How good is Mexican Veterinary Medicine?

One of the questions Americans and Canadians often ask about veterinary care in Mexico is whether it is up to American and Canadian standards?

To begin with, the distinction between a Mexican veterinarian and an American or Canadian veterinarian is quite blurred: many Mexican vets are trained in the USA and Canada, and/or do continuing education in those countries.

Secondly, the medicines and other theraputic tools used by practitioners in Mexico are largely the same as those used north of the border. Many higher-end veterinary practices in Mexico have access to advanced testing and imaging capabilities that make accurate diagnosis and effective treatment possible, even when presented with complicated problems. SBPA sees this professionalism in action every month at our free spay / neuter clinics! 

Our veterinary team led by M.V.Z. Edgar Orlando Espinoza of Danes Hospital Veterinaria represents the best of Mexican veterinary practice. Their skills have resulted in a surgical mortality rate for SBPA clinics lower than that of the majority of veterinary practices in the United States and Canada – while conducting over 300 sterilizations per day with a surgical team that usually numbers about 8. 

But you don’t have to take our word for it: the market is speaking, with many American pet owners who live close to the border choosing Mexican veterinarians to take care of their pets. So many, in fact, that a new travel term has been minted, “Veterinary Medical Tourism”. 

This trend – widely reported on in 2023 and 2024 in the wake of the explosion of pet ownership during Covid – is not solely driven by cost advantages, although they are substantial. Rather, it is also driven by a genuine preference for veterinary care in Mexico. 

SBPA has been aware of this preference for years: many of our longest and most valued supporters are seasonal residents of San Carlos that return to the United States and Canada with their pets during the Summer. Lots of them choose to have their veterinary visits as close to the Sea Of Cortez as possible!