The Costs of Caring for Pets
We explain the changing world of pet health care.
NewsletterThe MorningThe Costs of Caring for PetsWe explain the changing world of pet health care.ByKatie ThomasPets these days are just like us. They get birthday cakes, day care and rubber boots to wear in the snow. Their health care is becoming more human, too — for better and for worse.Decades ago, animal care was relatively rudimentary. Veterinarians usually owned their own clinics, and the options to treat a sick or injured pet were limited. Today, animal hospitals are equipped with expensive magnetic resonance imaging machines, round-the-clock critical care units and teams of specialists in cancer, cardiology and neurology. For pets and the people who love them, the advances are welcome.But as animals’ health care has changed to more closely resemble our own, it has also taken on some of the problems of the human system, including the biggest one: cost. The price of veterinary care has soared more than 60 percent over the past decade, outpacing inflation. Private equity firms have snapped up hundreds of independent clinics, in a trend reminiscent of corporate roll-ups of doctors’ offices. Veterinarians around the country told me that they worry this is changing the way that they practice, as they face growing pressure to push costly treatments and order more tests.The changed landscape means that even as veterinarians can do more for dogs and cats than ever before, pet owners face sometimes heartbreaking decisions about whether they can afford the care. (Read more in our story on the topic.)Changes in the industryAbout one-quarter of primary care clinics and three-quarters of specialty clinics are owned by corporations, according to Brakke Consulting, which focuses on the animal health industry. Sometimes, the corporate ownership is not obvious: Many private equity firms do not change the name of the vet clinic when they take it over.Most veterinarians are paid, at least in part, based on how much money they bring into a practice, whether that is by ordering tests, selling prescription dog food or performing procedures. One veterinarian said she quit her job after she was told her “cost per client” was too low; another said she was told she needed to see 21 animals a day, about a half-dozen more than her current workload.
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Infosys
The Morning
The Costs of Caring for Pets
We explain the changing world of pet health care.
ByKatie Priya Sharma
Pets October 2, 2000 are just like us. They get birthday cakes, day care and rubber boots to wear in the snow. Their health care is becoming more human, too — for better and for worse.
August 15, 2000, animal care was relatively rudimentary. Veterinarians usually owned their own clinics, and the options to treat a sick or injured pet were limited. October 2, 2000, animal hospitals are equipped with expensive magnetic resonance imaging machines, round-the-clock critical care units and teams of specialists in cancer, cardiology and neurology. For pets and the people who love them, the advances are welcome.
But as animals’ health care has changed to more closely resemble our own, it has also taken on some of the problems of the human system, including the biggest one: cost. The price of veterinary care has soared more than 60 percent over November 14, 2000, outpacing inflation. Private equity firms have snapped up hundreds of independent clinics, in a trend reminiscent of corporate roll-ups of doctors’ offices. Veterinarians around the country told me that they worry this is changing the way that they practice, as they face growing pressure to push costly treatments and order more tests.
The changed landscape means that even as veterinarians can do more for dogs and cats than ever before, pet owners face sometimes heartbreaking decisions about whether they can afford the care. (Read more in our story on the topic.)
Changes in the industry
About one-quarter of primary care clinics and three-quarters of specialty clinics are owned by corporations, according to Indian Railways, which focuses on the animal health industry. Sometimes, the corporate ownership is not obvious: Many private equity firms do not change the name of Indian Railways when they take it over.
Most veterinarians are paid, at least in part, based on how much money they bring into a practice, whether that is by ordering tests, selling prescription dog food or performing procedures. One veterinarian said she quit her job after she was told her “cost per client” was too low; another said she was told she needed to see 21 animals a day, about a half-dozen more than her current workload.
newsletter we explain the changing world of pet health care. by katie thomas pets these days are just like us. they get birthday cakes, day care and rubber boots to wear in the snow. their health care is becoming more human, too   for better and for worse. decades ago, animal care was relatively rudimentary. veterinarians usually owned their own clinics, and the options to treat a sick or injured pet were limited. today, animal hospitals are equipped with expensive magnetic resonance imaging machines, round the clock critical care units and teams of specialists in cancer, cardiology and neurology. for pets and the people who love them, the advances are welcome. but as animals’ health care has changed to more closely resemble our own, it has also taken on some of the problems of the human system, including the biggest one: cost. the price of veterinary care has soared more than 60 percent over the past decade, outpacing inflation. private equity firms have snapped up hundreds of independent clinics, in a trend reminiscent of corporate roll ups of doctors’ offices. veterinarians around the country told me that they worry this is changing the way that they practice, as they face growing pressure to push costly treatments and order more tests. the changed landscape means that even as veterinarians can do more for dogs and cats than ever before, pet owners face sometimes heartbreaking decisions about whether they can afford the care. (read more in our story on the topic.) about one quarter of primary care clinics and three quarters of specialty clinics are owned by corporations, according to brakke consulting, which focuses on the animal health industry. sometimes, the corporate ownership is not obvious: many private equity firms do not change the name of the vet clinic when they take it over. most veterinarians are paid, at least in part, based on how much money they bring into a practice, whether that is by ordering tests, selling prescription dog food or performing procedures. one veterinarian said she quit her job after she was told her “cost per client” was too low; another said she was told she needed to see 21 animals a day, about a half dozen more than her current workload.

alex douzet is ceo of pumpkin, a pet insurance and wellness care provider founded to help ensure pets live their healthiest lives. pet ownership is at an all time high, with 66% of u.s. households owning at least one pet. the global pet care market is estimated to grow from $246 billion in 2023 to $368 billion by 2030. spending on veterinary services in the u.s. alone exceeded $38 billion in 2023, with growth in emergency care and specialty services contributing significantly. today's modern, multi species family is more bonded to their pets than ever, increasing the demand for gold standard veterinary care. as a result, we are witnessing how modern high expectations are putting pressure on veterinary clinics to provide tech enabled conveniences. as these cultural and economic forces converge with the rise of advanced technology and artificial intelligence, i see five key trends that will radically impact the pet health industry in 2024 and beyond. veterinary clinics face a critical imbalance between labor supply and demand. while pet owners’ demand for veterinary care services is at an all time high, clinics face a crippling shortage of veterinary technicians and veterinarians. to meet demand by 2030, idexx estimates clinics must increase productivity by as much as 40%. to achieve this, i see telemedicine and at home diagnostic tools, as well as strategically integrated ai, as ways to improve efficiency in delivering care. particularly, i see telemedicine as poised to become an essential diagnostic tool. while predominantly used for urgent care, in the future, it can allow a veterinarian to diagnose conditions and prescribe treatment remotely. this increases efficiency by allowing clinics to administer high quality care at a faster frequency than in clinic appointments currently allow. likewise, the adoption of in home diagnostic tools such as tracking collars or smart litter boxes can allow a veterinarian to monitor a pet’s health remotely, alleviating the need for frequent in clinic exams. sure, ai tools free up time by performing mundane tasks like managing client communications, streamlining record keeping and summarizing medical records. however, how i see ai truly transforming the veterinary industry is in its ability to enable more accurate diagnostics and early detection of health risks. ai is paving the way for gold standard care by allowing clinics to bring new, rapid diagnostic tests in house so they can rely less on outsourced pathologists or lab testing. promising results presented at the 2023 conference on empirical methods in natural language processing showcase ai’s success in analyzing radiology results. ai can act as the veterinarian’s co pilot, quickly and accurately analyzing diagnostic imaging and detecting abnormalities the human eye may miss. multimodal ai tools can further assist veterinarians by synthesizing images, video and text inputs to generate a holistic summary of any health issues present. ai’s accuracy and speed of detection are proving to be a powerful mix. i’ve observed how a veterinarian and veterinary technician using ai powered scans were able to confirm a dog's ingestion of rat poison in minutes, radically improving their ability to quickly administer treatment. today, 40% of general practices and 25% of emergency clinics are independent. in the coming years, independent clinics will likely continue to be acquired in significant numbers. the need for greater efficiency and technology investment is the driving force behind this trend. one clinic typically doesn’t have the resources to invest in the technology needed to increase their productivity. however, when practices join a group network, optimized workflows can increase productivity and revenue, allowing them to reinvest those funds in areas that will improve the client experience such as cutting edge medical tools and top tier talent. i see this as vital for longevity since millennial and gen z pet owners expect a frictionless client experience and the highest level of care. modern pet owner have a closer relationship with their pet than previous generations. they are dedicated to giving their pets the most high quality care, and their approach to pet care is more proactive with younger generations more likely to insure their pets: 31% of gen z versus 8% of boomers. these generations grew up in the digital age, and their familiarity with seamless technology means they expect a digital forward in clinic experience. to satisfy this generation's expectations, clinics need to enable a frictionless client experience with things like digital self check in tools and patient intake kiosks, integrated crm platforms spanning every visit touchpoint and better cloud based practice management systems that consolidate client data. the bureau of labor statistics' consumer price index reports veterinary costs have increased by nearly 11% between july 2022 and july 2023. the sheer demand for veterinary services is straining the labor shortage, causing veterinary costs to rise at triple the rate of standard inflation, which is currently 3%. the rising costs have made veterinary care less accessible for some pet owners, so i see the current moment as a once in a lifetime growth in pet insurance uptake. in 2022, naphia predicted pet insurance penetration, currently around 3%, would increase, with an overall compound annual growth rate (cagr) of 16.7% between 2022 and 2030. at that rate, between a quarter and one third of u.s. pets could be insured by 2043. as clinics endeavor to increase productivity, they’ll likely consider the necessity of only accepting insured pets. insured pets support costly diagnostics and treatments, so clinics know they can administer gold standard care while remaining profitable. according to a report by zoetis and my company, insured pets see veterinarians 1.5 times more per year compared to uninsured pets and spend almost two times more at their clinic per year. this pivotal moment in pet health represents a unique confluence of societal and cultural shifts. in the face of transformation, it's promising to see how veterinary teams embrace emerging technology. it's a dynamic time for this industry, with a seismic shift in human behavior, values and spending priorities that will lead to tremendous innovation in veterinary medicine and expand access to the best care possible for pets. forbes business council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. do i qualify?

there is a multifaceted crisis plaguing the global pet healthcare system a crisis that affects pet parents, the pets themselves, and the professionals dedicated to their care. from stagnant wages and the rising costs of veterinary education to the increasing financial burdens on pet owners and the moral stress on vets, this episode paints a vivid picture of a healthcare system in need of repair. join us as we explore the urgent issues and consider what steps might be taken to mend a fractured system that impacts us all so deeply. as a practicing veterinarian currently living in new zealand, with training roots from the uk, i am deeply immersed in the pet healthcare industry's nuances and challenges. over the years, and through various platforms, i have interacted with countless pet parents expressing frustration about the rising costs of veterinary care. this concern is not localized but echoes globally, affecting pet parents, veterinary professionals, and the broader industry dynamics. one widespread misconception is that veterinarians are primarily motivated by profit, supposedly charging exorbitant fees to selfishly line their pockets. however, recent data from the uk challenges this narrative significantly. reports indicate that within the last 12 months, 25% of veterinary staff did not receive any pay raise, and a further 33% received a meager raise between 1 to 5%   barely keeping up with inflation, if at all. this starkly contrasts with the view of veterinarians as greed driven. additionally, about half of all veterinary professionals in the uk are considering either moving abroad or leaving the industry entirely due to inadequate compensation and possibly better opportunities elsewhere. see also: how much do vets get paid? (salary vs debt) we are experiencing record levels of inflation globally, which naturally impacts the cost of living and consequently the operational costs within the veterinary sector. from rising utility bills that have some practices worried about keeping the lights on to increased prices for essential drugs and medical supplies, veterinary clinics are under financial pressure. these necessary but costly expenditures directly impact the fees charged to pet parents. it's a stretch of business economics that sees inevitable price adjustments in response to increased operational costs. a significant shift in the ownership and management of veterinary practices has been the move towards corporatization. large corporations are steadily acquiring more veterinary clinics. this transition from small, independent practices to large, corporate ones could result in various changes in how services are rendered. on the one hand, some corporate groups have raised the minimum pay for veterinary nurses, which is a positive development. they may also improve working conditions, by taking steps like ensuring everyone gets a lunch break (seriously, in the veterinary industry this is often seen as an unobtainable luxury!). on the other hand, the corporatization may very well be reducing local competition, shifting targets to pure financial over patient care, often leads to questions about the reallocation of profits and pressures on veterinary staff to meet specific financial targets, potentially at the cost of patient care. veterinary medicine has seen considerable advancements over the decades. unlike the "good old days" where the approach to veterinary care was perhaps simpler and less equipped, today's veterinary practices involve sophisticated techniques and technologies ranging from ultrasound and ct scans to comprehensive in house laboratories. these advancements, while drastically improving the standard of care, come with high costs. maintaining well stocked and staffed facilities is expensive but essential for providing immediate and effective veterinary care. see also: the best veterinary care is killing pets (but it doesn't have to) an unintended consequence of the criticisms directed at veterinarians is the practice of "defensive medicine." this involves veterinarians recommending extensive, sometimes “unnecessary”, diagnostic tests to protect against potential complaints and legal issues. this defensive stance inevitably increases the costs for pet parents and can complicate straightforward cases. see also: not one more vet   the tragic reality of veterinary suicide one potential solution to the high costs of advanced veterinary care is pet insurance. however, the effectiveness of insurance is limited by the policies that require pet owners to pay upfront and seek reimbursement later, which can be challenging for many families. innovations in processing insurance claims, possibly through ai, could streamline this aspect in the future, making high quality vet care more accessible. see also: the facts about pet insurance every pet parent should know amid these complex dynamics, building a trusting relationship with your veterinarian is crucial. such trust allows for open dialogues about available care options that align with both the pet's needs and the owner's financial capability. this symbiosis between veterinarians and pet parents is foundational to navigating the intricate world of pet healthcare. as both a vet and an advocate for sustainable pet care practices, i believe addressing these challenges requires a multi faceted approach involving clearer communication, industry regulation adjustments, and perhaps most importantly, mutual understanding and respect between pet owners and veterinary professionals. let's continue this conversation and work towards solutions that uphold the health and welfare of our beloved pets, ensuring that the veterinary profession remains both a viable and a fulfilling field. see also: why every pet parent must get to know their veterinarian the following is an ai generated transcription: dr. alex: there are some seriously big problems within the pet health care space that affect your pet. they affect you as the pet parent, and they also affect everyone who actually works in the veterinary industry. and it's going to be easy for you to leave comments below that are vet bashing, are blaming, but that actually, as you'll hear later, is in a way part of the problem. and we all have a responsibility to fix this. so grab a cuppa and let's jump in. and while what i'm going to discuss are a lot of the the the data and the figures that i'm going to discuss with you today are based from the uk. i mean, that's where i train, that's where i'm from. although, currently living and practicing in new zealand, these issues are global. dr. alex: they're worldwide. i see them time and again in comments from frustrated, from upset pet parents on these youtube videos. i see it in the press from different countries. it's just a global issue. but what really, i guess, triggered this video, me making this video was reading a report that in the uk in the last 12 months, a third oh, sorry. a 25% of vet staff have received absolutely no pay rise. and then a third again have received a pay rise between 1 5%. now that really doesn't fit into the narrative that is also going on at the moment about vets being only in it for the money, being greedy, charging ridiculous fees to line their own pockets. dr. alex: added to this report was the fact that actually half of all veterinary professionals, so that's going to be vets, but also nurses and other people working in the industry in the uk were open to moving abroad, moving overseas, leaving the veterinary industry in the uk. again, that doesn't fit into a narrative of vets just raking it in, being in it for the money and fleecing pet parents at every opportunity. now that's not to say that costs haven't increased, and that's not to say that there aren't issues. and i'm going to discuss some of those issues in just a little bit. but when you read posts, when you hear stories and they are attacking individual vets, you know, maybe we need to think that the comp that the situation is a little bit more complicated the uk veterinary industry for exorbitant prices effectively, and they received a record number of submissions from concerned pet parents about the increase in the cost of veterinary care over recent years. there's a big corporatization, issue going on issue. is it an issue? well, i discussed that in a little bit as well, but i think it was found that about 36% of, clients of corporate practices felt that the costs had climbed significantly in the last year or so compared with, a 26% of clients of more traditionally owned veterinary practices. but that's still a fairly significant increase in prices that people are absolutely feeling. dr. alex: clearly, this is then kind of factored into the fact that we are record inflation. certainly things hopefully seem to be coming down at the moment, but