Chief veterinary officer (CVO) is the head of a veterinary authority (typically a national government service comprising

veterinarians A veterinarian (vet), also known as a veterinary surgeon or veterinary physician, is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, vet ...

, other professionals and paraprofessionals). They have the responsibility and competence for ensuring or supervising the implementation in their nation of

animal health Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...

and

welfare Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...

measures, international veterinary certification and other standards and recommendations. The

World Organization for Animal Health The World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), formerly the (OIE), is an intergovernmental organization coordinating, supporting and promoting animal disease control. Mission and status The main objective of the WOAH is to control epizoo ...

recognizes the notion of chief veterinary officers. The

Council of the European Union The Council of the European Union, often referred to in the treaties and other official documents simply as the Council, and informally known as the Council of Ministers, is the third of the seven Institutions of the European Union (EU) as ...

also realizes the importance of the chief veterinary officers, and founded a preparatory body called Working Party of Chief Veterinary Officers. Typical responsibilities of a chief veterinary officer are to organize and operate a country's animal health and animal protection service and

veterinary public health Veterinary public health (VPH) is a component of public health that focuses on the application of veterinary medicine, veterinary science to protect and improve the physical, mental and social well-being of humans. In several countries activities ...

service, covering

food chain safety Food is any substance consumed by an organism for nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or fungal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals. The substance is ing ...

, control of

zoonoses A zoonosis (; plural zoonoses) or zoonotic disease is an infectious disease of humans caused by a pathogen (an infectious agent, such as a bacterium, virus, parasite or prion) that has jumped from a non-human (usually a vertebrate) to a human. ...

, environmental contamination and role of animals in the society.

Examples of chief veterinary officers

Chief Veterinary Officer (Hungary) The Chief Veterinary Officer of Hungary, as a chief veterinary officer, is the supervisor of the National Food Chain Safety Office, and in general, the governmental veterinary services including animal health, animal protection and welfare and fo ...

Chief Veterinary Officer (United Kingdom) The Chief Veterinary Officer (or CVO) is an official in the British government, who is head of veterinary services in the United Kingdom. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland also each have a Chief Veterinary Officer. List of post holders for th ...

Chief Veterinary Officer (Australia) Chief veterinary officer (CVO) is the head of a veterinary authority (typically a national government service comprising veterinarians, other professionals and paraprofessionals). They have the responsibility and competence for ensuring or supervisi ...

Chief Veterinary Officer (United States) Chief veterinary officer (CVO) is the head of a veterinary authority (typically a national government service comprising veterinarians, other professionals and paraprofessionals). They have the responsibility and competence for ensuring or supervisi ...

, the Veterinary Services Deputy Administrator of the

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) based in Riverdale, Maryland responsible for protecting animal health, animal welfare, and plant health. APHIS is the lead ...

, part of the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, ...

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite web , title=APHIS Leadership and Biographies , website=

, publisher=

, url=http://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/banner/aboutaphis/SA_APHIS_Leadership , access-date=2021-02-19 Veterinary professions