, clients have come to the clinic in droves, which should be a plus. However, the owner says there’s a problem.
“When we don’t have enough manpower, then we’re slow and we’re not open as many hours as we should be,” said Jacob Adserballe.
He says being a veterinarian is a rewarding experience and it’s a great time to become one, but few are coming to southern Alberta.
“The fact is that right now, as a veterinarian, you can go to any town, city, anywhere and get a job no problem.”
While he says he has a fantastic staff supporting him, he hasn’t been able to hire certain qualified positions, meaning he’s picking up the slack and dealing with long hours.
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“It’s very important to have your head on straight at all times when you’re dealing with life-matter things like making proper diagnoses, prescribing proper treatments, doing proper surgery.
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“You’ve got to be focused.”
Currently, Canada has five accredited veterinary schools:
In 2020, Alberta ended a five-decade-long partnership with the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon.
Prior to that, the WCVM accepted 78 veterinary students annually with Alberta, B.C. and Saskatchewan providing funds to support 20 seats each for students from their provinces, and Manitoba supporting 15.
Instead, the province began providing about $4.7 million a year to fund veterinary student seats at the University of Calgary’s veterinary program, which only accepts Alberta residents as students.
Vets across Canada have been speaking out about the shortage for years and in 2022, the school in Saskatchewan increased its program intake with the aim of growing veterinary services in Western Canada.
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Adserballe says he spoke with Lethbridge Polytechnic about them establishing a veterinary-related program as a means to fill vacancies in the regional labour market.
He says the idea would be similar to what the University of Lethbridge is planning with its upcoming Southern Alberta Medical Program, which is set to begin training new doctors in 2026.
“Local students would naturally apply and local students often end up staying local, especially if there is an agricultural connection.”
In a statement to Global News, Lethbridge Polytechnic confirmed they understand the concerns and are keeping their minds open to the idea.
“Lethbridge Polytechnic regularly engages with local industry and stakeholders to ensure our programs are relevant and align with labour market trends. Thanks to these partnerships, we are aware of the increasing demand for veterinarians in southern Alberta and the desire for a local veterinary-related training program.
“While we are unable to share additional details regarding these conversations, we remain committed to exploring the idea further as we work to develop and refine our programs to meet the evolving needs of our community.”
— With files from Karen Bartko, Global News
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