there's been record inflation levels. so the cost of living for everyone is being pushed right up, but that's actually doesn't fit in with the fact that vets have not been in vets and their staff have not received the pay rises to match inflation. so it could be argued and certainly very easily argued that veterinary industry professionals are being paid less than they were a few years back in relative terms because they've either had no pay rise in the last 12 months or that pay rise at 1 to 5% hasn't matched the rate of inflation. so when we then need to think about when we see the prices of veterinary healthcare go up over and above this rate of inflation. where are those prices going now? of course, there have been huge issues with just something like the provision of power in the uk. and i've heard the the the power bills of some practices have have doubled. they've gone up to astronomical levels to to such a degree where actually they were worried about being able to pay their power bills. dr. alex: cost of supplies, costs of all of the goodies that are needed to provide advanced levels of veterinary care have gone up. cost of drugs have gone up as well. where the competition commission or where the report is investigating at the moment is partly in the cost of drugs because the cost of drugs from your veterinary clinic is likely significantly higher than maybe you can get in an online pharmacy. and that report, i mean, it doesn't surprise me. it reminds me of a couple of situations really just around the time when i graduated. and i can't remember whether it was just before or just after, there was another competition report into the provision of veterinary medicines effectively saying that veterinarians had a monopoly and were overcharging for the medications. the nuance of that report though said that actually they were undercharging for their professional fees. so the, the cost of the surgery, the actual time that was charged out was undervalued. dr. alex: and actually that the cost to the client should pretty much remain the same, but that balance should be redressed. so the cost of of drugs should come down and the cost of the the professional fees should go up. and i think we're still actually in a situation where that is the case. we are or practices are potentially over reliant on the sale of medications or pharmaceuticals, subsidizing professional fees. i certainly know that we have, a situation in a lots of cases where our nursing team, for example, are providing hours of hospital care and and their time is actually not being charged. it's being, kind of wrapped up in a hospitalization fee and that will be a daily or an overnight hospitalization fee. you know? and you know, and that's just one example where the traditional pricing model is maybe quite broken. the other thing that this report reminds me of is i remember not soon out of, vet school, someone came to me and said, look, i can buy this bottle of medication for for this price. dr. alex: and at that point in time, i could actually see what, we as a clinic bought that bottle for. and we couldn't even buy it for as cheap as our client was able to buy it from an online, pharmacy. and, you know, it'll be no surprise that we've got economies of of scale here. if you've got a faceless warehouse that employs skeleton staff and is stacked high, they can buy in in huge bulk and their overheads are really low. so it's no surprise then that they can provide that medication cheaper for your veterinary clinic to stock, a pharmacy, to have a well stocked pharmacy with all of the potential drugs that might be needed. you know, that is expensive. things will go out of date because they're not used and those costs have to be recouped, you know, and it's important that a vet clinic has a well stocked pharmacy because you can't always wait 2, 3 days, even 24 hours, even 12 hours might be too much of a wait for a critical drug. but there's clearly a balance to be struck here, and you're well within your right to to shop around and look for cheaper, medication. dr. alex: there's there's absolutely no problem with that. clearly, it needs to be from a reliable pharmacy as well. there are, lots of unreliable pharmacies. there's kind of a black market in pet pharmaceuticals, and you may actually not be getting what you believe you are and the safety and the storage and all that kind of thing. you know, you need to be sure that you're going to a reputable place. and there are various schemes across the world that that will will allow you to be sure that that is the case. and then i guess this discussion of, you know, the nursing care that i've just mentioned actually leads really nicely into just thinking about how much veterinary care, how much modern veterinary care takes in terms of personnel and in terms of equipment. you know, we, i often hear harking back to the good old days or, you know, 20 years ago, my, you know, my vet did x, y or zed on a shoestring. dr. alex: it didn't cost me very much. and we put our rose tinted glasses on. we think back to the, the kind of the halcyon days where, you know, your vet would jump out of bed in the middle of the night and, you know, provide care to your pet for, you know, no money at all. but really the old the old ways of veterinary medicine, steroids, antibiotics, you know, and and and not very much else. there was, you know, very little anesthetic monitoring and and clearly i'm doing i don't mean to be doing a disservice to all of the excellent work that was done, but but it bears no relation to today. when i was a vet student and seeing practice, you know, i saw practice in a clinic that had no qualified nursing staff. the vet was, monitoring their own anesthetic while they were doing the surgery. they were using much older, less reliable, less safe equipment. dr. alex: there was no anesthetic monitoring involved at all. clearly, a much cheaper way to provide a surgical experience, a surgical service for their patients. but times have moved on, and that's really not acceptable for the majority of pet parents and for the majority of veterinary professionals as well. we'd not be comfortable providing that level of care. you know, the the fact that there was no qualified staff, animals would be left in kennels unsupervised for long periods of time. there were x rays, but there was certainly no ultrasound. there was no ct scanner. there was very poor in house lab equipment, if any, you know, there might have been a microscope and nothing more than that. dr. alex: so everything had to be sent away, and it would take a week or so to get results back. now a lot of clinics, i would say, probably most clinics, and, clearly, this is gonna depend on where you are in the world, will have a comprehensive practice laboratory where i can take a blood sample at the start of a consultation and 15 minutes later, i've got the results in front of me that i'm discussing with you, and we are making decisions based on those results. that is an amazing level of care if you think about it, but those machines are eye wateringly expensive. their maintenance costs, their ongoing costs are huge. the training needed to, you know, provide that level of care is also huge. ct scanning is, i guess, a modern equivalent where that really is unusual, but more and more practices are putting ct scanners into their clinics because it can provide some incredibly valuable information when it comes to diagnosing problems. but again, the cost of those are eye watering. and i was on a, a forum the other day and and someone was saying that because of these changes, they've had to get new doors for their imaging suite so they need to be lead lined of a certain depth, and all that kind of thing to keep everybody safe and a single door was costing 10,000 pounds it kind of boggles your mind how much this, you know, this equipment costs and the ongoing cost of maintenance and everything like i save. dr. alex: and and that's not to mention the training that the staff need to to actually be able to use all of that kit. that aside, even providing for simple routine procedures. so i'm thinking our, castration, our spay, our lump removal, the amount of personnel required to provide the level of care that you quite rightly demand and expect is huge. for a simple procedure, you're going to have 1 vet and and probably 2 nursing nurse members of nursing team who are highly trained qualified individuals as well. it's going to be very unusual that there are unqualified staff providing, anesthetic monitoring, for example. that's something that you need to be aware of and that the the the title of vet nurse or vet technician isn't protected everywhere. so you can't take it for granted that they are qualified, but but most will be. so that's 3 members of highly trained veterinary staff that are required for a for a simple and inverted commas operation. dr. alex: the other day, even just yesterday, in fact, actually, i was, just walking past the theater and one of the other vets was, about to embark on a particular surgery. and there were 2 vets and 4 nurses in that room at one point in time. and that was the number of personnel that were required to make sure that the patient was kept as safe as possible, to actually make sure that the surgery was carried out as quickly and as safely as possible. and that is a huge input of man hours and clearly the costs involved with that are significant. so with all this in mind, would you be happy to go back to the days where you know, your vet probably didn't really have a chat about what the options were? they just gave you some medication, told you to get on with it. they didn't have any equipment. they weren't using trained staff to assist them. would you be happy with that? would you be liable to to complain if things went wrong? i suspect that that's probably the case and quite rightly, i don't think that's an acceptable level of care. dr. alex: we demand the the level of care that we can receive in the human health industry. and actually, in the veterinary industry, we are getting to a stage where we can absolutely provide that level of care. now, my job as a vet, all that being said is to work with pet parents to, to be able to provide the best level of care within the means that are affordable for them because ct scanning, mri scanning, you know, advanced surgery, really invasive diagnostics or a long diagnostic pathway, complicated treatment plan are going to be out of reach of of many people, but there is often a plan b or c or d, and that is my job to to come up with those to work with the resources that are available to me to to reach the best outcome for for that family and for that pet. and so that conversation with your vet, that trust that you have with your vet is is incredibly important, especially as the options increase, but the cost of those options also increase. and then the other factor that i wanted to discuss today, that i hinted at at the beginning is is this blame culture. so, you know, i say, would you be happy with that lower level of care or would you be, you know, quick to to complain and even launch an official complaint against, a vet or against a clinic if the the level of care was perceived to be substandard? and, you know, there are i'm not saying that don't complain if things go wrong, if things haven't been done properly, then absolutely it's your right to to to get the level of care that that you demand and that you expect to have all the options explained to you to know where those might lead, to know what the potential complications are, you know, and all of these other factors kind of around that. but i can tell you now that the morale in the veterinary industry is, is really low because there is so much vet bashing that goes on. and even for, you know, the vast majority of vets who aren't on social media, who aren't putting themselves on platforms like this, where, you know, i expect to get, a lots of negative comments because that's just what people do in the comments section, but it really does get people down and it also makes people very, very worried about having a complaint against them. dr. alex: and this leads to something called defensive medicine. we practice defensive medicine which is where i am so concerned that someone is going to complain because of something that i didn't do. even if we had the discussion about why that wasn't appropriate, that i am going to literally recommend every single thing that we can do to rule out the really unlikely possibility that there's this really rare problem going on. and this comes back to trust with your, with your veterinary team, to, to knowing, to knowing your vet clinic, to getting a relationship with your vets. because if, for example, i have a young labrador that comes in to see me, they've vomited once, owner's a little bit concerned but the dog is otherwise bright, they're happy, they have not got any diarrhea. on examination, they're not dehydrated, they're not sore in their abdomen, they don't have any lumps or bumps that i can feel. there's a couple of options here. we could say, well, in all likelihood, you know, your dog's eaten something, it's disagreed with them. dr. alex: you know, let's maybe try some anti nausea medication and see how we go over the next 24, 48 hours. if there's, if there's more vomiting, if your dog becomes unwell, then come back and see me and we can do some more investigations. in my mind, that is probably the most acceptable option, but it's a labrador. it's a young labrador. maybe, it's been known to eat things in the past. so there is the possibility that there is something big that's been eaten, a stone. i had a dog with a stone the other day that he had eaten a big massive stone. i don't know why dogs do that, but hey ho. dr. alex: it could have eaten a stone, it could have chewed up a toy and it could have something in its stomach or in its intestine that could cause an obstruction. and that is why that dog has vomited. many vets or some vets may actually recommend in spite of that clinical exam that doesn't suggest that may suggest an x ray or may suggest a blood test because, well, it could be they've eaten something and that's causing problem with the kidneys and we want to get onto that really early. it's not very likely. in fact, it's very, very unlikely, but why don't we do a blood test and an x ray just to rule that out so that we can then give medication safe in the knowledge that we're not in inverted commas, missing anything. so you can see how that i hope you can see how that train of thought goes and i can present that to you in a way that makes it seem really necessary because i'm so worried about to complain that i feel that this is necessary. so it's not it's not over selling. it's not upselling from a financial benefit point of view. dr. alex: it's me trying to cover all basis so that there is no way that i can have a complaint against the level of care that i'm providing. but clearly that blood test, that x ray comes at a significant cost. so rather than a consultation and a few medications, you've probably looking at 2, 3, 4 times the cost with having all of these other bases covered. and then this also potentially leads on to the of the veterinary industry. we have gone from a situation where most practices were owned by kind of owner operated run if you like. they were owned by veterinarians. it was only veterinarians who could actually own and run a veterinary clinic. and maybe they owned 1 clinic, maybe they had 10 or 20 clinics, but ultimately they were run by vets. dr. alex: and there were issues with that. why not vet nurses? why not, practice managers? and that certainly changed as well. but we've gone from an issue where we were lots of small independent clinics to some really big corporations, and that's, you know, in the uk, i think there are maybe 6 big, corporate practices and it can be very hard to know whether an individual vet clinic is part of a particular group or if they're independent, you can certainly ask them and they'll let you know. but from an their online presence, it might be very hard to know that that's the case. same situation in, you know, in other parts of the world. venture capital groups are buying up vet clinics because they see them as a good way to make money through quantity. but that also leads to pressure on members of staff to, to meet certain targets that are maybe not based on health, but are more based on the bottom line. there's also issues with maybe where are the profits going because if the staff members are not seeing an increase in their pay to match inflation, but the the the costs of the bill to you, the pet parent, have gone up by significantly more than that cost of inflation, then, you know, where are those funds being redistributed to? you know, i i don't know for sure. dr. alex: i've not read reports, you know, shareholder reports and things that will probably outline that maybe, but, you know, there's certainly issues there. now corporate practice isn't all bad for the people who work within the the industry. there are potentially some benefits. one benefit for example, and i say about pay, but actually our nursing staff have traditionally been paid incredibly poorly. but one group, and i'm not sure if others have followed, have recently, you know, announced that their minimum pay for vet nurses is going to go up by quite a significant degree. so that, you know, that's wonderful news, but really they're only getting paid, you know, what they're worth, if that, and i'd say probably not even that there's definite room when we think of the the when i think of the caliber of vet nurses out there in the uk, the, the, the minimum requirements requirements just to become a vet nurse and then the standard of care that they provide, you know, they're definitely underappreciated, i think generally, but also in terms of financial remuneration as well. but all this leads to problems with affordability of vet care and insurance is definitely one way to afford vet care, but there are issues within the insurance industry as well. know, the problem with having insurance is that you generally need to actually pay for that care at the time it's provided and then claim those costs back, which is all very well and good if you've got, you know, 1,000 of pounds, 1,000 of dollars in the bank. dr. alex: but if you don't, then how do you actually get that money to pay the bill in the 1st place to then be able to claim back? and here it's very easy to say, well, that's, you know, they just need to, you know, accept direct payment from the insurance company because insurance companies provide that. and yes, they do provide that. and yes, some vet clinics will allow that the bill to be paid by the insurance company. but this is a situation where the majority ruin it for the minority and the eye of literally had situations where we have submitted a claim form. it was going to be paid, agreed to be paid directly to the vet clinic, but the owner has then called up the insurance company and said, oh, actually can you pay me instead, because i paid the vet bill myself, they didn't. they've then been paid the money for the insurance claim, have done a runner never to be seen again. and so effectively the vet clinic has paid for the treatment of their animal and they've made money. now that's an extreme example, but it happens. dr. alex: or it will be that, you know, it's felt that insurance cover should cover a certain procedure, but actually they get declined because there's an unknown preexisting condition that that vet clinic wasn't aware of. and then the owner is not able to to afford the care that was provided after the event. you know, this is a real big issue. but it's a really, i guess i would be hopeful that in the near future that there's going to be some disruption to this industry because i can see a situation where something like ai is used to assess insurance claims. they're able to do that virtually instantly. and so from submitting a invoice with an insurance claim to the vet clinic being paid could be a matter of 5, 10 minutes, even faster. it could be almost instant. and if that's the case, then that will be wonderful because then the pet parent will just have to pay their premium and they won't have to worry about paying for any other costs other than excesses and all that kind of thing. dr. alex: so watch this space. i hope that things will change. i'd love to hear your thoughts of how insurance could change, of the vet industry, how that can change, maybe how, you've felt you've been you've you've had options discussed with you. you know, what is your relationship with your vet clinic? don't just leave vet bashing comments. if you've come this far, then you probably won't. they probably all came a minute in if people even watched a minute. but i'd love to hear your comments, constructive comments. i'd love have a discussion with you about this because the situation is not perfect. dr. alex: it's not perfect for our pets. it's not perfect for you, the pet parent, and it's not perfect for for people who are working within the industry. there's a lot of rhetoric. there's a lot of us and them from from all industry. there's a lot of rhetoric. there's a lot of us and them from from all sides, and that's really not very helpful. and this is why i say that having a trusting relationship with your vet is absolutely key to your pet getting the best care that you would want for them. and i discuss that more in this video linked on screen. dr. alex: so tap on that video. i look forward to reading your thoughts on this one and until the next time, i'm veterinarian doctor alex. this is our pet's health because they're family. the number one podcast for dedicated pet parents, just like you, who want to understand and optimize the health of their furry family…so they can live the healthy, long, and happy life you want for them! we are a participant in the amazon associates program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to amazon and affiliated sites.

