OVMA Backgrounder
The Association’s humble beginnings stretch back to September 24, 1874 when a group of Ontario veterinary surgeons met at the Ontario Veterinary College on Temperance Street in Toronto and formed a society named, The Ontario Veterinary Medical Association (OVMA).
At that time, the OVMA – consisting of 27 members – defined its objective as, "the mutual improvement of its members, in those branches of knowledge specially pertaining to their profession, and the advancement of the position and interests of the Veterinary profession in the Province of Ontario." 1
After nearly 100 years of name changes (including the Society of Ontario Veterinarians, and the Ontario Veterinary Association), financial ups and downs, and organizational restructuring, the OVMA finally took-on its current form in 1980.
The Ontario Veterinary Medical Association now represents more than 3,000 Ontario veterinarians in private practice, government, academia, industry and public service. Its mandate includes the provision of economic research, continuing education and professional development, increasing public awareness, government relations, and discount services to members.
1 Century One: A History of the Ontario Veterinary Association, 1874-1974, A. Margaret Evans and C.A.V. Barker (Published by the authors in Guelph, 1976), pps. 1 – 2.