What to Teach in Small Animal Veterinary Orthopedics: A Survey of Practicing Veterinarians to Inform Curriculum Development.

This article focuses on identifying core competencies for small animal veterinary orthopedics to inform competency-based veterinary education (CBVE) curricula. Through a survey of 721 predominantly first-opinion small animal veterinarians, the study found that the most common orthopedic conditions encountered were generalized osteoarthritis, patellar luxation, cranial cruciate ligament disease, hip dysplasia/arthritis, and muscle/tendon injuries. Respondents recommended that an ideal orthopedic curriculum allocate the greatest emphasis to orthopedic examination and non-surgical orthopedic knowledge (20% each), followed by non-surgical skills, orthopedic imaging, and surgical knowledge (15% each), with less focus on surgical skills (10%) and advanced imaging (2%). The findings suggest veterinary curricula should prioritize diagnosis and non-surgical management of common orthopedic conditions, reserving advanced surgical training for specialists or elective courses, while considering practice environment factors such as access to referral hospitals.