Veterinarians are employed in so many different fields. There's zoological medicine, aquatic animal medicine, aerospace medicine, animal shelter medicine, teaching, and other professions.

Just like medical doctors, veterinarians wishing to become board-certified surgeons must complete additional schooling. This is a three-year residency program in which veterinarians must meet specific training requirements, perform research, have that research published in a medical journal, and complete a residency program. At the end of the residency, the veterinarians must pass a rigorous exam.

Veterinarians who specialize often earn higher salaries than those who don't. Also, the need for their specialty guarantees job security.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service employs veterinarians. Veterinarians can also work in a state agriculture department. These veterinarians work to prevent animal disease and to promote food safety by ensuring that animal food products are carefully monitored.

Veterinarians also work for state and federal regulatory agencies to quarantine and inspect animals to make sure no foreign diseases are brought into the country. They supervise interstate shipments of animals and test for disease. They work hard to eradicate diseases, such as rabies and tuberculosis, that can have troublesome effects on human and animal health.

In addition to overseeing the safety of our food supply, veterinarians work as epidemiologists in city, county, state, and federal agencies, investigating animal and human disease outbreaks. They also work to ensure the safety of our environment by studying the effects of pesticides, industrial pollutants, and other contaminants on humans. They can work at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well, studying the safety of food additives for human consumption.

The newest arena for veterinarians is with the Department of Homeland Security. Here they protect humans and animals by devising antiterrorism procedures.

Speaking of antiterrorism programs, the U.S. Army Veterinary Corps is developing programs to protect United States citizens against bioterrorism. These veterinarians are responsible for our food safety and biomedical research and development.

The U.S. Air Force also employs veterinarians, in its Biomedical Sciences Corps. These veterinarians work as public health officers managing communicable disease control programs. They are working to stop the spread of HIV, influenza, hepatitis, and other infectious diseases.