獣医師 獣医師
What 獣医師 do
An English description is being prepared. Japanese description:
専門分野は「産業動物分野」、「伴侶動物分野」、「公衆衛生分野」、「バイオメディカル分野」、「野生動物関係分野」など多岐に及び人の健康や社会生活にも密接に関わっている。
産業動物分野の仕事には、家畜保健衛生所、畜産試験場などでの肉や牛乳を生産するための牛、馬、豚、鶏などの家畜について病気の予防や衛生管理、ワクチン接種などによる伝染病の予防、人工授精や授精卵移植技術を用いた品種の改良と繁殖、動物用医薬品の安全性確保のための検定試験やその製造、流通、使用の監視などがある。
伴侶動物分野の仕事には、動物病院での犬や猫、小鳥など、いろいろな種類の小動物の病気の診断や治療、あるいは動物の飼い方やしつけの相談・指導などがある。
公衆衛生分野の仕事には、食肉衛生検査所や動物検疫所等での肉や牛乳あるいは魚介類などの食品の安全性を確保するための監視や指導、と畜検査や食鳥検査、動物と人が共通して感染する人獣共通感染症の予防、あるいは家畜伝染病の海外からの侵入を防ぐ検疫業務などがある。
バイオメディカル分野の仕事には、製薬会社等での医薬品の開発や各種安全性、有効性の試験などに不可欠な実験動物を用いた医薬品の開発研究、あるいは遺伝子工学や生命科学に関する研究活動などがある。
野生動物関係分野の仕事には、地球上に棲息する様々な野生動物たちの管理・保全、動物園や水族館での展示動物の飼育、繁殖や病気になった動物の診療などがある。
◇ よく使う道具、機材、情報技術等
パソコン、医療機器（聴診器、注射器、CT、MRI等）
Employment type of workers
獣医師 salary
The average annual pay for 獣医師 in Japan is ¥6.81M (≈ $43,276; Basic Survey on Wage Structure (2025), national). The estimated median is ¥6.33M, the typical range is ¥4.42M–¥12.17M and the top 10% earn about ¥10.38M.
How does your pay compare with people your age?
Your numbers are not sent or stored. The distribution is estimated from Japan's national wage statistics, including pay differences by age.
Pay by ageest.
Estimated from the average pay and average age (38.7) using the age-wage curve of the Basic Survey on Wage Structure.
Pay by experienceest.
Pay by employment typeest.
The average hourly wage of ¥3,222 is 2.7× Japan's national average minimum wage of ¥1,177 (fiscal 2026). Minimum wage by prefecture →
Japanese pay is shown in yen (¥5.57M = 5.57 million yen ≈ 557万円). Dollar figures use the current rate of 157.25 yen per dollar and are for reference only; purchasing power differs.
Pay over time
| Year | Average pay | Employment | Openings ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | ¥5.92M | — | — |
| 2022 | ¥6.87M | — | — |
| 2023 | ¥6.86M | — | 2.18x |
| 2024 | ¥8.85M | — | 2.21x |
| 2025 | ¥6.81M | — | 1.95x |
Projected pay for 獣医師 (3, 5 and 10 years)est.
Today ¥6.81M → in 3 years ¥7.35M → in 5 years ¥7.74M → in 10 years ¥8.80M (10-year range ¥7.57M–¥10.22M). The model assumes pay growth of +2.6% per year.
What drives the annual growth rate
Projected pay = current pay × (1 + annual growth)^years. The annual growth rate starts from a base wage-growth rate and adds or subtracts labor demand (the job-openings-to-applicants ratio), wage momentum and AI replacement risk for each occupation. Projections are not guarantees. How it is calculated →
Outlook score for 獣医師
Each component is a percentile rank among all occupations in the same country (0–100). Weights: labor demand 25, wage momentum / openings 15, pay level 15, AI resistance 25, aging workforce 10 (Japan only), entry barrier 10.
Will AI replace 獣医師? AI replacement risk
How AI is changing this job
A written analysis for this occupation is being prepared.
AI replacement risk compares the parts of a job that are easy to hand to AI or software (processing information, documentation, repetitive computer work) with the parts that are hard to automate (physical work, working closely with people, judgment in unpredictable settings), using the MHLW job tag survey on work activities, work context, skills and knowledge. The result is a relative position among all occupations in the country, scaled to 0–100%. Methodology →
Labor demand for 獣医師
A ratio above 1.0 means there are more job openings than applicants (a labor shortage). The 5- and 10-year figures are estimates from the openings ratio, wage momentum and AI replacement risk.
The same job in the United States
| 獣医師 Japan | Veterinarians United States | |
|---|---|---|
| Median / average pay | ¥6.81M ≈ $43,276 | $130,100 |
| Pay in 10 years (est.) | ¥8.80M | $182,200 |
| Outlook score | 62 | 72 |
| AI replacement risk | 30% Low | 29% Low |
| Workers | — | 84K |
Matched by occupation (SOC code). Yen converted at 157.25 JPY/USD for reference; Japanese figures are averages, U.S. figures are medians, and the surveys define occupations differently.
Skills, education and requirements for 獣医師
Key skills
Skill levels from the MHLW job tag worker survey.
Key knowledge areas
What the work involves
Important abilities
Licenses and certifications (Japan)
- 獣医師 National license
Related qualifications listed on job tag (names in Japanese). Some are mandatory, others recommended.
Education of workers
Training before entry
Related work experience
Difficulty of entry: ★★★★★ Hard to enter (from education, training, experience, licenses)
How to become 獣医師
The typical path in Japan is shown by the education, training and experience of current workers above and in the Japanese guidance below. A detailed English guide for this occupation is being prepared.
Guidance from job tag (Japanese)
合格後、農林水産省に免許の交付申請手続を行い、農林水産大臣による獣医師免許を取得し、獣医師名簿に登録されると、獣医師としての仕事ができる。
獣医師として国家公務員、地方公務員になる場合は、公務員試験と獣医師国家試験の双方に合格することが必要である。農業共済団体や民間企業などの場合は、それぞれ独自に採用試験を行っている。
臨床獣医師は免許を取得してもすぐに独り立ちできるわけではなく、臨床経験を積む必要がある。牛や馬、豚や家禽などの産業動物関係の場合は、農業共済団体の家畜診療所などに勤務し、先輩獣医師と一緒に診療活動に従事しながら経験を積んでいくのが一般的である。小動物関係の場合は、動物病院に研修医として勤務したり、獣医系大学の付属動物病院で研修するのが一般的である。
Career path and how to earn more as 獣医師
Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by experience is shown in the Pay section.