The New Zealand Veterinary Council is keeping a closer eye on the country’s rural workforce to monitor the growing shortage of country vets.

Vet Council  Chairperson Dr. Ron Gibson says the huge expansion in South Island Dairy numbers has led to a disparity between the number of farm Animals and those who care for them. He says the new monitoring system is designed to better understand where attention needs to be focused in order to address the imbalance.

Dr. Gibson says despite a 30 percent increase in overall Vet numbers, as well as a scheme released by the government earlier this year to encourage rural practice, there’s still a shortage of vets working on farms.