Animal health is one of the broadest and most commercially diverse sectors in UK agriculture. It spans the farm vet managing a dairy herd's health programme through to the pharmaceutical sales specialist selling vaccines to livestock producers, the equine vet at a competition yard and the clinical director overseeing a group of mixed practices. All three parts of this sector, animal health, equestrian and veterinary, are growing. All three face recruitment pressure.
Agricultural Recruitment Specialists (AgriRS) has been placing people across animal health, equestrian and veterinary for over 13 years. We recruit for veterinary practices, animal health companies, pharmaceutical manufacturers, equestrian businesses and specialist distributors across the UK, connecting candidates at every level to the roles that suit them.
This guide covers the jobs available across the sector, the range of businesses we recruit for and how we can help, whether you are looking to hire or looking for work.
In Focus: The UK Animal Health, Equestrian & Veterinary Sector
The UK veterinary medicine market was valued at around £2.1 billion in 2024 and is forecast to grow at nearly 8% annually through to 2030. Add the wider animal health market, covering diagnostics, supplements, nutrition and health management products, and the combined sector is worth well over £3 billion. The equestrian industry adds further scale: the UK equestrian sector has an estimated annual economic value of £5 billion, supports around one million horses across 374,000 owning households, and is the second-largest rural employer in the country after agriculture itself.
Demand for veterinary services has risen sharply since 2020. The pandemic surge in pet ownership, which saw dog and cat populations climb to around 13.5 million and 12.5 million respectively, created a step-change in workload that clinical practices are still absorbing. On the farm animal side, livestock health is tightly linked to food security, biosecurity compliance and productivity, which keeps demand for production animal vets and animal health specialists consistently high. The RCVS workforce data tells a clear story: the number of newly registered vets from abroad fell by 68% between 2019 and 2021 as Brexit and pandemic effects combined, and while supply is gradually recovering, the current workforce remains stretched across most practice types.
The commercial side of the sector faces its own pressures. Animal health companies and pharmaceutical manufacturers need sales and technical people who can have credible conversations with vets and farmers, understand product science and manage client relationships across complex buying processes. That combination of commercial skill and technical knowledge is consistently in short supply, and the people who have it tend to be well looked after in their current roles.
Careers in Animal Health, Equestrian & Veterinary: From the Clinic to the Boardroom
Roles across this combined sector range from clinical and field-based positions through to commercial, scientific and senior leadership jobs. Here is a snapshot of what we place.
Veterinary and Clinical Roles
Veterinary Surgeon (Farm Animal / Mixed / Small Animal): Clinical diagnosis, treatment and preventive health programmes across production animals, companion animals or equine patients, depending on specialisation.
Equine Vet: Specialist veterinary care for horses, covering lameness work, sport horse medicine, reproduction, surgery and stud farm health management.
Registered Veterinary Nurse (RVN): Clinical nursing support across all practice types, including theatre assistance, patient monitoring, anaesthesia and client care.
Veterinary Practice Manager / Clinical Director: Leadership of a veterinary practice or group, covering clinical standards, team management, compliance and business performance.
Farm Animal Vet / Herd Health Adviser: Proactive health planning, fertility work and disease investigation on dairy, beef, sheep and pig enterprises.
Official Veterinarian (OV): Government-authorised role covering export health certificates, meat hygiene inspection and official controls on food-producing animals.
Animal Health Commercial and Technical Roles
Animal Health Sales Representative / Territory Manager: Selling veterinary pharmaceuticals, vaccines or health products to vet practices, farmers and distributors across a defined territory.
Technical Sales Specialist (Animal Health): Providing in-depth product support, clinical training and field demonstrations to vets and farm clients on behalf of a manufacturer.
Veterinary Product Manager / Brand Manager: Managing the commercial strategy, positioning and launch of animal health or pharmaceutical products within a manufacturer or distributor.
Key Account Manager (Animal Health): Managing strategic relationships with large vet groups, buying groups, or major agricultural accounts for a pharmaceutical or health business.
Regulatory Affairs Manager (Veterinary): Overseeing the registration, licensing and compliance of veterinary medicines within the UK and international regulatory framework.
Animal Health Research Scientist: Laboratory and field-based research into vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics or new active substances in animal health.
National Sales Manager / Commercial Director: Senior commercial leadership within an animal health company, distributor or veterinary group.
Equestrian Roles
Yard Manager / Head Groom: Day-to-day management of a livery yard, competition yard, stud or equestrian centre, covering horse care, staff and client relationships.
Equine Business Manager: Commercial management of an equestrian business, covering revenue, staffing, marketing and client development.
Equestrian Sales Specialist: Selling equine products, feeds, supplements, equipment or services into the equestrian market.
Equine Nutritionist: Providing specialist dietary advice and product recommendations for horses across performance, breeding and leisure sectors.
