Veterinary Services are increasingly female, but the gender gap is not fully closed yet

Over the past year, gender in the veterinary profession has become a prominent topic within WOAH. Side events – including one held during the 92nd General Session – have showcased Members’ strong commitment to joining the global conversation and advancing gender equality. 

Worldwide, veterinary medicine has experienced what many call ‘feminisation’, with women now representing roughly half of all practitioners and nearly 80% of veterinary students. This rapid shift has brought renewed focus to issues such as leadership representation, workforce sustainability and the future of Veterinary Services. At the same time, declining numbers of men entering the profession raise questions about diversity and the sector’s ability to meet essential functions over the long term. 

But breaking the cycle isn’t enough. While more women are now entering veterinary schools and joining the profession, the trend does not automatically translate into fair representation across leadership roles, field assignments, pay or decision-making authority. In fact, structural inequalities persist. Leadership positions, practice ownership and field roles are still disproportionately taken up by men. By contrast, women are often concentrated in laboratory, pet-care, administrative or support functions, where influence and authority are relatively limited. To compound the challenge, the veterinary pay gap remains stubbornly real. Women veterinarians are still paid less than men, especially among new graduates and top earners – a pattern driven by outdated workplace structures and deep-rooted gender stereotypes. 

Declining male participation in the workforce adds a unique layer of complexity, reshaping how the profession operates. According to recent data, every 1% increase in women in a veterinary college student body, approximately 1.7 fewer men apply the following year. While the causes remain to be clarified, the implications are nothing short of obvious: chronic shortages in rural and physically demanding roles in the field, where women face limitations due to safety concerns and are offered poor benefits. 

“We’ve got entire industries, professions, and workforces that were designed by men,” comments E. Scott Osborne, President of “Through Women’s Eyes”. “Whether it be the physical environment, the corporate hierarchy, the times they work, the way people advance, the criteria they’re promoted on – it was all designed by men. Until literally the last half century, men created systems to meet the needs, goals, priorities, and schedules of men, often during a time when many had a wife who did not work outside the home. We now live in a world where many women are in the labour force, but those systems have largely remained unchanged.” 

In other words, growing female participation also highlights the system’s failure to adapt to changes in the workforce. Without addressing structural and cultural barriers, the combined effect of “feminisation” and declining male enrolment risks producing the outright opposite outcome: weakening service coverage and disrupting the continuity of essential veterinary functions.

Emerging priorities for gender equality 

WOAH has engaged with Members during recent institutional events to identify their priorities related to workforce feminisation and to inform how a future organisational gender strategy could help drive change.

Key challenges identified include: 

In light of these challenges, Members have overwhelmingly expressed a desire for WOAH to actively support gender-responsive strategies that make the community more inclusive. They also want WOAH to collect and analyse workforce data and provide guidance on using these insights to shape policies that are equitable and sustainable. 

Looking ahead: a shared vision for gender-responsive Veterinary Services

Recent gender assessment studies in Africa and Asia and the Pacific commissioned by WOAH have shed light on underrepresented female leadership and imbalanced distribution of field assignments.  

Findings also show that organisational culture, access to training and supportive leadership are critical to shaping gender-responsive workforce policies in the sector – from targeted leadership development programs to quota systems that ensure balanced representation. 

While these assessments provide useful information, they also reveal a gap: Veterinary Services need a stronger culture of using data to guide workforce policies. Systematically collecting, analysing and applying evidence is a missing piece that can help close the final gap and achieve sustainable gender equality. This analytical, data-driven approach is reinforced in the recommendations from the Africa Continental Conference on Veterinary Workforce Development.  

But when it comes to collecting actionable data, the Veterinary Services aren’t alone. In fact, veterinary schools can be valuable partners in pursuing this task.  Gender-disaggregated data from across schools can help understand how gender norms, expectations and perceptions of the profession shape students’ choices before they even enter the workforce. This is especially important as veterinary studies record falling of male enrolments, likely influenced by career prospects, remuneration and societal norms that link animal care with nurturing roles women are traditionally assigned to. 

One thing is clearer than ever: strengthening analytical capacity is not just a technical requirement, but a strategic investment that gives policymakers the information they need to advance progress within the animal health sector. 

As the veterinary profession becomes increasingly female, understanding the full nuance of this change is essential. It raises important questions about the future of the field: How do workplace structures distribute opportunity and allow for equitable leadership? Could the decline in male applicants be contributing to workforce shortages in remote areas, where women are still underrepresented? And how are shifting gender dynamics influencing professional identity, career aspiration, and the overall appeal of veterinary work?

Exploring these questions through an analytical approach grounded in data allows WOAH and its Members to move beyond numerical trends and understand the mechanisms underlying workforce organisation, distribution, and resilience.

With this complexity taken into account, WOAH and its Members are working together to build Veterinary Services that are equitable, future-proof, and better positioned to protect animal and public health. WOAH is committed to using insights collected through Member consultations and gender assessment studies to inform a comprehensive gender strategy that elevates promising practices, strengthens global evidence, and ensures that the veterinary profession remains vibrant, inclusive and attractive for all.