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Committee weighs hiring full‑time veterinarian versus continuing $200K in contract services
Summary
Animal Care said locating a full‑time veterinarian is difficult; the department currently spends roughly $200,000 annually on contracted veterinary services and is evaluating whether moving some of those dollars into a salaried position would be cost‑effective. Commissioners raised concerns about competition with private practice and the scope of in‑house services.
Michelle Robertson told the committee that recruiting and retaining a full‑time veterinarian has been difficult statewide and that Animal Care is exploring shifting existing contract and professional‑technical dollars into a personnel line to hire one. Robertson said the department already contracts veterinarians for emergency work and that private clinics often decline shelter spay/neuter workloads.
"The contract, veterinar…
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