The most in-demand veterinary skills of the next decade

With technology moving at an exceptional pace, it’s hard to imagine what the world might look like in ten years. Which veterinary skills will be in high demand, and which will have fallen by the wayside? And how can vets, nurses, and students future-proof their careers? 

Although the current buzzword is Artificial Intelligence (AI), and there’s no doubt it will change the trajectory of many veterinary careers, it’s not the only trend that’s going to impact future vets and nurses. Climate change and pet movement will bring new diseases, breeding practices and human whims will change the conditions pets face, and new technologies will change what information and treatments we – and our clients – have access to.  

Skills and knowledge that will be in high demand 

There are some age-old skills that are so far off being replaced by technology that we can be confident they’ll be in high demand in ten years. Skills that are highly practical – like surgery, ultrasonography, and dentistry – are likely to be needed for a long time yet. Other skills are so new that they’re barely coming over the horizon. 

Surgery 

Even with the rise in endosurgery and the addition of robotics in human medicine, surgeons are going to be in high demand for some time yet. It’s not just the physical effort of the operation, which requires fine motor skills, it’s also the difficulty of teaching robots to recognise slight differences between individuals – like a thinner cortical bone than expected – come up with a suitable plan, and to react quickly when something changes mid-op.  

That’s not to say surgery won’t look very different in 10 years – AI and technology will definitely have an impact. It’s likely that AI will help plan surgeries in the near future, and it could even act as a second pair of eyes during an operation, checking for signs of devitalised tissue or cancerous changes in real-time and flagging them to the vet for further investigation.  

To be an in-demand veterinary surgeon in 2035 and beyond, you’ll need to use your CPD to keep up to date with developments and cultivate the soft skills mentioned below. 

Ultrasonography 

Like surgery, ultrasonography has a strong practical component. Although AI might be able to spot patterns in any recorded images or videos, interpretation is difficult without knowing the exact location of the probe, making ultrasonography one of the diagnostic imaging skills most resistant to AI takeover. 

There will be changes though. The rise of Virtual Reality (VR) will improve ultrasonography training, and it’s likely that AI will help to calculate measurements or even help vets adjust technique on-the-fly. In future, robotics might take over – but it’s bound to be more than 10 years away. 

Dentistry 

With a strong surgical aspect, dentistry is also resistant to technological changes. With periodontal disease being the most common condition in dogs and cats today, it’s likely that the need for skilled veterinary dentists will only increase.  

With technology advancing rapidly, new treatments will become available. We might see 3D printing of replacement teeth and microbiome-altering treatments starting to become commonplace. And, as pet parents come to expect higher quality care, it’s likely that more practices will need to offer treatments beyond just surgical extraction – will we see root canal therapies and other ‘specialist’ procedures become more widely available?  

Vets and nurses wanting to future-proof their careers could do worse than specialise in dentistry, especially if they can cultivate good communication skills and other soft skills essential to the client-vet relationship. 

Emergency medicine 

Although AIs might beat humans when it comes to response speed, they have no situational awareness, they can’t care for and communicate with the pet owner, and they can’t carry out life-saving procedures. Vets and nurses alike will always be needed in emergency situations, no matter how good AI gets. 

Of course, new technology will help – wearable tech may help with monitoring, while AI can help with triage and choosing diagnostic tests, as well as synthesising or returning reports from any wearable monitors. Emergency and critical care vets and nurses of the future will have huge amounts of information at their disposal – knowing what’s important and what isn’t in each unique situation will be essential. Professionals wanting to excel in this space will want to work on situational awareness, compassion, communication, and ethics to complement the technology that’ll help them. 

Genetic counselling and therapies 

Genetic testing in pets is becoming more and more popular, with at-home DNA kits claiming to recognise breeds in a mix, genetic disease risks, and more. The results, however, can be confusing. If a dog has a mutation in a gene, what’s the risk of clinical disease? Vets are already facing this issue, but as the technology develops it’s bound to become a larger part of a vet’s day. And how will the rise of gene editing affect these patients?

Since 2023, editing genomes of animals has been allowed by law in the UK – and although most are worried about its impacts in agriculture and sport, small animal vets should be prepared to handle everything from breeders attempting to breed a new coat colour to owners of dogs with genetic problems looking for gene therapy. In 2035, there may be a whole new speciality for veterinary professionals.  

Nutrition and microbiome medicine 

Another rapidly expanding area of medicine is in the microbiome, where research is showing wide-ranging impacts across body systems. As science further reveals what’s gone wrong, and how to put it right, vets will need to keep up with new diagnostic tools and therapies. While microbiome medicine currently just sits under ‘medicine’, I think it could become its own area of expertise as personalised microbiome treatments become a thing.

Stem cell therapies and regenerative medicine 

Another rapidly expanding area of research is into regenerative medicine. Although stem cells have held promise for a couple of decades now, the technology is only just catching up. While regenerative medicine is mainly used for osteoarthritis and is a complementary therapy to many vets, it’s likely to only increase in use case and availability as research continues. There are already some specialist centres in the UK dedicated to regenerative medicine for pets – and it’s a trajectory that’s likely to continue. 

‘Soft’ veterinary skills that will be in high demand 

Critical analysis 

With AI playing a bigger part in the lives of vets and pet owners, critical analysis is going to be an increasingly important skill for vets to have. The ability to sort fact from fiction, when presented with excellent – but ultimately false – AI drivel, is going to be essential for tomorrow’s vets.  

If you fancy testing your analysis skills, we’ve got a sample of the ‘human vs AI’ activity held within our Small Animal Medicine and Soft Tissue Surgery certificate courses. You can find the sample here.

Communication 

Communication skills have always been important for vets, but in a world increasingly lead by technology, it’s likely that these skills will be more important than ever. In ten years’ time, pet owners will have even more access to information, with Gen-AI providing likely-sounding answers to every potential problem in a way they can understand – so vets will be needing to explain, defend, and adjust their suggested plans, all without upsetting clients. Getting people ‘on board’ and trusting you will be essential, and a lot of that comes down to old-fashioned people skills. Vets who want to do well in ten years would do well to start learning and practicing these skills now.

We've rolled out communications training into our surgical and medicine certificate courses, to help vets grow this important area of practice!

Veterinary skills that will likely trend down 

Of course, there are some skills that we older vets have learned that will likely become less and less relevant as time goes on.  

Pathology and film reading 

AI is very good at pattern recognition, and has been demonstrated in many studies to be reasonably competent at both film reading and pathology (Neal, 2025). In ten years, the need for pathologists will be even lower than it is currently. That said, people who are passionate about this area will no doubt be able to oversee AIs, check their work, or even work in training AI models. 

Triage 

Triage is also something AI can do pretty well already, and it isn’t hard to imagine voice AI providing an initial triage service to all veterinary practices. While many find the idea of speaking to a machine scary, AI will likely be so good in ten years that clients won’t know they’re speaking to a machine. And, with its ability to follow rules and algorithms, but also to make exceptions or ask clarifying questions, it’s likely it’ll be at least as good as a trained receptionist, and possibly better. 

Conclusion 

Where will you be in ten years? And how will you get there? If you're early in your veterinary career, or have several areas of interests, it might be worth considering how technology will likely change your day-to-day. Our CPD & Career Hub is the perfect place to explore veterinary careers and work out how to get where you want to go.

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