Veterinary medicine is the application of medical diagnostic and therapeutic principles to companion, domestic, exotic, and wildlife animals.

Veterinary medicine is informally as old as the human animal bond but in recent years has expanded exponentially because of the availability of advanced diagnostic and therapeutic techniques for most species. Veterinary medicine ensures the quality, quantity and security of food supplies by controlling the health of animal stocks and meat itself. Also pets (particularly cats and dogs) nowadays often receive advanced medical care including hip replacements, cataract surgeries, and pacemakers. This is mainly a question of how much money the pet's owner is willing to spend on his animal. Same goes for equine and bovine medicine, though from a more financial / economical aspect. For a horse that is worth a few thousand of dollars it is economic to spend a certain amount of money to lengthen it's lifespan, whereas cows, that often don't have a high economic value, especially if they are very young, will not receive expensive operations. Veterinary Scientists are very import in chemical, biological and pharmological research.

In many countries, equine veterinary medicine is also a specialized field. Clinical work with horses involves mainly locomotory and orthopaedic problems, digestive tract conditions (including equine colic, which is a major cause of death among domesticated horses), and respiratory tract infections and disorders.