Cross-sectional survey of rural and nonrural veterinarians indicates similarities in intent to stay or leave practice and differences in community attachment and satisfaction.

Objective: The primary objective was to identify veterinary workforce characteristics and factors contributing to staying in or leaving a veterinary practice. A secondary objective was to compare workforce characteristics and factors related to retention between survey respondents working in rural versus nonrural areas.

Methods: Veterinarians were surveyed via a questionnaire distributed with the use of a state veterinary medical association listserv or veterinary program alumni listserv from February 2022 to January 2023 and social media postings on X (formerly known as Twitter) and Facebook in April 2022.

Results: There were 2,195 respondents. Most respondents were in small animal practice (78%) in a nonrural environment (76%). Overall, 78% of respondents indicated intent to stay in their current practice, with no difference between veterinarians in rural versus nonrural practices. There was the perception of need for veterinarians both short-term (1 year) and long-term (10 years). Practitioners were generally satisfied with and connected to their communities. Rural practitioners more frequently reported work weeks of > 40 hours per week and a greater amount of time spent on call (weekdays and weekends). Nonrural practitioners were generally more satisfied with their community amenities, whereas rural practitioners were more attached to their communities.

Conclusions: Veterinarians perceive the need for additional practitioners in the workforce both short-term and long-term in all environments. Despite longer work hours reported in rural environments, intent to stay in or leave a practice did not differ between rural and nonrural veterinarians.

Clinical relevance: Veterinarians perceive a need for practitioners across species and scope of practice. Community attachment may be an important factor to leverage when considering training veterinary students and recruiting veterinary graduates into rural practice.