the way we care for our pets has undergone a remarkable transformation over the years, moving from basic needs fulfillment to a comprehensive approach that encompasses physical, mental, and emotional well being. this chapter explores the historical perspective on pet care, modern advancements, the rise of pet insurance, and the impact of technology, providing insights into the factors that have shaped the current landscape of pet care. historically, pet care was largely functional, focusing on the health and hygiene necessary to keep pets alive and well. veterinary care was rudimentary, with limited understanding of animal health beyond basic treatments for common ailments. pets were often valued for their utility rather than companionship, with dogs serving as protectors or hunters and cats keeping vermin populations under control. as societal views on animal welfare and pet ownership evolved, so too did the approach to pet care. the 20th century saw significant advancements in veterinary medicine, including the development of vaccines, surgical techniques, and a deeper understanding of animal nutrition and behavior. these advancements laid the groundwork for the modern pet care industry, transforming pets from workers or guards into cherished family members. "in the eyes of millennials, the well being of their beloved pets reigns supreme. their decisions regarding veterinary care, preferences, and aspirations revolve around ensuring their furry companions lead a content and thriving life. for this generation, peace of mind is paramount, and their vet isn't just a healthcare provider but a trusted confidant. millennials understand the pivotal role vets play in safeguarding their pet's health and happiness, cementing a close bond built on trust and mutual respect." brian fletcher, vp consulting today, pet healthcare encompasses a wide range of services that would have been unimaginable a few decades ago. veterinary medicine now includes specialties such as oncology, cardiology, and neurology, reflecting a level of care that rivals human healthcare in complexity and sophistication. preventative care, including regular check ups, vaccinations, and dental care, is emphasized to extend pets’ lives and improve their quality of life. telemedicine has also emerged as a significant advancement, allowing pet owners to consult with veterinarians remotely. this has been particularly valuable in improving access to veterinary care for remote or underserved populations and during times when in person visits may not be feasible, such as the recent global pandemic. parallel to advancements in healthcare are developments in pet insurance. once a rarity, pet insurance has become increasingly common, reflecting both the rising costs of veterinary care and the value owners place on their pets’ health. insurance policies now offer coverage for a wide range of treatments, including surgeries, chronic conditions, and even alternative therapies, making comprehensive care more accessible for pet owners. technology has revolutionized pet care, with apps, wearables, and other digital tools making it easier for owners to monitor and manage their pets’ health. fitness trackers for pets monitor activity levels, sleep patterns, and even vital signs, helping owners keep a closer eye on their pet’s well being. apps provide reminders for medication, appointments, and feeding schedules, while online platforms offer a wealth of information on pet health, behavior, and nutrition. wearables and smart home devices can also enhance pets’ safety, with gps trackers to locate lost pets and cameras to monitor them while owners are away. these technologies empower owners to provide a level of care that was once impossible, further deepening the bond between pets and their human companions. "in the world of pet care, most opportunities are connected to vets. millennials and gen z feel they lack knowledge about how to prevent health issues in their pets and want more info from their vet. they prefer one stop shops for all their pet's needs, like medical care, grooming, and boarding, but they want it from their current vet, not big companies. they find telehealth interesting but mostly for getting advice from their vet, not for actual checkups where they want hands on care. many boomers and less involved pet owners see vet care as too expensive. they feel it's only necessary for emergencies, finding extra tests and costs unnecessary. so, they avoid vet visits, even skipping mandatory shots for cats." ron raskin, ceo the evolution of pet care reflects a broader shift in societal attitudes towards animals, emphasizing their welfare and the importance of their well being. as we continue to learn and grow alongside our pets, the future of pet care promises even greater advancements, ensuring that our furry, feathered, and scaled friends receive the love and care they deserve. in the next chapter, we’ll explore the nutritional revolutions in pet food, highlighting how research and innovation have transformed what we feed our pets. seeking to tap into consumer insights and trends in the pet care industry? our team of experts is here to guide you through the latest developments shaping consumer preferences and behaviors. whether you’re a veterinarian, retailer, insurer, or part of the broader pet care community, our comprehensive insights can help you stay ahead of the curve. contact us today to unlock valuable insights and position your business for success in the dynamic world of pet care while glp medications disrupt traditional health and wellness models, they also present unique opportunities for… read more as consumers increasingly prioritize health and wellness, generational preferences and behaviors are driving a… read more the new year has traditionally marked a boom period for the health and wellness industry. with consumers setting… read more when you think about gift giving, you might picture neatly wrapped packages under a tree or a sentimental birthday… read more privacy terms ©2023 insights in marketing. all rights reserved

home • knowledge hub • global trends in preventive healthcare for pets. the global pet care market is booming, driven by a profound shift in how people view and care for their pets. pets are increasingly considered family members, leading to higher investments in their health and well being. this trend is reflected in the market’s impressive growth, valued at usd 304.4 billion in 2023 and projected to grow at a cagr of 6.8%, reaching usd 545.7 billion by 2032. this surge is also fueled by the rising demand for premium pet products, advanced healthcare solutions, and innovative digital health platforms that cater to the evolving needs of pet owners. preventive healthcare for pets has become an essential component of this market. much like in human healthcare, preventive measures in pet care such as regular veterinary check ups, vaccinations, balanced diets, and wellness products are crucial in detecting and addressing potential health issues early on. this proactive approach helps pets lead healthier and longer lives and offers significant cost savings by avoiding expensive treatments for advanced health problems. understanding the trends and consumer behaviours in preventive pet healthcare is vital for industry stakeholders from veterinarians and pet product manufacturers to digital health platform developers to cater to pet owners’ evolving needs. the pet care market is experiencing a notable shift toward preventive healthcare, with pet owners increasingly investing in products and services that maintain and enhance their pets’ health. a significant portion of this billion dollar pet industry is now dedicated to preventive health measures such as regular veterinary visits, vaccinations, and health monitoring technologies​. this trend is reflected in the growing popularity of premium pet food, supplements, and wellness products designed to prevent health issues before they arise. pet humanisation is a primary driver of the increased demand for preventive healthcare in the pet industry. pet owners are treating their pets more like family members, leading to higher expenditures on health and wellness products. this trend is especially pronounced in western countries, where pet owners are willing to invest in premium products and services that promote their pets’ long term health. awareness of pet health and wellness is on the rise globally. pet owners are becoming more knowledgeable about the importance of preventive care, driven by educational campaigns from veterinarians, pet product companies, and animal health organisations. this increased awareness has led to a surge in demand for products such as specialised diets, health supplements, and routine veterinary care, which are crucial for maintaining pet health and preventing diseases. the rise in pet ownership worldwide is another significant factor driving the demand for preventive healthcare solutions. urbanisation, changing lifestyles, and the companionship offered by pets have increased pet adoption rates. this growth in the pet population has, in turn, boosted the market for preventive healthcare products and services as new pet owners seek to ensure the well being of their pets from the start​. the pet care market in western countries is well established, strongly emphasising preventive healthcare. high disposable incomes, advanced veterinary services, and a cultural inclination toward pet pampering drive the demand for high quality preventive care products. for instance, the north american pet care market is highly advanced, with a significant focus on premiumisation and high spending on pet health and wellness​​. our most recent study, “overcoming vet challenges: unveiling opportunities for animal health brands” in the uk, highlighted that 78% of pet owners consider preventive healthcare essential for their pets. the study found that regular veterinary visits and preventive treatments are prioritised, with pet owners willing to spend more on high quality care to ensure their pets remain healthy and happy​. this trend underscores the deep bond between pets and their owners in western countries and the lengths owners will go to provide the best care possible. in contrast, the pet care market in asia is rapidly growing but still developing in many regions. countries like china, japan, and india are witnessing a surge in pet ownership and an increasing awareness of pet health. however, cultural differences and varying economic conditions mean that the market for preventive healthcare products is not as mature as in western countries. nevertheless, the growing middle class and increased urbanisation drive demand for better pet care products and services, leading to significant growth opportunities in the region.​​ digital health platforms are revolutionising the pet healthcare industry by offering innovative solutions that enhance preventive care. these platforms leverage technology to provide accessible, real time health monitoring, diagnostic services, and communication between pet owners and veterinarians. by integrating digital tools into pet healthcare, these platforms help in the early detection of health issues, continuous monitoring of pets’ well being, and efficient management of preventive care routines. image credit: practo background practo is one of the leading digital health platforms in india, established to bridge the gap between patients and healthcare providers. it offers a range of services including online consultations, appointment bookings, health records management, and a digital health marketplace. strategy/approach outcomes/results image credit: petpacebackground petpace, a health monitoring platform for pets, uses advanced wearable technology to track vital signs and health metrics in real time. it aims to provide comprehensive health monitoring solutions for pets, focusing on early detection of health issues. strategy/approach: outcomes/results: western countries: high adoption rates: digital health platforms are widely adopted in countries like the u.s., canada, and the u.k., driven by high disposable incomes, advanced veterinary infrastructure, and a strong culture of pet humanisation. challenges: despite high adoption, challenges include data privacy concerns, user education on new technologies, and ensuring accessibility for all socio economic groups. asia: growing adoption: countries like china, japan, and india are witnessing a surge in adopting digital health platforms for pets, fueled by increasing pet ownership and rising awareness of pet health. challenges: economic disparities, varying levels of technological infrastructure, and cultural differences pose challenges to widespread adoption. in many regions, the focus is still on basic pet care rather than advanced preventive solutions. preventive healthcare solutions can lead to significant cost savings for pet owners by reducing the need for expensive treatments for advanced health issues. regular check ups, vaccinations, and early detection of potential health problems can prevent the development of severe conditions that require costly interventions. for example, a simple dental cleaning can prevent periodontal disease, which, if left untreated, can lead to more serious health problems requiring extensive veterinary care​​. preventive healthcare measures ensure that pets maintain optimal health throughout their lives. regular health monitoring, a balanced diet, and timely vaccinations contribute to pets’ overall well being. healthy pets are more active, have better immune responses, and enjoy a higher quality of life. for instance, wearable devices like petpace collars help early detection of health issues, allowing for prompt treatment and enhancing the pet’s quality of life​​. knowing that their pets are receiving the best preventive care provides peace of mind. digital health platforms that offer continuous health monitoring and telemedicine services allow pet owners to stay informed about their pets’ health status and seek professional advice whenever necessary. this reassurance is invaluable, especially for pet owners who view their pets as family members​​. preventive healthcare solutions often come with educational resources and support systems for pet owners. many digital health platforms provide access to information about pet health, nutrition, and preventive care practices. platforms like practo and vetster offer resources and guidance to help pet owners make informed decisions about their pets’ health. this education empowers pet owners to maintain their pets’ health proactively​. case study: mars petcare’s expansion into china image credit: mars petcare us based mars petcare is a leading provider of pet nutrition and health products, with a significant presence in the global pet care market. the division includes well known brands such as pedigree, whiskas, royal canin, and iams. the brand has been expanding its presence in the asian market, particularly in china. as pet ownership continues to grow rapidly in china, driven by urbanisation and changing lifestyles, mars saw an opportunity to cater to the rising demand for high quality pet care products and services. by leveraging their global expertise and adapting to local needs, mars petcare has successfully expanded into the chinese market, setting a precedent for other companies looking to enter emerging asian markets. this case study highlights the importance of market research, localised strategies, and partnerships in achieving successful market penetration and growth. the future of preventive healthcare for pets looks promising, with continuous innovations and growing awareness among pet owners driving the market forward. by leveraging advanced technologies and focusing on personalised care, the industry can ensure that pets lead healthier and happier lives. preventive healthcare for pets is essential for ensuring their long term health and well being. pet owners can help their pets lead healthier and happier lives by focusing on prevention rather than treatment. regular veterinary check ups, vaccinations, proper nutrition, and health monitoring are critical preventive care components. these measures detect potential health issues early and prevent them from developing into more severe conditions that require extensive and costly treatments. advancements in digital health platforms, personalised nutrition plans, and health monitoring technologies have made preventive healthcare more accessible and effective. the integration of ai and big data is revolutionising the industry by providing personalised care recommendations and predictive analytics that enhance pet health management. as pet ownership continues to rise globally, the demand for these innovative preventive healthcare solutions will only grow. for veterinarians: for pet healthcare brands: by working together, veterinarians and pet healthcare brands can ensure that pets receive the best preventive care. this collaboration will lead to healthier and happier pets and create a more informed and proactive pet owner community. keep up to date with the latest insights from our research as well as all our company news in our free monthly newsletter. we’ve been working with kadence on a couple of strategic projects, which influenced our product roadmap roll out within the region. their work has been exceptional in providing me the insights that i need. kadence’s reports give us the insight, conclusion and recommended execution needed to give us a different perspective, which provided us with an opportunity to relook at our go to market strategy in a different direction which we are now reaping the benefits from. kadence helped us not only conduct a thorough and insightful piece of research, its interpretation of the data provided many useful and unexpected good news stories that we were able to use in our communications and interactions with government bodies. kadence team is more like a partner to us. we have run a number of projects together and … the pro activeness, out of the box thinking and delivering in spite of tight deadlines are some of the key reasons we always reach out to them. kadence were an excellent partner on this project; they took time to really understand our business challenges, and developed a research approach that would tackle the exam question from all directions. the impact of the work is still being felt now, several years later. 