Frequently Asked Questions

Per Minnesota Rules 9100.0800, subp 4, paragraph D "Medical records, or an accurate summary of them, must be released to the animal owner or the owner's authorized agent, including the board, within two weeks of a written request. A reasonable charge for copying or preparation of a summary may be made, except in the case of a board investigation, in which case no charges are authorized."

Veterinarians are required to have a minimum of 40 hours of approved continuing education in the preceding 2 years at the time of their license renewal. Thirty of those hours need to be interactive (Minnesota Rules 9100.1000). The distribution of credits over the 2-year licensing period does not need to be equal to exactly 20 hours a year, but instead it must equal 40 hours total. Ten hours of the continuing education requirement maybe be self-study. For every 3 hours of self-study, 1 hour of continuing education credit is granted to the licensee. Only 10 of the total hours can be counted for practice management topics.

Interactive continuing education courses:

• Occur in real-time
• There's an ability to write or call in questions
• Other veterinarians participate at the same time

Examples: a presentation such as a webinar for which all listeners can participate with an interactive chat room discussion or the ability to call in and ask questions.

Things that are not considered interactive:

• a pre-recorded PowerPoint presentation with or without audio
• a webinar that can be taken at your convenience.

In special circumstances, a six-month extension of the deadline for obtaining the required number of continuing education credits may be granted to a licensee. Extensions may be granted for unforeseen hardships such as illness, family emergency, and military call-up. No more than two consecutive extensions may be granted. If you wish to apply for a six-month extension, please submit a detailed letter to the Board explaining the reason for the request. You will be notified with the Board's decision.

Minnesota Statutes 319B, The Professional Firms Act requires that any veterinary clinic or hospital that is organized as a corporation, a limited liability partnership, or a limited liability company must register with the Board (filed under 302A, 317A, or 322C). If you are unsure about which category your professional firm falls under, you may find your business information using the Secretary of State's website by searching via your practice name.

Please see the professional firms page on our website for more information and registration forms.

If your professional firm is filed through the Secretary of State under Minnesota Statutes 302A, 317A, or 322B and you are a multi-veterinarian professional firm, you need to contact the Board office if you are not registered through the Board of Veterinary Medicine.

An easy way to check what article number your professional firm is licensed under is through the Secretary of State's website. Simply type your practice name into the search feature and click search. Your professional firm should appear as a link below the search bar. The business record will provide you with basic filing information, including the filing statute number.

If the new owner of the professional firm is purchasing the existing corporation no additional filings are required. If the new owner is purchasing only the assets of the existing business, but not the corporate structure then they need to file new articles.

1. Professional Firm Initial Registration Form

2. $100 filing fee payable via check to the Minnesota Board of Veterinary Medicine

3. Organizational articles from the Secretary of State

4. Certificate of authority from the Secretary of State

If you have had a name change because of marriage, divorce, etc. the Board needs legal documentation of the name change. Legal documentation includes a marriage or divorce certificate, or another government-issued document that represents the change, such as a drivers' license. You can mail, fax, or email a copy of this document to the Board at vet.med@state.mn.us.

If you need a new hard copy of your license, you will need to request a replacement license due to name change. You can request a replacement license using going to https://mn.gov/boards/veterinary-medicine/license/replacement-duplicate-license.jsp. There is a $10.00 fee for a replacement license and can be paid via check to the Minnesota Board of Veterinary Medicine.

There are two options:

If you are not actively engaged in the practice of veterinary medicine within the state of Minnesota, but you plan to practice again in Minnesota in the future, you may convert your license to inactive status during the renewal period. The renewal fee for an inactive license is $100 biannually. If you wish to reactivate your inactive license at any point in the renewal period, you will be required to submit a reactivation back fee along with documentation of your continuing education courses for the years you were in inactive status.

If you do not plan on practicing veterinary medicine in the state of Minnesota in the future, you may request your license status be changed to "Voluntary Retirement." Please submit a written request to the Board if you wish to retire your license. At any point if you wish to reactivate your license you will be subject to a reactivation back fee and you must submit documentation of your continuing education courses for the years you were in retirement status.

DO NOT simply choose to let your license lapse without payment and without contacting the Board to change your license status. This is considered disciplinary and it will appear on your license report as such.

To reactivate an inactive licensee, you must furnish to the Board:

• Verification of licensure in good standing from the state you are currently practicing in; OR 
• Documentation of having met Minnesota CE requirements of 20 CE credits per year retroactive to the date of license inactivation; 
• Certification that applicant is not currently under disciplinary orders or investigation;
• Payment of a fee equal to the full difference between an inactive and unrestricted license if converting during the first year of the biennial license cycle or payment of a fee equal to one-half the difference between an inactive and an unrestricted license if converting during the second year of the license cycle; and
• A completed license reactivation form. 

Please refer to the Rabies Vaccination Guidance Document published by the Board of Veterinary Medicine. The Rabies Vaccination Committee Report is also available for your reference.

Also see the Board of Animal Health and Board of Veterinary Medicine letter to League of Minnesota Cities (July 12, 2013) and the Board of Animal Health's Recommendations.

