Veterinary professionals are central to animal welfare improvement across companion, farm, and wild animal sectors, with educational reforms expanding welfare science content and ethical frameworks in training programmes worldwide.
Veterinary education reform has significantly improved animal welfare outcomes by training clinicians to recognise and address pain, assess welfare systematically, and advocate for patients. However, significant gaps remain. Farm animal welfare assessment is underemphasised in many curricula compared to companion animal medicine. Ethical frameworks for dealing with client pressure to compromise animal welfare are inconsistently taught. The economic structure of veterinary practice, where clients pay for services, can create conflicts of interest that affect welfare decision-making. Veterinary wellbeing issues also affect the profession's capacity to advocate for animals.