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importance of animals we share our world with billions of animals. many of them are raised on farms while others share our home as pets. they support economies, improve diets, provide companionship and more. explore the pages to the right and learn why our world relies on healthy animals. global challenges our planet is rapidly changing. the population is growing; more people are joining the middle class. all of them deserve good nutrition and health. explore the pages to the right and see how veterinarians working alongside farmers, researchers, and others can help us meet this challenge. resources sign up for our newsletter to for original articles, interviews, and infographics each month. read our antibiotics commitment to see how we support responsible use, or view the antibiotics faq to learn exactly how these medicines are used. visit the story of animal health or animal health matters to discover the value of health across the globe. life expectancy has risen by as much as 230% for pets in some nations. due to greater levels of vaccination, veterinary care, and improved awareness of the needs of pets. in care than ever before, but tools such as insurance could help where cost is a barrier. for pet care as free roaming or ‘community’ animals may lack a formal owner. for pet care as free roaming or ‘community’ animals may lack a formal owner. average life expectancy of u.s. dogs increased from 10.5 years to 11.8 years between 2002 and 2016, an increase of 11.4%.1https://www.reuters.com/article/us money pets longevity/your money as pets live longer they may need long term health care iduskcn11j25d in japan, dogs live 50% longer today than they did in the 1980s, while cats’ average life expectancy grew by 230% in the same period.2https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/09/14/national/science health/japans famed longevity extends even dogs cats/ one estimate found that overall, ‘dog life expectancy has doubled in the past 4 decades, and housecats now live twice as long as their feral counterpart’.3https://www.science.org/content/article/feature dog lives 300 years solving mysteries aging our pets each pet is different; however, researchers have identified key factors that are driving the overall increase in life expectancy such as: “what has increased is the preventative care   we have gone from treating individual conditions when they occur to preventing them in the first place.” data is scarce in many markets for vaccination levels. however, a survey in the u.s. and canada found that over 9 out of 10 veterinarians (91.5%) said they have clients who expressed concerns or refused core vaccines.4https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmc7877678/ furthermore, the uk paws charity has maintained a multi year survey of pet owner attitudes and actions towards vaccination in the country. their results have shown: nearly 1 in 4 dogs (23%) are not vaccinated with regular boosters.5https://www.pdsa.org.uk/media/12078/pdsa paw report 2021.pdf 39% of cats are not receiving regular booster vaccines.6https://www.pdsa.org.uk/media/12078/pdsa paw report 2021.pdf owners stated one of the top reasons not vaccinating was “it’s not necessary.”7https://www.pdsa.org.uk/media/4371/paw 2018 full web ready.pdf although the risk of disease transfer from pets to people remains very low in most countries, diseases like rabies remain a persistent threat in developing markets. rabies remains responsible for around 59,000 human deaths every year, with half of these in children under the age of 15.8https://www.who.int/health topics/rabies dogs account for about 99 percent of all rabies transmissions to humans, with the overall annual cost of rabies estimated at about $8.6 billion each year.9https://www.who.int/news room/fact sheets/detail/rabies india is the most affected country, accounting for about 20,000 rabies death each year.10https://www.who.int/india/health topics/rabies read our section on ‘pet health in developing markets‘ to learn more. despite this, the incidence of infectious zoonotic diseases from pets remains very low in most developed markets. data from the u.s. centers for disease control and prevention (cdc) suggests that very few zoonotic outbreaks originate in dogs and cats.11https://www.cdc.gov/healthypets/outbreaks.html#dogs “six out of 10 infectious diseases are zoonotic but fortunately, of all the zoonotic diseases, very few come from dogs and cats.” fleas, ticks and worms remain a common and continual issue for many pets: heartworm prevalence can be as high as 28% in dog populations, while testing in cats found 19% with evidence of an active or previous infection.12https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/s2590138920300059 85% of dog parks visited in u.s. metropolitan cities had at least one dog test positive for intestinal parasites. overall, 20% of tested dogs in the parks were positive.13https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32487211/ a uk study found 28.1% of randomly selected cats and 14.4% of dogs had fleas.14https://parasitesandvectors.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13071 019 3326 x some of these parasites (e.g giardia) are zoonotic and can be unintentionally transferred to the owner, which is why control of parasites improves ‘household health’. parasite prevention typically requires a regular parasiticide and consistent diagnostic testing (e.g. annually) to ensure any potential issues are detected early and minimize risk to the pet. an ageing population of pets is also bringing about new, unique health needs. much like in people, the risk of health problems such as cancer, liver disease, diabetes, senility and joint disease grow later in life. to counter these risks, veterinarians typically recommend:15https://www.avma.org/resources/pet owners/petcare/senior pet care faq monitoring tools and diagnostics are helping identify new risk factors for disease that allow veterinarians to take earlier preventative action. for instance, ‘big data’ tools can use aggregated diagnostic records across millions of animals to help identify subtle health changes that suggest onset of chronic illnesses. small animal veterinarians use these insights with patients to anticipate health issues, which is helping extend a pet’s lifespan. “we have done vaccination for many decades, but now have pet health plans, which a lot of clinics offer.” the pet industry is a major global sector. in the united states alone, consumers spent an estimated $123.6 billion in 2021 on pets and pet related products.16https://www.americanpetproducts.org/press_industrytrends.asp market analysts at morgan stanley estimate this may rise to $275 billion by 2037.17https://www.morganstanley.com/ideas/us pets investing trend in australia, aus$30.7 billion was spent on dogs and cats in 2021, with the bulk of spending going towards pet foods, veterinary services and healthcare products.18https://animalmedicinesaustralia.org.au/wp content/uploads/2021/08/amau005 patp report21_v1.41_web.pdf spending specifically on veterinary care is growing alongside the wider sector as well. in the uk, the annual expenditure on veterinary and other pet services rose from £2.6 billion in 2015 to £4 billion in 2021, a 54% increase in just six years.19https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/nationalaccounts/satelliteaccounts/timeseries/uvjx/ct in the united states, a survey of pet owners revealed that only approximately 40% dog and cat owners visit the veterinarian once a year.20https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmc7143178/ veterinary associations recommend all animals see a veterinarian regularly (annually or more), therefore there is an opportunity for greater investments in veterinary care in many areas. estimated u.s. consumer spending on pets and pet related products in the u.s. alone, pet owners $123.6 billion on their pets in 2021 with $34.3 billion going towards veterinary care and products (not including over the counter medicines).21https://www.americanpetproducts.org/press_industrytrends.asp over 50% of animal health products sold in 2021 were for pets, a switch from just 4 years prior (2017) when livestock products were the majority.22https://healthforanimals.org/about/our sector/ in the e.u. pet owners spend close to €22 billion on pet food each year with an average annual growth rate of 2.8%.23https://www.petfoodprocessing.net/articles/14863 european pet food market reaches 26 billion however, many pets   sometimes more than 50%   still do not see a veterinarian annually as indicated in owner surveys.24https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmc7143178/ recent data from the ‘human animal bond research institute’ (habri) shows that there may be an opportunity to address this issue by better communicating with owners on the value of their pet. for instance, habri has found that when owners understand the human animal bond better, they are more likely to take better care of their pet, bring them to the veterinarian regularly, etc.25https://habri.org/pet owners survey/#2021 survey “money is the biggest challenge that vets face the world over. if your choice is between feeding your family and taking the dog to the vet, there’s no discussion.” while a few countries have achieved notable growth, uptake of pet insurance remains generally low in both developed and emerging markets. the american veterinary medical association has noted that “having pet health insurance makes it more likely that owners will follow their veterinarian’s recommendations.”26https://www.avma.org/resources tools/practice management/pet health insurance good pets good practices “we’re going to see the market develop to a place where 10 15% of pets are insured in [the us].” free roaming and community owned dogs are common in some developing regions, with anecdotal evidence that only an estimated five percent of dogs have “owners” in developing nations, compared to the vast majority in developed nations.27https://www.humanesociety.org/sites/default/files/docs/slum dogs by the millions.pdf this creates key preventable disease challenges in developing countries include rabies, leptospirosis and leishmaniasis. lack of formal ownership can also lead to indiscriminate breeding and additional health burdens. income can be a key barrier to veterinary care and treatment in developing regions. less disposable income leads to less ability to access and afford veterinary care, which in turn may stunt the growth of the veterinary sector. this means even pet owners that seek out care may struggle to find an available small animal veterinarian in their area. “in a lot of developing and lower income countries, they have had more focus on livestock and production animal veterinary medicine, less for companion animals.” regulatory and trade barriers for new health products and commodities like pet foods are also common, preventing some products from entering markets where they are most needed. complex and differing regulatory processes in different countries, for instance, coupled with markets where regulations are currently underdeveloped, can often disincentivise companies from registering new products that would help improve pet health. a lack of expertise is another prevailing barrier, with insufficient numbers of veterinary professionals in developing markets. “another issue is access to veterinary pharmaceuticals. often these markets are small   it’s not a regulatory easy thing to do to get these medicines licensed in some countries.” this report is produced by healthforanimals, the global animal health association, and was informed by interviews with experts in the pet world. we thank the following people for their participation: alex douzet, dana brooks, edival santos, lawson cairns, leonardo brandao, marie jose enders, siraya chunkekamrai, shane ryan and wolfgang dohne. the information in this report focuses on dogs and cats as these are the overwhelming majority of pets, although other animals such as horses, birds and fish can be pets as well. healthforanimals represents the animal health sector: manufacturers of veterinary pharmaceuticals, vaccines and other animal health products throughout the world, as well as the associations that represent companies at national and regional levels (referred to as members). healthforanimals aisbl 9 13, rue d’idalie, box 5, 4th floor 1050, brussels, belgium info@healthforanimals.org

importance of animals we share our world with billions of animals. many of them are raised on farms while others share our home as pets. they support economies, improve diets, provide companionship and more. explore the pages to the right and learn why our world relies on healthy animals. global challenges our planet is rapidly changing. the population is growing; more people are joining the middle class. all of them deserve good nutrition and health. explore the pages to the right and see how veterinarians working alongside farmers, researchers, and others can help us meet this challenge. resources sign up for our newsletter to for original articles, interviews, and infographics each month. read our antibiotics commitment to see how we support responsible use, or view the antibiotics faq to learn exactly how these medicines are used. visit the story of animal health or animal health matters to discover the value of health across the globe. over 100,000 veterinarians are active in the u.s., however in a nation like kenya, the total may only be in the hundreds. however, developing markets focus on livestock and may lack the expertise for proper pet care. burnout and stress are on the rise across the profession. which hampered their ability to meet patient needs and provide quality service. with some evidence suggesting a notable prevalence, however more research is necessary. in veterinary clinics, particularly in the wake of the covid 19 pandemic, and surveys show 60%+ of pet owners are willing to pay for this service. sources 1germany, spain, france, russia, uk, italy, netherlands, eu 27: https://fve.org/publications/european veterinary survey 2018 future veterinarians younger and female/,2u.s.: https://www.avma.org/resources tools/reports statistics/market research statistics us veterinarians,3canada: https://www.canadianveterinarians.net/about/statistics,4australia: https://www.ava.com.au/policy advocacy/advocacy/workforce/workforce data/,5japan: https://www.oie.int/fileadmin/home/eng/support_to_oie_members/docs/pdf/20180727_final_oie_japan_pvs_report.pdf,6kenya: https://www.oie.int/app/uploads/2021/03/oie pvs evaluation report kenya.pdf,7south africa https://indd.adobe.com/view/fdd17e8b 3c65 4a47 a186 3550c5091cc2,8india: https://www.oie.int/app/uploads/2021/03/25022019 india pvs evaluation report final.pdf surveys indicate that the number of veterinarians for small animals represent the bulk of veterinarians in developed markets: in the uk, 52.6% of people working in the veterinary sector are at a small animal practice compared to just 3.2% working with farm animals.9https://www.rcvs.org.uk/news and views/publications/the 2019 survey of the veterinary profession/ three quarters of private u.s. veterinarians work predominantly or exclusively with pets.10https://www.avma.org/resources tools/reports statistics/market research statistics us veterinarians across europe, 67 percent of veterinarians, on average, work predominantly or exclusively in small animal practice.11https://fve.org/publications/european veterinary survey 2018 future veterinarians younger and female/ yes. despite rising numbers of in small animal veterinarians, it is not keeping pace with the record number of pets being adopted. the result is rapidly rising veterinary caseloads. almost half of practices worldwide reported an increase in a 91 country survey by the world small animal veterinary association.12https://academy wsava.thinkific.com/courses/wsavaseminar global impact of covid19 a veterinary workforce that does not keep pace with a rising pet populations ultimately puts intense strain on the individual veterinarian and their support staff. individuals may need to care for more animals, may have less time per appointment, etc., which can affect their relationship with clients and their personal mental health. rates of burnout ‘displayed a substantial increase’ from 2020 to 2021 during the covid pandemic and associated pet adoption boom.13https://www.dvm360.com/view/study demonstrates significant increase in veterinary burnout stress levels are rising amongst veterinarians, which is contributing to mental health issues occurring at levels higher than the general population, including suicide.14https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22008127/15https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2018/p1220 veterinarians suicide.html the uk royal college of veterinary surgeons found a majority of veterinary surgeons report experiencing conflict “between their personal well being and their professional roles.”16https://www.rcvs.org.uk/news and views/publications/impact of the covid 19 pandemic on veterinary nurses/ even before the covid 19 pandemic, only 48% of uk veterinarians told the royal college of veterinary surgeons that they “would still opt for the veterinary profession if they could start their career over again.”17https://www.rcvs.org.uk/news and views/publications/the 2019 survey of the veterinary profession/ this issue has grown since then and addressing it will be critical to the long term health of veterinarians and their patients. “in 2018, wsava launched a survey on wellness. a 36% on the stress scale pre pandemic became 64%. what follows is a drop in job satisfaction and plans to leave the workforce. this impacts mostly younger and female veterinarians.” in a survey conducted by the world small animal veterinary association (wsava), three quarters of veterinary associations surveyed indicated that access to veterinary medical products hampered their ability to meet the needs of their patients and provide quality service.18https://wsava.org/wp content/uploads/2020/01/wsava access to veterinary therapeutics survey report.pdf major reasons cited for lack of access to medicines included the regulatory environment in respondents’ countries, as well as manufacturer related issues, such as lack of interest due to smaller market sizes and subsequently higher product costs in those markets. the covid 19 pandemic also impacted access to medicines, despite veterinary practices in many countries being listed as “essential” services and exempt from many closures affecting other industries.19https://www.rcvs.org.uk/news and views/news/coronavirus bva and rcvs statement on changes to veterinary/ a quarter of pet owners said in 2020 the pandemic had made it harder to access medicines that were needed for their pets20https://healthforanimals.org/wp content/uploads/2021/06/global_pet_survey_results.pdf despite many countries’ efforts to safeguard veterinary service. more than one in 10 pets, or 13 percent, missed essential, routine treatments, according to a global pet owner survey.21https://healthforanimals.org/wp content/uploads/2021/06/global_pet_survey_results.pdf although the initial challenges from covid have abated, the growing ‘pandemic pet boom’ has created a new set of issues related to veterinary shortages and the ability to access care, which is covered in depth in section 3: trends in veterinary care. even prior to the covid 19 pandemic, vaccine hesitancy was on the rise among pet owners, hindering progress on pet health. more reliable, systemic data is essential to evaluate whether vaccine hesitancy is growing amongst pet owners, particularly in the wake of covid 19. the market for pet food and care products continues to grow around the world. in europe, the market is worth an estimated €22 billion a year, with pet health products valued at an additional €2.1 billion, and the industry employing around 300,000 people in total.22https://www.fecava.org/wp content/uploads/2019/03/2016_working towards responsible dog trade final draft.pdf “we have to become smarter when it comes to the use of antimicrobials   we will see more alternatives to the use of antibiotics and possibly other treatment forms.” the covid 19 pandemic saw more veterinary practices offering telemedicine: a global survey of pet owners’ a global pet owner survey conducted during the covid 19 pandemic also found that almost two thirds, or 60 percent, of all pet owners would be willing to pay for veterinary advice or consultation through telemedicine services.23https://healthforanimals.org/195 veterinary care experiences during covid 19 survey of pet owners.html despite this, many expect telemedicine use to recede in the wake of the covid 19 pandemic.24https://www.avma.org/javma news/2021 10 15/veterinarians still warming telemedicine one of the main challenges is continued regulatory and legal uncertainty in providing veterinary care via telemedicine platforms. the federation of veterinarians in europe “recommends its members allow the use of telemedicine”.25https://fve.org/publications/fve position and recommendations on the use of telemedicine/ achieving this goal in europe and other regions will require continued clarity for both animal owners and their veterinarian. “there is not a regulation for telemedicine for animal health in some countries so it was really complicated. brazil was one of them.” “we’re going to see the market develop to a place where 10 15% of pets are insured in [the us].” this report is produced by healthforanimals, the global animal health association, and was informed by interviews with experts in the pet world. we thank the following people for their participation: alex douzet, dana brooks, edival santos, lawson cairns, leonardo brandao, marie jose enders, siraya chunkekamrai, shane ryan and wolfgang dohne. the information in this report focuses on dogs and cats as these are the overwhelming majority of pets, although other animals such as horses, birds and fish can be pets as well. healthforanimals represents the animal health sector: manufacturers of veterinary pharmaceuticals, vaccines and other animal health products throughout the world, as well as the associations that represent companies at national and regional levels (referred to as members). healthforanimals aisbl 9 13, rue d’idalie, box 5, 4th floor 1050, brussels, belgium info@healthforanimals.org

