The need for additional food animal veterinarians in rural southeast minnesota is a real and tangible problem asolder veterinarians retire and cattle operations continue to expand in size and…

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded $200,000 to Harmony Veterinary Clinic P.A. on September 1, 2026, under the Veterinary Services Grant Program (CFDA 10.336).

The clinic will hire a fourth large animal veterinarian and equip the position with a veterinary truck and vet-box insert. The award also funds replacement of three existing vet-box inserts, which are more than 30 years old and frequently require maintenance repairs that reduce service capacity. The clinic will purchase a portable hydraulic chute with tub and alley to provide safe cattle handling and processing facilities for current and prospective clients who lack working facilities on-site. These acquisitions aim to expand veterinary service availability in rural southeast Minnesota, where a shortage of large animal veterinarians has created gaps in access to care as older practitioners retire and cattle operations expand.

Performance occurs in Harmony, Minnesota, with a period of performance extending from September 1, 2026, to August 31, 2029. The award is structured as a Project Grant, a standard assistance type under VSGP for Rural Practice Enhancement activities designed to relieve veterinarian shortage situations and support veterinary services in rural areas.

The need for additional food animal veterinarians in rural southeast minnesota is a real and tangible problem asolder veterinarians retire and cattle operations continue to expand in size and number, leaving many producers without easy access to veterinary care. The goal of this project is to improve and expand the availability of our veterinary services to the shortage area in SE MN. In order to accomplish this goal, we plan to hire a forth qualified large animal veterinarian, providing him or her witha VET-truck and VET-box insert. In addition, we will replace our other 3 VET-box inserts which are 30+ years oldand frequently lay up our trucks and veterinarians with maintenance repairs. Furthermore, we will purchase a portable hydraulic chute with tub & alley to serve our current and future clients who DON't have a working facilities for safe handling and processing of cattle. With these objectives we expect to be more efficient at meeting the needs of our current and future clients. By providing veterinary service to more clientele in SE MN we expect to have a direct impact on local livestock health and therefore:food safety, public health, and the profitability of our clients.