NIGERIAN Veterinary Medical Association (NVMA) has decried the dearth of veterinarians in the country.
The association said there should be three veterinarians per local government, whereas some states do not have two.
National President of NVMA Dr Toyin Adetunberu spoke at its 42nd investiture and summit.
She said Nigeria had 9,000 veterinary doctors, with five per cent of them in the public service.
Adetunberu called for more veterinary surgeons and urged the government to stop giving their services to quacks.
She noted that the association be given its place in disease prevention and control and ensure the populace eat safe.
Adetunberu said: “While we are trying to stamp out quackery from our profession, we want government to partner us.
“The profession is an enviable one but because we do not advertise, people do not know that veterinary medicine exists. I will encourage many people to go into the profession as we are involved in public health. Seventy per cent of human diseases originate from animals and it is the veterinary surgeons that nip the disease in the bud.
Guest lecturer Dr Samuel Adeyemi said veterinarians could put a stamp on products to differentiate theirs from quacks.
He urged professionals in the field to take measures to curtail the excesses of quacks, calling on them to use the whistle blowing policy.