When most of us think of “military might,” we think of fighter jets and submarines, but we would be remiss to forget the four-legged animals that have helped locate bombs, transport messages or carry soldiers through nearly every military conflict. These military “tools,” like machines, need upkeep and maintenance—except it must be administered by veterinarians instead of mechanics.
Like more mainstream veterinary medicine, there are a plethora of options for specializing in vet med within the military. Army veterinarians can choose to focus on animal medicine, research and development, or veterinary public health. Each of these is vitally important to the protection of troops and the public.
Veterinarians working as animal care specialists get to treat everything from military working dogs to ceremonial horses stateside, and they assist with all sorts of Military Working Animals if deployed.
In addition, Army veterinarians participate in a variety of humanitarian missions to assist local communities with animal care.
From Amarillo to the Army
Born in Japan as the youngest child of a Naval officer father, Cris Young, DVM, MPH, Dipl. ACVPM, moved to Alvaton, Ky., when his father returned to his hometown upon his retirement. Young grew up with a focus on cattle; he didn’t get his first horse until he was 18. But from there, his passion for horses was off and running.
Having been raised in a military family and always showing an interest in the armed forces, Young’s parents had high hopes that he would become a military surgeon. However, his heart belonged to veterinary medicine.
He received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine, and upon graduation, moved to Amarillo, Texas, where he focused on cattle and “a little bit of horses,” he says.
Young had been out of school for five years when he began to consider a military career.
“I did it backward of how many people do it,” he says. Young was commissioned into the United States Army as a 29-year-old veterinarian in 1998. He was the only veterinarian commissioned that year as military manpower was being downsized under the Clinton administration.
The Role of an Army Veterinarian
Animals have been part of military operations since 1775; the U.S. Army Veterinary Corps was established to care for them in 1916. The Army is the only branch of military service that has veterinarians; it provides veterinarians to all other branches of service as needed.
In addition to caring for military animals, Army veterinarians are in charge of the inspection of food before it’s delivered to troops. The role of “veterinarian” has now expanded to include sanitary food inspectors and animal health specialists.
Army veterinarians can be direct commission officers (DCOs), meaning they’re civilians who have a professional degree and skills needed for a specific role in the military—in this case, veterinarians. The civilian then gets “hired” by the military to fill open positions that are integral to the military’s functioning.
A DCO doesn’t need to go through boot camp, but he or she will complete a Direct Commission Officer Basic Course, which covers things like military leadership, customs, military law, and Army values. Young notes that about 90 percent of military veterinarians had their DVM and then went into the Army Reserve, rather than going to veterinary school after being an enlisted soldier—though either is possible.
There are currently more than 700 veterinarians in the U.S. Army Veterinary Service in both Active duty and Reserve capacities. These veterinarians are tasked with providing care at the 19 duty locations in the United States to a significant number of horses, Young says.
These locations encompass places like United States Military Academy West Point; Arlington National Cemetery; Fort Rucker, Ala.; Fort Huachuca, Ariz.; Fort Hood, Texas; Fort Riley, Kan.; and Fort Irwin, Calif.
While veterinarians care for the horses there, they also care for myriad other animals, owned both by civilians and the military, Young explains.
“They’re not equine specialists—they’re Army veterinarians,” he says.
Requirements for a Military VeterinarianThink a role in the U.S. Army as a veterinarian may be the path for you? A military veterinarian must be: ◆ A U.S. citizen or permanent resident ◆ 21 to 42 years old ◆ A graduate of an American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) accredited school of veterinary medicine ◆ Be licensed to practice veterinary medicine in at least one state ◆ Medically and physically fit ◆ Eligible for Secret Security Clearance If a candidate checks all these boxes, they enter the U.S. Army as a Second Lieutenant Active Duty or the Army Reserves. Active Duty veterinarians can receive up to $40,000 for up to three years to apply toward their student loans. Veterinarians in the Army Reserves can receive up to $20,000 annually, with a maximum of $60,000 for loan repayment. Full, three-year scholarships are available for Active Duty soldiers enrolled in a veterinary college at an AVMA-accredited school. |
Marine Corps Crossover
Interestingly, the Marines have the largest contingent of military equids stateside, according to Young. The Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center near Bridgeport, Calif., teaches Special Operations Forces soldiers how to ride horses, load pack animals, and maintain animals for military work in remote and dangerous environments. The course is designed to teach Marines how to use pack and riding animals to transport people and supplies when air or ground support isn’t feasible.
Army veterinarians assigned to the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command teach soldiers about animal anatomy and care, and animal first aid. The soldiers also learn animal packing techniques, horsemanship, capability of different animals, and other relevant trainings.
The course is taught on horses and mules, but the principles taught can be applied to any pack animal, including the nine species the Marines use: camel, dog, donkey, elephant, horse, llama, mules, ox and even reindeer.
World Traveler
Now in his 26th year of service, Young has had some incredible experiences, both stateside and abroad.
“When I was a Captain stationed with Marines out in the Middle East, I took care of the Australian Special Forces pack animals that they bought there,” he says. “We worked on procuring the pack animals locally because of disease pressure and the risk of disease introduction into the local environment.”
Young has done a variety of tours; his favorite was the 15 months he spent working with a Special Operations command in South America helping small communities with their beef and dairy cooperatives.
“A lot of people don’t know we do humanitarian assistance and civil affairs,” he says. “I’m not a Special Ops soldier, but I got to work with Special Ops folks for those missions.”
Young has been to Afghanistan, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Kenya, Kuwait, Oman, Tanzania and Uganda—and more.
“I never had any idea when I went to vet school that this is where I would end up,” he says. “I’ve done trade missions to China and Mexico, I’ve walked across the Nile River at its source. I’ve done all sorts of crazy things.”
Financial Benefits
In addition to the amazing places he’s traveled, Young’s military career has helped support him financially, he says. He received money to help defray his student loan debt from veterinary school, in addition to drawing a salary. He also received good life insurance and health insurance.
“For a young practitioner who’s just getting started, the perks [of going into military service] are incredible,” Young says. “I was in my third year in the Army when I paid off my [vet school] loans. And we were getting paid $25,000 a year just for showing up. In the higher years of your service, it’s a part-time job that compensates you well—and you can work anywhere you want [with your full-time job].”
Just Say Yes
Now a Professor of Practice at Auburn University with an appointment to the College of Veterinary Medicine and an Adjunct Pathology Professor at the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine (among many other roles), Young is surrounded by vet med students.
“When I talk to my students, I tell them to say ‘yes’ a few times,” he says. “If they think, ‘I couldn’t do that job for a year,’ I remind them that you can do ANY job for a year. And if it takes sweat and dirt and lays the foundation for you to get to the next job, it’s worth it. The time goes by really quickly. Whatever it is you want to do, your debt and your attitude are what control your future.”
Now a Colonel in the U.S. Army Veterinary Reserves, Young credits the military with his ability to pay back his student loans in a hurry—and the opportunity to have incredible adventures in a life he never expected.
* The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement.
This article about veterinarians in the military appeared in the May 2024 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!
