Legalization of Horseshoeing and Equine Dentistry Research Paper

Legalization of Horseshoeing and Equine Dentistry - Research Paper Example Details from the article written by Bowden cited State Rep. Jim House, a part-time farrier, to have acknowledged that â€Å"Arkansas has 625 veterinarians, but only nine of them specialize in horses†. Lee McGrath, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Institute for Justice, indicated that the primary rationale for instituting the regulations would be to eliminate competition from non-licensed practicing veterinarians. The ranchers and owners of horses have expressed their arguments on the matter indicating that prohibition of horseshoeing by farriers and employing equine dentists would tantamount to increased costs in terms of higher professional fees charged by veterinarians and the hustles imposed by the need to bring their horses to the vets for the needed procedures. The Veterinary Medical Practice Act stipulates that part of a licensed veterinarian’s scope of responsibilities include â€Å"the diagnosis, treatment, correction, change, relief, or prevention of animal disease, deformity, defect, injury, or other physical or mental condition, including the prescribing or administration of any prescription drug, medicine, biologic, apparatus, application, anesthetic, or other therapeutic or diagnostic substance or technique on any animal, including, but not limited to, acupuncture, dentistry, animal psychology, animal chiropractic, theriogenology, surgery, including cosmetic surgery, any manual, mechanical, biological, or chemical procedure for testing for pregnancy or for correcting sterility or infertility or to tender service or recommendations with regard to any of the above† (Arkansas Veterinary Act, Code 17-101-102 9A). The current practice of Arkansas ranchers traditionally use registered farriers and equine dentists to undertake routinary procedures . In an article written by Bowden (2010), the author cited Dr. Lyndon H. Tate, a veterinarian in Mansfield and member of the Arkansas Veterinary Medical Examining Board, as supportive and â€Å"defended the wording in the law. The practices act was set up to protect the animals, and the rights of the animal owner, from sub-standard veterinary procedures".