You can informally speak to the person if you are comfortable with that approach, and advise him or her that whatever service is provided is illegal.

You can file a formal complaint with the Board which includes that lay person's name. Ideally, the complaint should include some form of written evidence such as an advertisement, web link, written advice, or bill to an animal owner and/or the name of a client that is willing to be contact by an investigator from the Attorney General's office.

Contact the local sheriff or humane agent. If a veterinarian is part of the animal cruelty, please file a complaint with the Board.

Please see Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 343 (Prevention of Cruelty to Animals)

The National Veterinary Accreditation Program is run through the USDA/APHIS. See their website for details by clicking here.

Visit the Minnesota Board of Animal Health's website by clicking here.

The Board receives some complaints that do not lead to action against veterinarians. The Board cannot take action against a veterinarian unless there is clear and convincing evidence to show that the veterinarian violated Minnesota's Veterinary Practice Act and the Rules of the Board of Veterinary Medicine. The Board must thoroughly review each complaint before it takes any action.

No. The Board's complaint process is designed for the public. If you have questions about filing your complaint, the Board's staff can assist you. The choice to seek an attorney's input is yours.

You can contact the Board staff at any time. However, because of the state data privacy laws, little information can be provided during the investigation. The Board will notify you as to the disposition of your complaint when the investigation and review process is completed. Also, recent legislation requires the Board to send an update letter every 120 days to keep you updated through the complaint process.

First, the Board's staff gathers information from a variety of sources, starting with the information you include in your complaint. The staff or an investigator from the Attorney General's office will gather medical records, collect data and may interview those involved. If you are the owner of the animal(s) you will be asked to sign a records waiver authorization form to allow the Board to obtain your animal's medical records. In most instances, the staff will also obtain a response from the veterinarian involved. When the information gathering is completed, the Board's complaint review committee will review the facts and decide whether to take action against the veterinarian involved.

The length of time to complete the complaint process varies widely. Complex complaints may require the Board to refer the complaint to the Attorney General's office for investigation. Some reviews move very quickly, others often take months or years.

Filing a complaint will not preclude other legal action you choose to consider.

The Board's staff may advise you on the services of other governmental agencies or professional associations if the Board is not the appropriate agency to deal with your concerns.

The Board can only take action against a veterinarian's license to practice. It can't help you recover money or resolve fee disputes.

• Talk with the veterinarian about your concerns; in most cases he or she will want to know if you are dissatisfied with the services received.
• Talk with the clinic owner or manager about your situation. They, too, want satisfied clients who will recommend their services to others.
• Complete in detail BOTH a "Complaint Registration" and "Records Waiver Authorization" and mail or fax them to the Board office. You may print the forms from this site or contact the Board office to have the forms mailed or faxed to you. You do not need to fill out the Records Waiver Authorization if the complaint does not involve animal patients.

If you like, contact the Board of Veterinary Medicine at 651-201-2844 to discuss your concerns. If the Board is able to be of assistance, you will be asked to submit the written complaint forms to initiate a formal review.

The Board can take a variety of actions. It can limit, suspend or revoke a veterinarian's license; it can order a veterinarian to take more training or to stop performing certain procedures; it can impose a penalty fee; it can order veterinarians to enroll in appropriate treatment programs.

Generally, complaints about veterinarians fall into these areas:

• Competency
• Impairment or chemical abuse
• Failure to meet minimum standards of practice
• Sanitation and cleanliness of facilities

Anyone with a concern about a veterinarian’s professional services or violation of any regulations can file a complaint. Veterinarians that own a practice must report any licensed employees suspected of drug diversion. Other governmental agencies can also file a complaint. Similarly, anyone can file a complaint regarding the unlicensed practice of veterinary medicine by a non-veterinarian in Minnesota.

During the investigation and review process, the Board will protect your identity unless you consent to have it disclosed. In most cases pertaining to an animal's care, the owner is the complainant and can be readily identified by the signed Records Waiver Authorization.

Yes. This includes the requirements for medical records as well as rules regarding dispensing of medications including a valid veterinary client patient relationship and labeling.

There are no costs for filing a complaint.

The procedure is the same as filing a complaint against a veterinarian, but you may not be required to sign a records waiver authorization form.You can file a formal complaint with the Board which includes that lay person's name. Ideally, the complaint should include some form of written evidence such as an advertisement, web link, photograph, written advice, or bill to an animal owner and/or the name of a client that is willing to be contact by an investigator from the Attorney General's office.

Chiropractors trained to work on animals can do so if registered as an animal chiropractor with the Board of Chiropractic Examiners AND if the animal is referred to the chiropractor. A complaint against any chiropractor in Minnesota should be filed with that Board. Additionally, if the chiropractor is not registered to work on animals, this would be the unlicensed practice of veterinary medicine, which may also warrant action by the Board of Veterinary Medicine.

Yes. Each registered equine tooth floater is linked to a licensed veterinarian who has agreed to be his or her supervisor. The Board will investigate the complaint through the supervising veterinarian.