CLEMSON, S.C. (WCSC) — South Carolinians from pet owners to livestock farmers know it can be tough to find someone to care for their animals.
A statewide veterinarian shortage has left a third of counties with fewer than five vets and around half of all the state’s counties with fewer than 10.
But leaders at the State House and Clemson University believe a major project now underway will benefit South Carolinians and their animals for generations to come.
State and Clemson University leaders break ground on South Carolina’s first veterinary school in a ceremony on Nov. 22, 2024. (Mary Green)
On Friday, ground was broken at the site of the state’s first school of veterinary medicine, expected to fill a significant hole in that statewide shortage once opened.
“There is only one vet for every 2,053 animals, pets, and livestock in the state of South Carolina,” Clemson University President Jim Clements said during Friday’s ceremony. “In addition to our household pets, as you know, our state is a major producer of agriculture, and we have a significant population of farm animals who also need care.”
The school will be named in honor of Cherokee County Senator Harvey Peeler, a dairy farmer and the chair of the Senate’s budget-writing committee.
State and Clemson University leaders break ground on South Carolina’s first veterinary school in a ceremony on Nov. 22, 2024. (Mary Green)
Peeler has been the lead champion of the vet school in the state legislature, which has allocated around $250 million for its establishment in recent years.
“I’ve wanted this for nearly 50 years, ever since I was a student right here at Clemson,” Peeler said.
Peeler, a 1970 Clemson graduate, relayed a story from his time in college, when a friend of his spoke of his postgraduate plans to attend an out-of-state veterinary school, with no in-state option available in South Carolina.
State and Clemson University leaders break ground on South Carolina’s first veterinary school in a ceremony on Nov. 22, 2024. (Mary Green)
The future senator promised decades ago to rectify that and said his patience over more than 40 years in the state Senate paid off.
“Nearly 200 students a year have had to leave South Carolina to get their education, and many never come back,” Peeler said. “This has been a big loss for our state, but with the new college, we’re changing that.”
According to Clemson, the school is on track to welcome its first class in the fall of 2026 and see them walk across the graduation stage as doctors of veterinary medicine in 2030.
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