Australian Veterinary Association

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The Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) is a not-for-profit association representing more than 7000 Australian veterinarians working in private practice, government, industry, and academia.{{cite web|title=The Australian Veterinary Association|url=http://www.ava.com.au|accessdate=28 July 2011| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20110723052420/http://www.ava.com.au/| archivedate= 23 July 2011 | url-status= live}} The AVA was mooted before the First World War but not founded until 1921. The nineteenth century predecessor organisation was the Australasian Veterinary Medical Association.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article8511382 |title=Australasian Veterinary Medical Association. |newspaper=The Argus |location=Melbourne |date=14 April 1883 |accessdate=19 May 2012 |page=11 |via=National Library of Australia}}{{cite web|url=http://www.daff.gov.au/animal-plant-health/animal/a-veterinary-awakening-the-history-of-government-veterinarians-in-australia |title=A Veterinary Awakening: The History of Government Veterinarians in Australia - Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry |accessdate=2012-05-19 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120511084806/http://daff.gov.au/animal-plant-health/animal/a-veterinary-awakening-the-history-of-government-veterinarians-in-australia |archivedate=2012-05-11 }}

Prominent veterinarians who have been members of the Australian Veterinary Association include Professor J.D. Stewart (who was the first AVA President), Ian Clunies Ross (former head of the CSIRO), and parasitologist Hugh Gordon.{{Citation | author1=Australian Veterinary History Society | title=Eminent Australian veterinarians | date=2002 | publisher=Australian Veterinary History Society | url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/34369669 | accessdate=19 May 2012 }}

The AVA provides information resources, continuing education opportunities, publications, public education programs, and professional support. The AVA also lobbies government on a number of fronts. Special interest groups have existed within the AVA since the early 1960s. These include groups dedicated to equine medicine, cattle, practice management, avian health, sheep, conservation and animal welfare. Some of the special interest groups publish their own peer reviewed journals. The Australian Veterinary History Society is a division of the association.{{Citation | author1=Australian Veterinary History Society | title=Milestones in Australian veterinary history | date=2002 | publisher=Australian Veterinary History Society | url=http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/34369819 | accessdate=19 May 2012 }} Recent lobbying efforts include, HECS debt relief for rural veterinarians, {{Cite web|url= https://www.ava.com.au/media-centre/media-releases/veterinary-peak-body-renews-calls-for-hecs-debt-relief/|title=Media Release 10th May 2023|access-date=13 Sep 2023}} mental health awareness in the veterinary profession, {{Cite web|url= https://www.ava.com.au/media-centre/media-releases/ava-receives-funding-to-help-improve-the-mental-health-and-wellbeing-of-australian-vets/|title=Media Release 31st Aug 2023|access-date=13 Sep 2023}} advocating for veterinarians as essential services during the COVID-19 pandemic and research into the deadly Hendra Virus.

The AVA has published the Australian Veterinary Journal since 1925.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58257144 |title=VETERINARY JOURNAL. |newspaper=The Sunday Times |location=Perth |date=26 April 1925 |accessdate=19 May 2012 |page=26 |via=National Library of Australia}}{{Citation | author1=Australian Veterinary Association | author2=Blackwell Publishing | title=Australian veterinary journal | date=1927 | publisher=Australian Veterinary Association | issn=0005-0423 }}