The American Veterinary Medical Association or AVMA -Whom Do They Represent?

Unfortunately, your pet’s best interest and yours rank near the bottom of The American Veterinary Medical Association’s priorities. Many folks do not realize that the AVMA is a union, no better and no worse than any employees union. It’s primary job is to look out for its veterinary member’s financial interests – at least those veterinarians that rank at the top of the AVMA’s internal hierarchy. The AVMA’s reported revenues in 2023 were $60,775,642. But that revenue underestimates the additional pork that these organizations receive in roundabout ways. The money is primarily derived from special interest commercial groups like pharmaceutical companies, convention exhibitor fees, and paid for advertisements for unproven products appearing in their journals. There is little to no transparency as to the financial drivers of its policy decisions.

Through the AVMA’s Animal “Welfare” Committee, it make recommendations – such as the AVMA Guidelines on spay/neuter that gloss over the vast amount of negative findings of research on early-age neutering published in their own journal. They are hush hush to the dangers of overly large vaccine doses for small breed pets. They are dead set against alowing a veterinary nurse practitioner degree being offered. One does not need to be a rocket scientist or have a 6-8 year college degree to skillfully spay a dog or a cat. The pet overpopulation problem and cruelty will never be solved without the creation of veterinary nurse practitioners or something similar and the AVMA knows that. (see (JAVMA,261(9)1285)

The AVMA does not lose gracefully. It vigorously lobbied against California legislature’s Assembly Bill 1399 regarding veterinary telemedicine. All California humane societies and most California pet owners were supported that change. According to OpenSecrets, the AVMA spent close to 1.2 million dollars in 2022 on its Washington lobbying efforts on behalf of veterinarians, not pets. How much they spent on lobbying for themselves at the state level is not reveled. Their 2022 executive compensation  according to ProPublica was $3,144,258, the salary of their chief governmental relations officer was $350,318 and the salary of their chief Washington lobbyist in 2022 was $359,733 + $47,003. Top executive compensation was $3,144,258. The AVMA is known for its top-level employee largess – three times the number of high earners as the AMA.