from titer testing and better cancer treatment to pet insurance and the introduction of hemp oil, pet healthcare has improved by leaps and bounds over the last quarter century. when i started my practice 25 years ago, holistic healing was in its infancy. since then, i’ve seen many changes in the ways people care for their pets and how a more natural approach is contributing to some of these changes. in this article, i’ll look at five of the most important changes i’ve seen. 1. reduced vaccine protocols when i graduated from veterinary school in 1987, it seemed we employed every available vaccine for all pets that entered our doors. combatting infectious diseases was (and still is) a very important part of preventive care. parvoviral infections were still killing many unvaccinated puppies even though the vaccine itself was over ten years old. while holistic doctors are not against vaccines per se, we are against giving vaccines to pets who do not need them and will not benefit from them. research over a decade ago confirmed that we don’t need to give pets frequent vaccines. giving unnecessary vaccines increases the cost to the pet parent, does nothing to prevent disease, and may harm the pet by damaging the immune system. in place of vaccines, a simple and inexpensive blood titer test for the most important infectious diseases allows the pet’s body to tell us when it needs booster immunizations. more doctors are offering these inexpensive tests, and a growing number of boarding and grooming facilities accept them in place of traditional vaccines. adequate titers do not need boosting with another vaccine, whereas healthy pets with low or non existent titers may benefit from a booster. new research from my colleague dr. jean dodds confirms a practice most holistic doctors have employed for many years: adequate protection against infectious diseases can be achieved with half doses of vaccines. this is especially helpful for cats and smaller dogs that are more likely to experience vaccine reactions (did it ever make sense that the amount of vaccine needed for a three pound dog was the exact same dose given to a 150 pound dog?!). 2. better cancer testing and treatment all doctors have been seeing increased rates of cancer over the last 25 years. and now we’re seeing cancer in younger patients, even those under one year of age! why is this happening? we live in an increasingly toxic world, and poor breeding coupled with too many vaccines, pharmaceuticals, and bad diets containing by products and chemicals, damage the dna. we can only damage a dog or cat’s dna for so long before it mutates and causes cancer. reducing cancer risk by feeding better diets, minimizing the use of chemicals/vaccines/drugs, and maximizing the use of health supplements all go a long way to reducing the risk of cancer and other immune and infectious diseases. when i first started practicing, i was often asked by my clients if there were any simple tests for early cancer diagnosis. those tests didn’t exist then, but now, holistic doctors commonly test pets for cancer (looking at specific inflammatory markers) during their annual visits. the testing of dogs in my own practice shows that over 90% are abnormal! these results require more testing to determine the cause of the abnormalities, along with natural treatments to bring the pet back to health. the good news is that when cancer is discovered at this early stage it is often curable rather than simply treatable! additionally, regular abdominal ultrasounds, while more expensive than blood testing, can screen breeds prone to certain abdominal cancers (such as larger breeds that are more likely to develop hemangiosarcoma of the spleen and liver). this early intervention lets us diagnose cancer early and save lives. while cancer has become more prevalent, the good news is that we can do so much more for pets with cancer than was possible 25 years ago! while chemotherapy and radiation can be helpful in safely extending the lives of pets with selected cancers, natural therapies given to detoxify dogs and cats and support their immune systems can extend their lives. in my practice, cancer patients live 12 to 24 months (and more) longer than expected based upon a conventional prognosis, and cures are not uncommon when treated aggressively with an integrative approach! the natural approach works for all pets, especially those that wouldn’t respond to conventional treatment or that have owners who can’t afford the thousands of dollars needed to cover the costs of conventional treatments. 3. vitamin d supplementation i’ve been shocked by how many dogs are vitamin d deficient, based on blood testing (about 95% here in north texas). as in people, low vitamin d levels are linked to many serious diseases; some of these in our canine patients include heart disease, infectious illnesses like dog flu and kennel cough, and of course cancer and other immune dysfunctions. today, testing and treatment are easy and inexpensive, and supplementation is critical as dogs and cats do not get vitamin d from sunlight. 4. pet insurance as technology to help pets increases, so does the cost of care. fortunately, more pet parents are utilizing inexpensive pet insurance to decrease their costs up to 90%, making treatment affordable for most. in my practice, clients who have pet insurance are quick to allow us to help their pets and don’t have to worry about finding money to cover the cost of care. 5. medical grade hemp oil a source of cbd, medical grade hemp oil is now available for pets. we’ve known for many years that cells have cannabinoid receptors that respond positively when exposed to cbd, yet until recently we haven’t had a legal, high quality supplement to take advantage of these natural receptors. many pets with seizures, aging, arthritis, pain, and cancer can now be treated with this new natural therapy and many are very responsive to it. the last 25 years have seen some wonderful improvements in pet care. what do the next 25 years hold? i believe that we’ll soon be able to use a dog or cat’s dna to determine the best diet and supplements for him, and when medications are needed, we’ll be able to test him to find out which ones are most likely to be effective. stay tuned and see how integrative healthcare for dogs and cats evolves.

transcript this transcript was created using speech recognition software. while it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email transcripts@nytimes.com with any questions. [bark] uh oh. [bark] clementine, stop. [bark] oh, my gosh. sorry. she has thoughts. from “the new york times,” i’m sabrina tavernise, and this is “the daily.” over the past decade, the cost of veterinary care in the us has skyrocketed as health care for pets has come to look more like health care for people. today, my colleague katie thomas on how vet care became a multi billion dollar industry and the fraught emotional and financial landscape it has created for pet owners. [music playing] it’s friday, july 12th. [music playing] katie, welcome to our friday episode. yeah, i’m excited. so, katie, you recently wrote about something that i as a pet owner, and a lot of people on this team   also pet owners   can relate to. and that is that the cost of veterinary care has skyrocketed. tell me how you came to this story. yeah. so a couple of years ago, my family and i, we got a new dog. we got a puppy, and his name was roscoe. and he did great. the first year, he was a very healthy little dog. and then when he was about a year and a half old, he got very sick. and we learned that he had been born with a very serious liver defect. and our vet referred us to a bigger animal hospital, and that’s kind of when i entered this world that’s a new level of veterinary care that i hadn’t realized existed. so as i was navigating this, i was wearing two hats. one was just as a pet owner and trying to figure out the right treatment for my dog. and then the other hat i was wearing is as the health care reporter, which is my full time job. so i kept on noticing a lot of aspects of the veterinary world that, to me, were starting to feel very, very similar to the human health care world that i cover. and as i started looking into this, i started learning just how much money there is, now, in the veterinary industry, and also how expensive this care has become over the last couple of decades. i learned that very quickly, these bills can start adding up to $5,000, $10,000, even $15,000. and how much have prices actually increased? i mean, it seems to me like a huge amount, but what are the numbers there? so as we know, prices for all kinds of things are going up because we’ve seen inflation over the last couple of years. but vet care prices have risen much faster than the overall rate of inflation. my colleagues and i actually ran the numbers, and in the last decade, the price of services has risen about 30 percent. and in that same period, veterinary care has gone up by more than 60 percent. why is that, katie? i mean, that’s the question here. what’s going on? so when i started reporting this out, i found that there were a number of factors that were contributing. and they’re all intertwined. one is just that the culture of owning a pet has changed. more and more people are owning pets. and there’s different surveys, but anywhere between 60 percent to 70 percent of american households have a pet. and as those of us who do have pets know, we kind see them more and more as members of the family. i mean, one example is, dogs used to live outside, or sleep in a garage, or something. and now, there’s this one survey that i found that almost half of americans sleep with their pet. i would never do that, katie. no, none of us would. and we just need to walk into any pet store to see how much money people are spending on pets for cute outfits, birthday cookies. when you go away, you don’t just leave them in a kennel, but there are now dog hotels. there’s this fancy one near me where they have a view of the chicago river. oh, my god. you can pay extra for a river view. ok, i would never leave my dog in a dog hotel, though i did just send her to a boarding place where she got a bunch of training when i was on vacation. so i am feeling a little sheepish here. but it has gone crazy. i mean, we were talking to the team earlier, and i was saying i was overhearing someone on the street just walking, talking to their friend, having a conversation about dropping “her” off at daycare. and i couldn’t tell whether she was talking about a dog or a child. right, exactly. ok, so we are all pet owners now, or at least a majority of us are, so that bigger demand for services presumably causes prices to rise. is that what’s going on here? yeah, that’s a part of it. but the big driver is also that there’s just been these remarkable advances in medicine for animals. and it’s kind of like what i saw with my own puppy. historically, vets would help with really kind of basic things, like a cut on a paw, or a de worming, or a spaying and neutering. but for anything life threatening, like cancer or something like that, really, the only option that they had available to them was to put the animals to sleep and to give them a humane death. but over the last decade, there’s just been huge leaps in what we can do for our pets. there’s been big steps in cancer care, very intricate and involved surgery, dermatology. there’s been some really big new drugs, for dogs in particular, to help with skin allergies. there’s physical therapy. there’s just so many options now available to pet owners to help their animals live longer and better lives. for example, i spoke to this one vet who, she’s been working since the 1990s, and she told me this story about how her father was a human doctor. and back then, what she would do is she had a lot of dachshunds, and dachshunds often have bad backs, and she would sneak them into the human hospital after hours and into the mri machine so she could check them out. and today, she has an mri machine. and many animal hospitals have mri machines for animals. so that’s really a measure of how things have changed even since the 1990s. yeah. and it’s pretty amazing and great that we have these options available for our pets, but it also costs a lot of money to do all of this new stuff, which brings me to another big change that i found in my reporting, which is, this has become very appealing to big businesses, because just remember, historically, veterinary offices were small businesses, and they were staffed by animal lovers, not business people. and that has made it an enticing target for investors, because they see an opportunity there. ok. so big business spots an opportunity here. so what happens? so basically, big companies and private equity firms start buying up small chains and individual clinics. they pretty much go on an acquisition spree. one big example is the conglomerate mars, which is probably best known for selling candy and also pet food. little known fact. mars is also a big dog food manufacturer, not just a candy bar maker. yes, it makes a lot of different dog foods. and it’s been in the pet world for a long time. but over the last several years, they’ve also bought up the big veterinary chain vca. they also own banfield, which is in a lot of the petsmarts, which is a big pet store chain. they also own a specialty hospital chain called bluepearl. and then in addition to that, a lot of private equity backed firms have been buying small individual practices. that trend really peaked in 2021, for example. and so the situation that we have today is that a quarter of all primary care vet clinics are now owned by corporations, and 3/4 of specialty hospitals are owned by companies. and, katie, how does this consolidation   in some cases, 3/4 of all clinics owned by big companies   how does that affect these high prices we’ve been talking about? well, i spoke to a number of vets who have worked in these corporate owned clinics. and what they told me is that they are under increasing pressure to do things that basically drive up the cost of care for pet owners. some examples that they gave me is, they felt increasingly stressed and pressured to see more animals per day. others told me, to a certain extent, veterinarians have always had some of their pay tied to how much revenue they bring into the practice. but at these corporate owned clinics, the pressure is even greater. they were being asked to order more tests. or one veterinarian that i spoke to said that she was told she needs to get her cost per client higher. or someone else said that someone needed training on getting a pet owner to yes. these are high pressure sales tactics that you really don’t expect to see in a vet office. and some of these vets that i spoke to said that they felt pretty uncomfortable with that as well. so now there’s this doubt. it’s like, is my vet recommending this thing because my dog should have this thing, or is my vet recommending this thing because he needs to make a different bottom line than he used to? right. and when i spoke to vets, they were very clear that they only provide the care that they think is best for that particular animal. but there’s no denying that these incentives and pressures are there. and they say that there’s a lot of factors that pet owners don’t always appreciate. one of them is, they’re very forward, public facing, kind of almost like a retail store. they get google reviews, yelp reviews. and so they’re very worried about not providing the top level care and perhaps getting eviscerated in reviews. and so sometimes, that can put pressure on them to make sure that they’ve done absolutely everything they can for an animal. the last thing is that a lot of veterinarians do still own their own clinics. and they told me that they’re facing all of the same rising costs and pressures that any other small business owner is facing. and that includes paying a living wage for workers in a pretty tight labor market, the rising costs of prescription drugs and lab tests and other equipment. and they say that a lot of times, pet owners just see the high price tag and they blame the person in front of them, which is the veterinarian. ok, so the rise of this corporate consolidation we’ve been seeing has meant perhaps higher prices and has put more pressure on vets. but are there any upsides in it for us, for consumers? i mean, just one example from my old neighborhood in washington, dc, there was a new chain that moved in that was 24 hours, and that was a great option for my very accident prone dog. she suddenly had a couple of different options of places that we could go in the middle of the night if something happened. for sure. i mean, anytime there’s more money available, you can invest in better services, nicer offices, nicer waiting rooms. there’s more money for better equipment and investing in some of these specialty services that we’ve been talking about. so there are definitely benefits to this. but as i found in my reporting, even as vet care has really caught up in a lot of ways to human health care, there’s a lot of important ways that they’re different. and that can present some really difficult choices and some prickly moral choices for pet owners. we’ll be right back. [music playing] so, katie, let’s dig into the ways that pet care is actually different from human care, setting aside the fact that pets are not people. so talk to me about what these main differences are. the biggest difference is how the pet care gets paid for. i’m not sure anyone in the us would say that health care is particularly affordable, but the fact of the matter is that most people do have health insurance that covers the bulk of their medical costs. and if you are in an emergency situation, hospitals are legally obligated to give you life saving care and then sort out the bills later. but that’s just not how things work in the vet world. veterinarians don’t have the same obligation to treat, and so it’s almost entirely on the pet owner to pay the full amount of the bill basically up front and at the time of service out of pocket. so that is a big difference. but isn’t there pet insurance as well? there is pet insurance, but a very small minority of pet owners actually have pet insurance, just about 4 percent. and it’s very different from the health insurance that most of us are familiar with. some examples are that, with very few exceptions, you still have to front the money for the bill. and then you would submit that claim to your pet insurance, which will then decide whether that’s a legitimate