An investigation was conducted on the curricula of the pioneer schools of veterinary medicine in the country, as well as on the course offered by the University of the State of Santa Catarina, the analysis of documents having been the data collection procedure employed. Three main fields of action were identified in veterinary medicine, related with the practical activities carried out in the exercise of the profession and corresponding to the content of the courses: clinical veterinary practice, preventive veterinary medicine and public health, and animal husbandry and animal production. The connection between these three areas and the epistemological "style of thought" category proposed by L. Fleck was articulated. The analysis of the data obtained indicated that social and preventive aspects were given scanty attention in veterinary medicine courses, causing the "style of thought" that focuses on preventive veterinary medicine and public health to be given little emphasis in comparison with the other "styles of thought" found in the profession.
Veterinary Medicine; curriculum; veterinary education; health education; style of thought
