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Board debates models for animal chiropractic: direct access, veterinary agreement or continued collaboration
Summary
Board members discussed competing proposals for animal chiropractic — including direct access regulated by the chiropractic board, a practice‑agreement model administered by the Veterinary Medical Board, or collaborative oversight — and highlighted safety, availability in rural areas, and jurisdictional limits.
Board members spent an extended part of Thursday’s meeting weighing how California should regulate chiropractors who provide manual care to animals.
Staff outlined three emerging models: (1) direct access under the Board of Chiropractic Examiners’ oversight; (2) a ‘‘practice‑agreement’’ model similar to a physician‑assistant structure where a veterinarian registers an agreement with a chiropractic practitioner and the Veterinary Medical Board would assume primary regulatory oversight; and (3) continued collaborative arrangements between the two boards. The staff presentation cited two active bills in the Legislature and a history of out‑of‑state models for animal chiropractic.
Several board members said the chiropractic board should retain responsibility for regulating chiropractors even where they treat animals, with collaboration on clinical safeguards. "I think we just need to maintain an open collaborative aspect…but when it comes to our licenses…our board should maintain oversight of our licenses," one director said. Other members flagged practical constraints in many rural areas: as a director put it, "Access is not the issue, it's the availability," noting long wait lists in some counties for veterinary appointments.
Concerns focused on emergency preparedness and whether a practice‑agreement approach could shift undue burdens to veterinarians. Board members discussed options such as requiring that animals be seen by a veterinarian within a defined time frame before chiropractic care or setting minimum competency and didactic‑hour requirements for clinicians treating animals. Staff noted existing programs and training standards, saying current animal chiropractic coursework is about 240 hours and proponents are looking to raise that toward 300 hours with competency‑based elements.
No formal policy vote was taken. Staff said they would refine the board’s preferred principles and possible narrow statutory asks for inclusion in the sunset packet or future rulemaking. The board signaled openness to collaboration with the Veterinary Medical Board while emphasizing public‑safety protections and regulatory clarity.