claim and then they will reimburse you. generally, plans don’t cover preexisting conditions. they charge more for pets that are older. it’s kind of like the pre obamacare version of human health care. many things that are now not allowed in the human health care world are still very much a feature of how pet insurance works. and even if you have pet insurance, that doesn’t always mean that you can keep it. to take one example, nationwide, which is one of the biggest providers of pet insurance in this country, recently said that the cost of pet care is getting so expensive that it had to discontinue the plans of 100,000 pet owners. and so that left a lot of these pet owners basically back where they had started, with having to cover the cost of the care themselves. and that’s, of course, presuming they can pay. i mean, i’m sure for a lot of people, their devotion to their animal notwithstanding, it’s just not possible to drop a few thousand dollars on these amazing, life saving treatments. so are those people who can’t afford that just having to put their pets down? and what are those people doing? and this is where this just gets extremely thorny and difficult. i think there’s a number of different answers. yes, i think some people do have to put their animals to sleep or choose less expensive options. but when i talk to pet owners about this, many of them went to pretty extreme lengths in order to cover this care and to find a way to pay for it. i spoke to people who dipped into their retirement funds. i spoke to somebody who donated blood plasma, someone else who took on a second job in order to pay for this. and many people also charge it on a regular credit card, like a visa, and then pay it off. but another option that a lot of pet owners end up going for is something called a medical credit card. and what exactly is that? it’s a specialty credit card that’s offered at a lot of these veterinary clinics. it’s right there on the counter, often. and the way that these cards generally work is that there’s an introductory period   say, six months. and if you pay that off within that period, you don’t have to pay any interest at all. but if you don’t pay it off and you still have some debt at the end of that, the interest rate can be pretty serious. like, how much? well, i spoke to this one pet owner. her name is heather massey. and she shared her bills with me. and she’s paying 30 percent. wow, so that’s high. yes, it is high. but you can also see why it’s tempting. you’re really struggling to figure out how you can pay off this pretty significant bill. and then this is an available option to you. and many people think that, hey, i can think i can do that. i can pay off that during that six months or something like that. but heather is not alone. i spoke to the company that she got her card through, care credit, and they told me that 80 percent of people who take out the card pay it off in time. but put another way, that means 1 in 5 people who take it out don’t pay it off within the introductory period. so a lot of people going into debt for their pets. yes. and can i just pause for a moment on that, katie? i mean, these are dogs and cats. these are not our children. and yet we’re going into debt like this, trying to prolong their pretty short lives. it does seem kind of nuts, in a way. but at the same time, i’m imagining myself in that vet office, staring at the bill, and staring at a very sick clementine. and i think i would have a really hard time not doing that myself, not taking on that debt. i can easily imagine myself doing it. it’s hard. yeah, it’s really hard. and i think we’re in a whole new world right now. the vets that i spoke to used to say that, really, the only option for a very sick animal was euthanasia. and now, they’re going into these exam rooms and offering pet owners so many other options to prolong the life of their dogs and cats. but regardless of what options these pet owners choose, what’s happening is that they’re the ones who end up in the driver’s seat. the decision ultimately sits with them, and they’re now faced with this whole new set of ethical questions and big financial responsibilities that they really never had before. when there’s always another treatment to try and there’s a credit card to put it on, it feels, to the pet owner, like it’s their choice about whether their pet lives or dies. right. and the question comes up, just because you can, does that mean you should? and is that always in the best interest of the pet? it’s actually the question that i wrestled with with my own puppy. he got very sick. it turned out he had a very serious health problem. and so in our case, we learned that there was a surgery that could fix it   pretty expensive surgery, but we decided to go for it because he was young and had, potentially, a long dog’s life ahead of him. unfortunately, he experienced complications from the surgery and he didn’t actually make it. but i don’t regret having done it. and he got really great care. my experience just really echoed what i heard from so many pet owners and veterinarians, that there’s really no easy answers to these very new questions that we’re all facing. you kind of have to sort out the risks and rewards of pet ownership. and in my case, i decided it was worth it to me. and i recently got a new dog. so here we go again. katie, thank you. thanks for having me. we’ll be right back. [music playing] here’s what else you should know today. on thursday night, amid growing doubts about his age and mental fitness, president biden wrapped up a summit of nato leaders in washington   and now, i want to hand it over to the president of ukraine, who has as much courage as he has determination. ladies and gentlemen, president putin.   by mistakenly introducing the president of ukraine as the president of russia. president putin. he’s going to beat president putin. president zelenskyy. later   with that, i’ll take your questions. i’ve been given a list of people to call on here.   biden held a news conference that was widely seen as a crucial test of his stamina and coherence. in his first answer, he once again stumbled when referring to his own vice president. look, i wouldn’t have picked vice president trump to be vice president, so i think she was not qualified to be president. so let’s start there. but over the next hour, biden spoke with fluency and command about the war in gaza, america’s policy toward china, and his relationship with russian president vladimir putin. and when pressed on his age and ability to serve a second term, biden said he had no reservations. every single day, i’m surrounded by good docs. if they think there’s a problem, i promise you   or even if they don’t think it’s a problem, they think i should have a neurological exam again, i’ll do it. no one’s suggesting that to me now. still, when the news conference was over, three more house democrats called on biden to step aside as nominee. as of thursday night, 18 congressional democrats have asked biden to end his campaign. a quick reminder to catch a new episode of “the interview” right here tomorrow. this week, lulu garcia navarro talks with robert putnam, the author of “bowling alone.” for decades, he’s been warning about the decline of american community and what that means for our democracy. we’re not going to fix all these problems in america   polarization, inequality, social isolation   until we start feeling we have an obligation to care for other people. and that’s not easy. today’s episode was produced by olivia natt, clare toeniskoetter, and rikki novetsky. it was edited by lexie diao and devon taylor with research help from susan lee. contains original music by dan powell and rowan niemisto, and was engineered by alyssa moxley. our theme music is by jim brunberg and ben landsverk of wonderly. special thanks to zuzu, piper, tiger, chichi, zadie, toby, gerald, cosmo, and clementine. that’s it for “the daily.” i’m sabrina tavernise. see you on monday. [music playing] transcript this transcript was created using speech recognition software. while it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email transcripts@nytimes.com with any questions. [bark] uh oh. [bark] clementine, stop. [bark] oh, my gosh. sorry. she has thoughts. from “the new york times,” i’m sabrina tavernise, and this is “the daily.” over the past decade, the cost of veterinary care in the us has skyrocketed as health care for pets has come to look more like health care for people. today, my colleague katie thomas on how vet care became a multi billion dollar industry and the fraught emotional and financial landscape it has created for pet owners. [music playing] it’s friday, july 12th. [music playing] katie, welcome to our friday episode. yeah, i’m excited. so, katie, you recently wrote about something that i as a pet owner, and a lot of people on this team   also pet owners   can relate to. and that is that the cost of veterinary care has skyrocketed. tell me how you came to this story. yeah. so a couple of years ago, my family and i, we got a new dog. we got a puppy, and his name was roscoe. and he did great. the first year, he was a very healthy little dog. and then when he was about a year and a half old, he got very sick. and we learned that he had been born with a very serious liver defect. and our vet referred us to a bigger animal hospital, and that’s kind of when i entered this world that’s a new level of veterinary care that i hadn’t realized existed. so as i was navigating this, i was wearing two hats. one was just as a pet owner and trying to figure out the right treatment for my dog. and then the other hat i was wearing is as the health care reporter, which is my full time job. so i kept on noticing a lot of aspects of the veterinary world that, to me, were starting to feel very, very similar to the human health care world that i cover. and as i started looking into this, i started learning just how much money there is, now, in the veterinary industry, and also how expensive this care has become over the last couple of decades. i learned that very quickly, these bills can start adding up to $5,000, $10,000, even $15,000. and how much have prices actually increased? i mean, it seems to me like a huge amount, but what are the numbers there? so as we know, prices for all kinds of things are going up because we’ve seen inflation over the last couple of years. but vet care prices have risen much faster than the overall rate of inflation. my colleagues and i actually ran the numbers, and in the last decade, the price of services has risen about 30 percent. and in that same period, veterinary care has gone up by more than 60 percent. why is that, katie? i mean, that’s the question here. what’s going on? so when i started reporting this out, i found that there were a number of factors that were contributing. and they’re all intertwined. one is just that the culture of owning a pet has changed. more and more people are owning pets. and there’s different surveys, but anywhere between 60 percent to 70 percent of american households have a pet. and as those of us who do have pets know, we kind see them more and more as members of the family. i mean, one example is, dogs used to live outside, or sleep in a garage, or something. and now, there’s this one survey that i found that almost half of americans sleep with their pet. i would never do that, katie. no, none of us would. and we just need to walk into any pet store to see how much money people are spending on pets for cute outfits, birthday cookies. when you go away, you don’t just leave them in a kennel, but there are now dog hotels. there’s this fancy one near me where they have a view of the chicago river. oh, my god. you can pay extra for a river view. ok, i would never leave my dog in a dog hotel, though i did just send her to a boarding place where she got a bunch of training when i was on vacation. so i am feeling a little sheepish here. but it has gone crazy. i mean, we were talking to the team earlier, and i was saying i was overhearing someone on the street just walking, talking to their friend, having a conversation about dropping “her” off at daycare. and i couldn’t tell whether she was talking about a dog or a child. right, exactly. ok, so we are all pet owners now, or at least a majority of us are, so that bigger demand for services presumably causes prices to rise. is that what’s going on here? yeah, that’s a part of it. but the big driver is also that there’s just been these remarkable advances in medicine for animals. and it’s kind of like what i saw with my own puppy. historically, vets would help with really kind of basic things, like a cut on a paw, or a de worming, or a spaying and neutering. but for anything life threatening, like cancer or something like that, really, the only option that they had available to them was to put the animals to sleep and to give them a humane death. but over the last decade, there’s just been huge leaps in what we can do for our pets. there’s been big steps in cancer care, very intricate and involved surgery, dermatology. there’s been some really big new drugs, for dogs in particular, to help with skin allergies. there’s physical therapy. there’s just so many options now available to pet owners to help their animals live longer and better lives. for example, i spoke to this one vet who, she’s been working since the 1990s, and she told me this story about how her father was a human doctor. and back then, what she would do is she had a lot of dachshunds, and dachshunds often have bad backs, and she would sneak them into the human hospital after hours and into the mri machine so she could check them out. and today, she has an mri machine. and many animal hospitals have mri machines for animals. so that’s really a measure of how things have changed even since the 1990s. yeah. and it’s pretty amazing and great that we have these options available for our pets, but it also costs a lot of money to do all of this new stuff, which brings me to another big change that i found in my reporting, which is, this has become very appealing to big businesses, because just remember, historically, veterinary offices were small businesses, and they were staffed by animal lovers, not business people. and that has made it an enticing target for investors, because they see an opportunity there. ok. so big business spots an opportunity here. so what happens? so basically, big companies and private equity firms start buying up small chains and individual clinics. they pretty much go on an acquisition spree. one big example is the conglomerate mars, which is probably best known for selling candy and also pet food. little known fact. mars is also a big dog food manufacturer, not just a candy bar maker. yes, it makes a lot of different dog foods. and it’s been in the pet world for a long time. but over the last several years, they’ve also bought up the big veterinary chain vca. they also own banfield, which is in a lot of the petsmarts, which is a big pet store chain. they also own a specialty hospital chain called bluepearl. and then in addition to that, a lot of private equity backed firms have been buying small individual practices. that trend really peaked in 2021, for example. and so the situation that we have today is that a quarter of all primary care vet clinics are now owned by corporations, and 3/4 of specialty hospitals are owned by companies. and, katie, how does this consolidation   in some cases, 3/4 of all clinics owned by big companies   how does that affect these high prices we’ve been talking about? well, i spoke to a number of vets who have worked in these corporate owned clinics. and what they told me is that they are under increasing pressure to do things that basically drive up the cost of care for pet owners. some examples that they gave me is, they felt increasingly stressed and pressured to see more animals per day. others told me, to a certain extent, veterinarians have always had some of their pay tied to how much revenue they bring into the practice. but at these corporate owned clinics, the pressure is even greater. they were being asked to order more tests. or one veterinarian that i spoke to said that she was told she needs to get her cost per client higher. or someone else said that someone needed training on getting a pet owner to yes. these are high pressure sales tactics that you really don’t expect to see in a vet office. and some of these vets that i spoke to said that they felt pretty uncomfortable with that as well. so now there’s this doubt. it’s like, is my vet recommending this thing because my dog should have this thing, or is my vet recommending this thing because he needs to make a different bottom line than he used to? right. and when i spoke to vets, they were very clear that they only provide the care that they think is best for that particular animal. but there’s no denying that these incentives and pressures are there. and they say that there’s a lot of factors that pet owners don’t always appreciate. one of them is, they’re very forward, public facing, kind of almost like a retail store. they get google reviews, yelp reviews. and so they’re very worried about not providing the top level care and perhaps getting eviscerated in reviews. and so sometimes, that can put pressure on them to make sure that they’ve done absolutely everything they can for an animal. the last thing is that a lot of veterinarians do still own their own clinics. and they told me that they’re facing all of the same rising costs and pressures that any other small business owner is facing. and that includes paying a living wage for workers in a pretty tight labor market, the rising costs of prescription drugs and lab tests and other equipment. and they say that a lot of times, pet owners just see the high price tag and they blame the person in front of them, which is the veterinarian. ok, so the rise of this corporate consolidation we’ve been seeing has meant perhaps higher prices and has put more pressure on vets. but are there any upsides in it for us, for consumers? i mean, just one example from my old neighborhood in washington, dc, there was a new chain that moved in that was 24 hours, and that was a great option for my very accident prone dog. she suddenly had a couple of different options of places that we could go in the middle of the night if something happened. for sure. i mean, anytime there’s more money available, you can invest in better services, nicer offices, nicer waiting rooms. there’s more money for better equipment and investing in some of these specialty services that we’ve been talking about. so there are definitely benefits to this. but as i found in my reporting, even as vet care has really caught up in a lot of ways to human health care, there’s a lot of important ways that they’re different. and that can present some really difficult choices and some prickly moral choices for pet owners. we’ll be right back. [music playing] so, katie, let’s dig into the ways that pet care is actually different from human care, setting aside the fact that pets are not people. so talk to me about what these main differences are. the biggest difference is how the pet care gets paid for. i’m not sure anyone in the us would say that health care is particularly affordable, but the fact of the matter is that most people do have health insurance that covers the bulk of their medical costs. and if you are in an emergency situation, hospitals are legally obligated to give you life saving care and then sort out the bills later. but that’s just not how things work in the vet world. veterinarians don’t have the same obligation to treat, and so it’s almost entirely on the pet owner to pay the full amount of the bill basically up front and at the time of service out of pocket. so