Stud Farm Manager: Managing breeding operations on a thoroughbred or sport horse stud, covering mare and foal management, staff and veterinary liaison.
The Animal Health, Equestrian & Veterinary Sector: What We Cover
Our recruitment spans the full width of the sector across all three disciplines.
Veterinary Practices (Small Animal, Mixed and Farm Animal): Clinical vets, registered veterinary nurses, practice managers and support staff across all practice types and sizes.
Equine Veterinary Practice: Specialist equine vets, equine nurses and clinical support roles within ambulatory and hospital-based equine practices.
Animal Pharmaceutical Manufacturing: Scientific, production, regulatory and commercial roles within manufacturers of veterinary medicines and vaccines.
Animal Health Sales and Distribution: Territory sales, key account management and technical support roles across pharmaceutical and animal health distributors.
Veterinary Diagnostics: Technical and commercial roles within laboratory diagnostics, in-practice testing and health monitoring businesses.
Animal Nutrition and Health Supplements: Sales, technical and product development roles in nutraceuticals, performance feeds and specialist dietary products.
Equestrian Business and Management: Management, commercial and operational roles across livery yards, riding schools, stud farms and equestrian centres.
Equine Product Sales: Commercial roles selling feeds, supplements, equipment and services into the equestrian sector.
Regulatory Affairs and Compliance (Veterinary): Specialist roles managing veterinary medicine licensing, pharmacovigilance and post-market surveillance.
Veterinary Group and Corporate Practice: Senior clinical and operational leadership within corporate veterinary groups and multi-site practice networks.
Animal Biotechnology and R&D: Research and development roles in vaccine development, gene therapy, diagnostics innovation and veterinary science.
For Employers
What to Expect from Animal Health and Veterinary Recruitment
Recruiting across animal health and veterinary is consistently challenging. In clinical veterinary practice, the workforce remains stretched despite gradual recovery in overseas registrations, and farm animal specialists are particularly scarce: research published in the Veterinary Record in 2025 highlighted the growing number of equine and farm vets choosing to leave clinical practice, with workload and work-life balance cited as primary factors. For commercial animal health roles, the pool of candidates who combine strong science with effective sales skills is narrow, and competition between employers for the best people is real.
We have been building relationships across this sector for over 13 years, and our candidate database includes clinical and commercial professionals who are not on any job board and not actively searching. That is where most of our best placements in this space come from. We will give you a straight picture of the market from the outset, including what salary and package you need to attract the right person and a realistic timeline for the search.
How We Work with Employers
Contingency search: Proactive candidate searches across our network, with targeted advertising where appropriate. No placement, no fee.
Executive search and headhunting: For senior, specialist or hard-to-fill roles where the right candidate needs to be approached directly. 100% success rate since 2012.
Contract and temporary placements: For locum cover, maternity leave or project-based requirements.
Market intelligence: Salary benchmarking, candidate availability and competitor insight to inform your hiring strategy.
Candidate profiling: Psychometric and skills assessments to support your final hiring decision.
Looking for an Animal Health, Equestrian or Veterinary Job?
Whether you are a vet considering a move from clinical practice into industry, an animal health sales specialist looking for a better territory, or an equestrian professional ready for a new challenge, we work with businesses across the sector that are actively looking for people like you. A significant proportion of the roles we fill are never publicly advertised.
What We Offer Candidates
Free and confidential service: No cost to register, and your details are handled with complete discretion.
Access to unadvertised roles: Many of the positions we fill never reach a job board.
CV and interview support: Practical guidance to help you present yourself well at every stage of the process.
UK-wide coverage: Vacancies across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Career guidance: Whether you are exploring a move into industry, considering a change of practice type, or simply weighing up your options, we will give you an honest view of the market.
3 Quick Wins on Our Site
Get help with your application using our candidate tips.
Stay in the Loop with Animal Health and Veterinary Sector Insights
Our AgriCulture Live podcast features conversations with the people shaping the future of UK agriculture and animal health. For sector news, career insight and hiring guidance, our blog covers the topics that matter most to people working across animal health, equestrian and veterinary:
Speak to Our Animal Health and Veterinary Recruitment Team
If you are a veterinary practice, animal health company, pharmaceutical manufacturer or equestrian business looking to fill a role, the first step is to tell us what you need. We know the candidate market in this sector well and we will give you a straight view from the start: how competitive the search is, what package will attract the right person and how long the process is likely to take. You can submit a vacancy here.
If you are looking for your next animal health, equestrian or veterinary role, get in touch with a brief outline of your background and what you are looking for. Email info@agriRS.co.uk or call 01905 345 155. Many of the positions we fill are never advertised, so talking to us directly is often the fastest route to finding out what is actually available.
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Jobs in Animal Health, Equestrian & Veterinary Recruitment Agency
