I think we can agree, inside and outside of the veterinary profession, everyone involved in veterinary medicine has both the opportunity and responsibility to look after both the physical and emotional well-being of animals. After all, I would be shocked to find someone who pursued a career in veterinary medicine to make life worse for animals.

That said, does the profession also have an obligation to look after the well-being of people?

I’m not talking about the routine, commonly accepted mission to protect the practice team, pet parents, and livestock producers from harm. We do not want to see anyone injured by a dog bite or a kick from a fractious horse. Again, that we can easily agree on. I’m talking about human rights, diversity, and equal opportunity.

The world out there

I’m a farm kid from rural Idaho. My graduating class had only 23 kids. Our community was our world. Upon graduating from high school in the early ’70s, most stayed in our town. A few began an adult life outside of our region. Some went to a far-flung university in Idaho, but I recall only one going out of state.

On my recent 50^th class reunion, I did not find anyone who lived in another country, let alone on another continent. At the time (and still mostly today outside the largest urban areas, such as Boise), Idaho was as white as homogenized milk. Seventy percent of Southern Idaho was Latter-day Saints, and as a child, I never encountered someone I knew to be Jewish or Muslim. There were, and still mostly are, low levels of diversity.

According to the United Nations, human rights are inherent to all human beings regardless of race, sex, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, or any other status. These include the right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery and torture, freedom of opinion and expression, the right to work and education, and many more. Everyone is entitled to these rights without discrimination. The first 10 amendments to the United States Constitution are the U.S. Bill of Rights. The second paragraph of the first article in the Declaration of Independence contains the phrase, “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

I see all sorts of violations of human rights, not only in my global travels, but in my hometown of Bonners Ferry. I have witnessed antisemitic actions since the start of the Oct. 7 war between Israel and Hamas, physical attacks on members of the LGBTQ+ and the minority (someone spit on a Latino man in our local grocery store), and the tearing down political signs/banners because of disagreements in religious beliefs.

While we have made a lot of progress as a country, when I travel to the South in the U.S., I often witness racism just under the surface. In my own neck of the woods, I see the Mexican community, who do much of the manual labor, such as picking the many thousands of acres of hops raised in Boundary County, being treated as second class human beings.

Don’t get me started on equal opportunity, a cause I’m most personally passionate about and proactive on. Growing up in Twin Falls County, the potato country in Southern Idaho:

1. Only the man of the household’s name was in the phonebook: R.J. Becker, not R.J. & Virginia Becker.
2. All of the political offices, mayor, city councilman, county commissioners, state legislature, governor, U.S. House and Senate members, and President, were men, and still mostly are. While things are better, they are still wildly out of balance.
3. The managers, department heads, CEOs, COOs and founders of companies were, again, all male. While we have made progress, I have not witnessed equal opportunity anywhere in the world (Ireland is the closest), and do I even need to bring up equal pay?

The relevance to vet med

Veterinary medicine needs to do a much better job at being a powerful force for human rights, diversity, and equal opportunity. We talk a lot about the importance of diversity, but you just must visit veterinary schools, as I do, to see we are failing miserably. Regarding equal opportunity, I believe we are better than many professions, but need to do much, much more.

Let’s agree to put aside the issue of Creation for the sake of this discussion. Let me just suggest we consider Homo sapiens just another animal, and look at the sacred oath we take:

I solemnly swear to use my scientific knowledge and skills for the benefit of society, through the protection of animal health and welfare, the prevention and relief of animal suffering, the conservation of animal resources, the protection of public health and the advancement of medical knowledge.

Originally adopted in 1954 (my birth year), the Veterinarian’s Oath was revised in 1969 to add the phrases, “the promotion of public health, and the advancement of medical knowledge,” and remove a pledge to “temper pain with anesthesia where indicated” and one not to use professional knowledge “contrary to the laws of humanity.”

Here’s my question: Our oath speaks to using our skills for the benefit of society, the protection of public health, and used to speak to the laws of humanity. Should we be speaking out and doing more regarding human health in general, and human rights, diversity, and equal opportunity specifically? Should we use the reservoir of respect and trust we have as a profession to push back against discrimination, hatred, and abuse?

I have been surprised and saddened to see the collective lack of our profession in general, and individuals specifically, in speaking out against the evil forces that threaten our democracy and “We the People” at home, and the global horrors the daily news is full of.

Even if the suffering of your fellow humans isn’t enough, consider this: Humanitarian disasters are equally disastrous for animals. Just look at Ukraine, Syria, Palestine, and Israel. From pets to livestock to wildlife, animals suffer when our lands are torn by violence.

When marginalized communities have no veterinary practices, companion animals suffer. When lack of access to housing causes homelessness for people, animals suffer. When economic hardship means vet care is unaffordable, animals suffer.

When animals suffer, so do their humans, in a vicious cycle of displacement and heartbreak. Shouldn’t we speak out about that? Don’t we owe it to the people and animals we serve every day? I think we do. Please lift your voice and be heard.

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Marty Becker, DVM, writes regularly for Veterinary Practice News. Dr. Becker is a Sandpoint, ID, practitioner, and founder of the Fear Free initiative. For more information about the organization or to register for certification, go to the Fear Free  official website.  Columnists’ opinions do not necessarily reflect those of Veterinary Practice News.