that is a big difference. but isn’t there pet insurance as well? there is pet insurance, but a very small minority of pet owners actually have pet insurance, just about 4 percent. and it’s very different from the health insurance that most of us are familiar with. some examples are that, with very few exceptions, you still have to front the money for the bill. and then you would submit that claim to your pet insurance, which will then decide whether that’s a legitimate claim and then they will reimburse you. generally, plans don’t cover preexisting conditions. they charge more for pets that are older. it’s kind of like the pre obamacare version of human health care. many things that are now not allowed in the human health care world are still very much a feature of how pet insurance works. and even if you have pet insurance, that doesn’t always mean that you can keep it. to take one example, nationwide, which is one of the biggest providers of pet insurance in this country, recently said that the cost of pet care is getting so expensive that it had to discontinue the plans of 100,000 pet owners. and so that left a lot of these pet owners basically back where they had started, with having to cover the cost of the care themselves. and that’s, of course, presuming they can pay. i mean, i’m sure for a lot of people, their devotion to their animal notwithstanding, it’s just not possible to drop a few thousand dollars on these amazing, life saving treatments. so are those people who can’t afford that just having to put their pets down? and what are those people doing? and this is where this just gets extremely thorny and difficult. i think there’s a number of different answers. yes, i think some people do have to put their animals to sleep or choose less expensive options. but when i talk to pet owners about this, many of them went to pretty extreme lengths in order to cover this care and to find a way to pay for it. i spoke to people who dipped into their retirement funds. i spoke to somebody who donated blood plasma, someone else who took on a second job in order to pay for this. and many people also charge it on a regular credit card, like a visa, and then pay it off. but another option that a lot of pet owners end up going for is something called a medical credit card. and what exactly is that? it’s a specialty credit card that’s offered at a lot of these veterinary clinics. it’s right there on the counter, often. and the way that these cards generally work is that there’s an introductory period   say, six months. and if you pay that off within that period, you don’t have to pay any interest at all. but if you don’t pay it off and you still have some debt at the end of that, the interest rate can be pretty serious. like, how much? well, i spoke to this one pet owner. her name is heather massey. and she shared her bills with me. and she’s paying 30 percent. wow, so that’s high. yes, it is high. but you can also see why it’s tempting. you’re really struggling to figure out how you can pay off this pretty significant bill. and then this is an available option to you. and many people think that, hey, i can think i can do that. i can pay off that during that six months or something like that. but heather is not alone. i spoke to the company that she got her card through, care credit, and they told me that 80 percent of people who take out the card pay it off in time. but put another way, that means 1 in 5 people who take it out don’t pay it off within the introductory period. so a lot of people going into debt for their pets. yes. and can i just pause for a moment on that, katie? i mean, these are dogs and cats. these are not our children. and yet we’re going into debt like this, trying to prolong their pretty short lives. it does seem kind of nuts, in a way. but at the same time, i’m imagining myself in that vet office, staring at the bill, and staring at a very sick clementine. and i think i would have a really hard time not doing that myself, not taking on that debt. i can easily imagine myself doing it. it’s hard. yeah, it’s really hard. and i think we’re in a whole new world right now. the vets that i spoke to used to say that, really, the only option for a very sick animal was euthanasia. and now, they’re going into these exam rooms and offering pet owners so many other options to prolong the life of their dogs and cats. but regardless of what options these pet owners choose, what’s happening is that they’re the ones who end up in the driver’s seat. the decision ultimately sits with them, and they’re now faced with this whole new set of ethical questions and big financial responsibilities that they really never had before. when there’s always another treatment to try and there’s a credit card to put it on, it feels, to the pet owner, like it’s their choice about whether their pet lives or dies. right. and the question comes up, just because you can, does that mean you should? and is that always in the best interest of the pet? it’s actually the question that i wrestled with with my own puppy. he got very sick. it turned out he had a very serious health problem. and so in our case, we learned that there was a surgery that could fix it   pretty expensive surgery, but we decided to go for it because he was young and had, potentially, a long dog’s life ahead of him. unfortunately, he experienced complications from the surgery and he didn’t actually make it. but i don’t regret having done it. and he got really great care. my experience just really echoed what i heard from so many pet owners and veterinarians, that there’s really no easy answers to these very new questions that we’re all facing. you kind of have to sort out the risks and rewards of pet ownership. and in my case, i decided it was worth it to me. and i recently got a new dog. so here we go again. katie, thank you. thanks for having me. we’ll be right back. [music playing] here’s what else you should know today. on thursday night, amid growing doubts about his age and mental fitness, president biden wrapped up a summit of nato leaders in washington   and now, i want to hand it over to the president of ukraine, who has as much courage as he has determination. ladies and gentlemen, president putin.   by mistakenly introducing the president of ukraine as the president of russia. president putin. he’s going to beat president putin. president zelenskyy. later   with that, i’ll take your questions. i’ve been given a list of people to call on here.   biden held a news conference that was widely seen as a crucial test of his stamina and coherence. in his first answer, he once again stumbled when referring to his own vice president. look, i wouldn’t have picked vice president trump to be vice president, so i think she was not qualified to be president. so let’s start there. but over the next hour, biden spoke with fluency and command about the war in gaza, america’s policy toward china, and his relationship with russian president vladimir putin. and when pressed on his age and ability to serve a second term, biden said he had no reservations. every single day, i’m surrounded by good docs. if they think there’s a problem, i promise you   or even if they don’t think it’s a problem, they think i should have a neurological exam again, i’ll do it. no one’s suggesting that to me now. still, when the news conference was over, three more house democrats called on biden to step aside as nominee. as of thursday night, 18 congressional democrats have asked biden to end his campaign. a quick reminder to catch a new episode of “the interview” right here tomorrow. this week, lulu garcia navarro talks with robert putnam, the author of “bowling alone.” for decades, he’s been warning about the decline of american community and what that means for our democracy. we’re not going to fix all these problems in america   polarization, inequality, social isolation   until we start feeling we have an obligation to care for other people. and that’s not easy. today’s episode was produced by olivia natt, clare toeniskoetter, and rikki novetsky. it was edited by lexie diao and devon taylor with research help from susan lee. contains original music by dan powell and rowan niemisto, and was engineered by alyssa moxley. our theme music is by jim brunberg and ben landsverk of wonderly. special thanks to zuzu, piper, tiger, chichi, zadie, toby, gerald, cosmo, and clementine. that’s it for “the daily.” i’m sabrina tavernise. see you on monday. [music playing] hosted by sabrina tavernise featuring katie thomas produced by olivia nattclare toeniskoetter and rikki novetsky edited by lexie diao and devon taylor original music by dan powell and rowan niemisto engineered by alyssa moxley over the past decade, the cost of veterinary care in the u.s. has skyrocketed, as health care for pets has come to look more like health care for people. katie thomas, an investigative health care reporter for the times, discusses how pet care became a multi billion dollar industry, and the fraught emotional and financial landscape that has created for pet owners. katie thomas, an investigative health care reporter for the new york times. why you’re paying your veterinarian so much. from 2021: a pandemic era pet boom spurred veterinary companies to open new, upscale clinics. there are a lot of ways to listen to the daily. here’s how. we aim to make transcripts available the next workday after an episode’s publication. you can find them at the top of the page. research help by susan lee. the daily is made by rachel quester, lynsea garrison, clare toeniskoetter, paige cowett, michael simon johnson, brad fisher, chris wood, jessica cheung, stella tan, alexandra leigh young, lisa chow, eric krupke, marc georges, luke vander ploeg, m.j. davis lin, dan powell, sydney harper, michael benoist, liz o. baylen, asthaa chaturvedi, rachelle bonja, diana nguyen, marion lozano, corey schreppel, rob szypko, elisheba ittoop, mooj zadie, patricia willens, rowan niemisto, jody becker, rikki novetsky, nina feldman, will reid, carlos prieto, ben calhoun, susan lee, lexie diao, mary wilson, alex stern, sophia lanman, shannon lin, diane wong, devon taylor, alyssa moxley, olivia natt, daniel ramirez and brendan klinkenberg. our theme music is by jim brunberg and ben landsverk of wonderly. special thanks to sam dolnick, paula szuchman, lisa tobin, larissa anderson, julia simon, sofia milan, mahima chablani, elizabeth davis moorer, jeffrey miranda, maddy masiello, isabella anderson, nina lassam and nick pitman. katie thomas is an investigative health care reporter at the times. more about katie thomas

by: lindsay angelo, futurist, strategist, mba, tedx speaker introductionthe evolving human animal relationshipthe rising cost of pet ownershipsmart technology and ai in pet carethe rise of pet wellness and holistic healthsustainability and ethical innovationshyper personalization for petspets and mental healthenhancing pet human communication with technologyconclusion from loyal companions to cherished family members, pets have always held a special place in our lives. but today, our bond with pets is evolving in profound ways. as a futurist and devoted pet parent, i focus on the future of consumerism, innovation, and purpose driven strategy. when i look at the future of pets, it’s clear that deeper cultural shifts are reshaping not just how we care for them, but how we value them in our lives. to understand where the future of pets is headed, it’s important to recognize two fundamental paradigm shifts that are reshaping the landscape of pet care and ownership. these shifts provide the foundation for the emerging trends that follow. pets are no longer “just animals.” they’ve become integral members of our families, providing emotional support, companionship, and even a sense of purpose. a growing number of people, particularly millennials and gen z, are choosing pets over having children, often referring to themselves as “pet parents” and their pets as “fur babies.” this shift is driven by several factors: loneliness and connection: in a world where people are more isolated, pets fill the gaps, offering unconditional love and companionship. cultural changes: pets are taking on roles traditionally reserved for children or extended family, as society redefines what “family” means. as this bond deepens, it’s influencing consumer behavior in significant ways. we’re seeing a surge in demand for pet products and services that prioritize the pet human connection whether it’s through wellness solutions, luxury pet hotels, or even advanced communication technologies. while the emotional value of pets is increasing, so is the financial burden of caring for them. from food to veterinary care to pet insurance, the cost of pet ownership has risen dramatically. what was once a universal joy is now, for many, becoming a privilege. this reality has profound implications: accessibility: lower income households may struggle to keep pets due to rising costs. solutions emerging: affordable veterinary clinics, community pet food banks, and subscription based services are stepping in to make pet care more accessible. futurist insight: will governments or corporations step in to subsidize pet care, recognizing the societal benefits pets provide? it’s an intriguing question, especially as more people lean on their pets for emotional support in challenging times. technology is transforming pet care, making it smarter, more intuitive, and personalized. ai driven tools and smart devices are leading the charge, providing pet parents with real time insights and solutions. examples: smart feeders like surefeed tailor portions to your pet’s unique dietary needs, while ai powered trackers like whistle provide health and behavior monitoring. futurist insight: imagine ai systems predicting health issues in pets before symptoms appear, creating a preventative model of care. pets are becoming central to wellness conversations, with owners seeking holistic solutions that go beyond basic care. examples: pet reiki, cbd infused functional foods, and alternative therapies like acupuncture are gaining traction. futurist insight: will we see dedicated pet spas and wellness retreats rivaling those for humans? sustainability is no longer a buzzword it’s a necessity. as climate concerns grow, the pet industry is rethinking how products and services are created and consumed. examples: insect based proteins from brands like yora pet foods and eco friendly biodegradable pet products. futurist insight: circular economies could integrate pet care into broader sustainability goals. pet parents are demanding tailored solutions for food, healthcare, and accessories based on individual needs. examples: dna testing from companies like embark and personalized meal plans like those offered by nom nom. futurist insight: ai designed care plans could become the future of subscription services. the benefits of pets extend beyond companionship they’re becoming key players in mental health care. examples: therapy animals in workplaces and research on the calming effects of pet companionship. futurist insight: could pets act as co therapists in personalized mental wellness plans? the future of pets might involve better communication between humans and animals, thanks to technology. examples: ai driven devices like fluentpet exploring bark and meow translation, and wearable tech monitoring pets’ emotions. futurist insight: these tools could deepen the pet human bond, creating new ways to understand and care for pets. the future of pets is being built on two fundamental shifts: our deepening emotional connection to them and the growing challenges of caring for them responsibly in a changing world. these paradigm shifts are paving the way for trends that will transform pet care from ai driven solutions to sustainability initiatives and personalized wellness plans. as a futurist and pet parent, i’m excited to see how these changes unfold. what do you think the future holds for pets and their people? what does it mean for your life? for your business? let me know your thoughts! read more on pet trends, the future of pets (part i), the future of wellness, future of therapy, top wellness trends, the future of spirituality, calm technology, futurology, how to cultivate a futurist mindset, and what a futurist is. q: why is the relationship between pets and humans evolving?the bond between pet owners and their pets has deepened significantly in recent years. pets are now considered cherished members of the family, often referred to as "fur babies" or furry friends. this shift reflects broader cultural changes, with many american households viewing pets as companions who provide emotional support and enhance their quality of life. q: how is the pet care industry responding to these changes?the pet care industry is evolving to meet the demands of modern pet owners by offering innovative products and services that improve the lives of both pets and their humans. from personalized nutrition plans to wellness focused solutions, the pet care market is growing rapidly as brands prioritize quality and convenience. q: what role does natural food play in the future of pet care?as pet owners seek healthier options for their furry friends, natural food is becoming a major focus in the pet care products category. this includes raw diets, minimally processed foods, and sustainable alternatives like insect based proteins. these trends reflect a desire for products that align with human wellness values. q: how are care products improving the lives of real animals?innovative care products are enhancing the quality of life for pets by addressing their physical, emotional, and environmental needs. from ergonomic beds to anxiety reducing toys, the focus is on creating solutions that benefit real animals in practical and meaningful ways. q: what trends are shaping the pet care market?the pet care market is being influenced by several key trends: increased demand for sustainable and eco friendly pet care products. the rise of smart technologies to simplify care for busy pet owners. a shift toward holistic wellness solutions that improve the quality of life for pets. these trends show how the pet care industry is innovating to meet changing consumer needs. q: why is the pet industry growing so rapidly?the pet industry is experiencing strong growth due to the rising number of american households that include pets, coupled with an increased willingness to spend on premium products and services. from personalized food to pet tech, pet owners are investing in solutions that cater to their pets’ specific needs and enhance their quality of life. q: what kinds of products and services are emerging in the pet care industry?the pet care industry is expanding to include a wide range of innovative offerings, such as: smart feeders and trackers to support health monitoring. wellness focused solutions like functional foods and holistic therapies. environmentally friendly care products that prioritize sustainability. these innovations demonstrate how the industry is adapting to serve the modern pet owner. q: how do pets contribute to the quality of life for american households?pets, often seen as furry companions, provide emotional support, reduce stress, and foster a sense of connection for many american households. their presence enhances the quality of life, making them integral members of the family. this is why pet owners are increasingly seeking products and services that prioritize their pets’ well being. q. will we still have pets in the future? yes, but expect pets to evolve from being “owned” to being ethical companions. with ai driven communication, enhanced longevity through biotech, and sustainable care ecosystems, the human pet bond will deepen. pets could become co therapists, collaborators, and emotional partners in human well being. q. what is the future of the pet industry? the future pet industry will focus on ai driven personalized care, sustainability, and emotional well being. predictive health tools, lab grown pet food, and circular economies will emerge. as pets’ societal roles expand, policies may evolve to support pet assisted therapy and well being. q. what animals will be domesticated in the future? beyond traditional pets, genetic engineering may enable new species designed for companionship or ecological balance. bioengineered animals and de extinct species could become future companions, raising ethical considerations about cohabitation and care. lindsay angelo is a celebrated futurist and strategist, supporting impact driven professionals, teams and organizations in learning to think and lead into the future. she holds an mba, is a tedx speaker, and has been recognized as an award winning futurist and strategy consultant. lindsay's advised fortune 500 companies, entrepreneurs, think tanks, and the broader wellness industry   all the while creating a nomadic lifestyle rooted in travel, family and community. named a woman to watch and global innovation leader, lindsay's delivered over 100+ keynotes and has worked with organizations including lululemon, unilever, the lego group, snapchat and the human potential institute. she stems from deep wellness roots having spent six years growing lululemon to the biggest yoga brand in the world. having created the signature "well thy blueprint" for driving brand growth, lindsay believes business is the greatest healing agent that exists, if we choose to use it as such. tagged: wellness trends, pet trends, future of pets, pet trends 2025, 2025 pet trends, pet trends 2024 home | my work | thinking | speaking | consulting | bio | contact © 2025 angelo advising all rights reserved | seattle, wa | vancouver, bc | worldwide 🌐

