In step with the worldwide trend for higher educational institutes to establish areas of research emphasis,the accumulation of resources in key areas has become common practice in veterinary faculties. Although there are perceived logical benefits to research prioritisation, there have been very little critical retrospective analyses of research prioritisation in any discipline,let alone in the relatively niche field of veterinary medicine. This study aimed to bring attention to this gap in knowledge. Evidence for the use and breadth of research area prioritisation in veterinary schools in Western nations was obtained through publicly available content on the Internet. Preliminary evaluation of the effectiveness of prioritisation strategies in veterinary schools to increase research performance was performed using bibliometric criteria. Although limited to publicly available information, findings from this preliminary study suggest a positive relationship between an identifiable research prioritisation strategy and research performance of veterinary schools.