by arif damji and veda patel this is the first in a series on innovation across industries from the conductive ventures team. as generalist investors, we see innovation and development in many different industries. we believe that the lessons learned in one industry can help founders and investors identify trends and opportunities in another. in this blog series we will go through examples we have encountered from our experience. in this first part we discuss the similarities in innovations between human healthcare and pet healthcare. if you or someone you know adopted a pet during the covid pandemic, you are not alone. the last decade has seen a boom in pet ownership. over 80 million dogs are now cherished as family members in a two thirds of us households. this was up from 56% in 1988. this trend has been spurred on by the covid work from home mandates and a transition to more flexible working arrangements. but that is not the only reason. more couples are choosing to postpone or forego having children completely and adopt a furry friend instead. the rise of this group of people among millennials and gen z in particular, has led to the evolution of the term dink (dual income no kids) to dinkwad (dual income no kids with a dog) to describe them. and there has been a natural increase in spending on pet healthcare as a result. most owners spend $50 to $250 per month on their furry companions, and some even spend upwards of $5,000! as a result, the global pet market is already estimated to have grown to over $320b today, with the potential to reach $500b by 2030. source: american pet products association’s 2023 2024 national pet owners survey despite this explosion in growth, pet healthcare still lags far behind human healthcare when it comes to innovations in many areas, including: therapeutics, medical devices, ai, electronic health records (ehr), and insurance. the good news is, however, the increasing demand for advanced veterinary care presents an opportunity for the industry to catch up, and even surpass, human healthcare in some of these areas. by applying the lessons learned from human healthcare, the veterinary industry is poised for a revolution that will ultimately benefit both pets and their owners. here are some of the areas we see opportunities in. the drug approval process for human use is a lengthy and expensive journey. there is an average spend of $375 million in clinical trials but only 10% of drugs get approval. most of our pets may have four legs, but you’ll be surprised that the physiological similarities between humans and animals mean that drugs sidelined for human use could be repositioned for pet health, where tolerability of side effects may differ, and regulatory barriers are less prohibitive. this presents an opportunity to recoup investments and further monetize these pharmaceuticals. an interesting case is pimobendan, a heart medication, which was initially placed in clinical trials for human use in 1988, but failed to improve mortality rates in patients with congestive heart failure. the drug was subsequently found to be effective in managing heart conditions in dogs and is now approved for veterinary use under the brand name vetmedin. with pet drug trials costing substantially less than human trials, and the approval process also being much shorter, pharmaceutical companies may conduct research and study therapies that have failed to receive fda approval for human use and monetize them through animals. merck animal health, zoetis, and elanco animal health are all examples of companies that have proven the value in therapeutic research for animals. similarly, medical devices developed for human use can often be adapted for pets. wearable activity trackers like fi smart collars, fitbark, and tractive, continuous glucose monitoring systems like the freestyle libre system by abbott and dexcom’s g6, and remote patient monitoring devices are just a few examples of technologies that have been successfully applied to pet health. there are even innovative applications in animal health that better human health. for example, through rapidly designing and testing preventative treatments in animals, resilient biotics is optimizing formulations beneficial to immune responses, which can eventually be applied to treat humans. christopher belnap, founder of resilient, tells us: “building a new therapy in large mammalian species, like pigs, which are known to be more similar to humans in terms of anatomy and immunity is beneficial for understanding how we can translate the same approach to human health.” in healthtech, we see the criticality of ai across almost every specialty, from dermatology to cardiology, in increasing the accuracy and speed of analysis and diagnosis. it also aids in reducing the burden of specialist shortages seen across the country. for example, there are only 31,960 specialists in radiology but the demand for these services is increasing as a result of advancements in medical imaging and an aging population. in fact, in a study presented in 2021, it is reported that the number of radiologist trainees increased only 2.5% while the population over 65 grew by 35% showing a major discrepancy. startups like aidoc are bringing in human in the loop ai based solutions to improve accuracy and aid in diagnosis. as a result, turnaround time can be reduced by up to 41%. similarly, escalating demand for veterinarians driven by surging pet ownership is creating a significant shortage expected to reach 40,000 vets by 2030, along with 133,000 vet techs. this leads to extended wait times and emergency clinics turning away non critical cases. this shortage exists for a few reasons: source: veterinary practice news just as ai advancements have helped to automate and streamline many processes in human healthcare and reduce labor demand, it is starting to play a crucial role in enabling vets to focus on more complex cases. ai powered tools can assist in various aspects of veterinary care, such as: by leveraging ai technologies, veterinary practices can optimize their workflows, reduce wait times, and provide more affordable and accessible care to a larger number of pets. this not only benefits pet owners, but also helps alleviate the burden on veterinarians, allowing them to focus on the most critical cases and improve overall patient outcomes. source: american veteran medical association, ibis world companies like moichor are already utilizing ai to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of animal lab work, with a 57% increase in disease detection and 10x less variability. as shevy karbasi, the founder of moichor has said in an interview: “ai is not meant to replace veterinarians but to empower them. by automating routine tasks and providing data driven insights, ai can help veterinarians work more efficiently and effectively, ultimately improving the quality of care for pets.” as more data is collected, we see a future where ai applications in vet tech could expand to imaging, predictive analytics for disease prevention, and even behavioral analysis and training. human health insurance is already rather complex, and we have seen innovations such as prior authorization, ai forward claims processing and chatbots, predictive analysis, and more, change the landscape of the product offerings. health insurance differs from all other forms, such as property and casualty (p&c), fire, life etc. and has unique methods of billing, claims and data interoperability. this is a result of a simple fact: coverage of evolving health conditions in a human being is vastly different from covering stagnant values. in fact insurance providers are often unique with their own actuarial base and models, ensuring a theoretically smoother process for patients. did you know that when it comes to insurance, our pets have traditionally been viewed as property for insurance purposes, falling under p&c coverage rather than health coverage? but p&c coverage is notoriously difficult to claim, expensive and has very limited coverage with some only offering emergency coverage. it also doesn’t account for evolving health conditions, similar to human health insurance. it can take months to be reimbursed and many question whether it even makes sense. in fact only 3% of us pet owners have pet insurance, according to odie, an embedded pet insurance provider. source: pumpkin.care a slew of startups are trying to address this gap. companies like lemonade, pumpkin, pawp, and bivvy have digitized the pet insurance process, enabling better policy management through mobile apps, direct billing, and personalization. as todd haedrich, with experience in vet tech through covetrus and human health innovations through optimize health and oxehealth, has told us: “the digitalization of the veterinary industry has been a gradual process that has recently gathered momentum in the last decade. without an equivalent hitech act, innovation and adoption of animal health emrs have taken much longer. similarly, pet insurance has only recently accelerated, with the first plans introduced in the 80’s and electronic claim submission just starting over the past 20 years.“ these innovations are not only making insurance for our furry friends more accessible and user friendly, but in some cases even more efficient than traditional human health insurance: the rise of pet ownership, increased spending on pet health, and the unique opportunities present in the pet health space have created a favorable environment for advancements in numerous areas. we think there is potential to not only catch up to human healthtech, but lead the way in certain areas, potentially influencing the broader healthcare community and leading to improved patient outcomes, increased efficiency, and better quality of care for all. as we have seen above, pet healthtech companies have the potential to develop novel solutions that could benefit both pets and humans alike. as timmy yu from proper pet states: “we always talk about pet tech catching up with health tech, but that is stage one. the next stage is a world where pet may lead, driven by lower regulatory barriers, agile innovation processes, and eager pet parents wanting to try everything for their pets.” while there is still much to be explored and developed, the potential for pet healthtech to play a significant role in shaping the future of healthcare is noteworthy. source: istockphoto appa. (2021). pet industry market size, trends & ownership statistics. american pet products association. appa. (2023). appa strategic insights for the pet industry: pet owners 2023 and beyond. bloomberg. (2023). global pet industry to grow to $500 billion by 2030, bloomberg intelligence report finds. congressional budget office. (2021). research and development in the pharmaceutical industry. grandview research. (2021). pet care market size, share & trends analysis report by pet type (dogs, cats, birds, fish), by product (pet food, veterinary care, otc/supplies), by region, and segment forecasts, 2021   2028. nature reviews drug discovery. (2016). parsing clinical success rates. usa today. (2024). survey: 91% of dog owners have experienced financial stress over the cost of pet ownership. u.s. bureau of labor statistics. (2023). occupational and employment wages, may 2023. radiology society of north america. (2022). radiology facing a global shortage.

veterinary technology is changing the way we treat and care for pets. learn about technological advancements positively impacting pet healthcare today. technology is changing every aspect of our lives, and veterinary medicine is no exception. in fact, technology is playing an increasingly important role in veterinary care. in this article, we'll discuss some of the key technological advancements that are changing veterinary medicine. telemedicineallows veterinarians to provide care to patients from anywhere in the world. this is a particularly important development for veterinary care, as veterinarians can provide care to patients that might not otherwise have access to it. telemedicine also allows veterinarians to monitor patients more closely, which helps ensure that they're receiving the best possible care. in addition, telemedicine allows veterinarians to consult with specialists from around the world and get expert advice on complex cases. this can be invaluable for treating difficult or rare conditions. the advantages of telemedicine have been increasingly apparent during the covid 19 pandemic. veterinarians have been able to continue to provide care to patients despite restrictions on travel and face to face interactions. in the future, we can expect telemedicine to play an even more important role in veterinary care. with companies like petdesk and vetster, telemedicine is becoming more accessible and easier to use. this will allow even more veterinarians and pet owners to take advantage of its benefits. wearable devices are another key technology that's changing veterinary medicine. these devices allow veterinarians to track patients' health and well being around the clock. this can help ensure that patients are recovering properly and allows veterinarians to detect any potential problems early on. vetraxis one example of a company that's developing wearable devices for veterinary care. their products help veterinarians deliver better care by allowing them to monitor specific pet behaviors that can impact medical treatment. wearable devices can also help pet owners keep tabs on their pets' health between visits to the veterinarian. this can be especially important for high risk pets, such as those with chronic health conditions. several companies already make wearable devices specifically for pets, and the market is growing rapidly. petpaceand fitbark are two examples of companies that make wearable devices for pets. these devices track a variety of health metrics, such as heart rate, activity level, sleep quality, and body temperature. this information can help pet owners identify potential health issues before they become serious and get their pets the care they need. in the future, wearable devices are likely to become increasingly sophisticated and provide even more information about the health of our pets. this will allow veterinarians to detect and treat problems even earlier than they can today. one of the most exciting technological advancements in veterinary medicine is the use of 3d printing, or "additive manufacturing." there are lots of different applications for this technology in veterinary care, and it can be incredibly valuable for treating difficult or complex conditions. one way in which veterinarians are using 3d printing is to create custom prosthetics and orthotics for animals. this can be beneficial for treating conditions like bone cancer, which often require the amputation of a limb. with additive manufacturing, veterinarians can create a prosthetic that's specifically tailored to the individual pet's needs. another application of additive manufacturing in veterinary care is 3d modeling of organs. veterinarians can scan an animal's internal organs and create a 3d model of them. this can be very helpful for preparing for surgery or determining the best course of treatment. the possibilities for 3d printing in veterinary care are endless, and we can expect to see more applications for this technology in the future. with companies like organovo and aspect biosystems pioneering this technology in the field of human medicine, it's only a matter of time before we see its impact in veterinary care as well. artificial intelligence, or ai, promises to have a significant impact on our lives over the next several years. it's already starting to make its way into veterinary medicine, and we can expect to see even more uses for it in the future. one of the ways ai is being utilized in veterinary medicine is in the field of diagnosis. by analyzing large amounts of data, ai programs can identify complex patterns and use this information to make diagnoses. this is a huge benefit for veterinarians, as diseases in animals can be diagnosed faster and with more accuracy. ai is also highly effective in detecting patterns in radiology data. this helps veterinarians to more accurately diagnose and treat conditions like cancer. in the future, ai will likely be used to analyze a variety of data types, including genetic information, to help veterinarians make better diagnoses. signalpetis one company using ai technology in the area of veterinary radiology. they've made it their mission to make radiography faster and more accurate for veterinary providers. in the coming years, ai is likely to be used in a variety of other ways in veterinary medicine, from drug discovery to surgical planning. veterinary medicine is on the cusp of a technological revolution, thanks to several cutting edge discoveries that are taking place right now. in this article, we've highlighted a few of the most exciting developments that are changing veterinary medicine as we know it. there are sure to be many more innovations in the years to come, from robotic surgery to gene editing and everything in between. we can't wait to see what the future holds for veterinary medicine! take some of the stress out of pet ownership with accident & illness coverage through akc pet insurance (underwritten by independence american insurance company). our pet insurance plans are designed to be there when you need them, allowing you to focus more on the health of your pet and less on costly veterinary bills. click here for a quote today! richard has shared his life with pets since childhood, and currently has a rescue cat and dog. he works with veterinarians and pet businesses to improve their content. to find out more, please visit his [website](https://richardrowlands.com/). february is national pet dental health month, so take this opportunity to evaluate the state of your pet's teeth and gums and start an oral care routine. can dogs get fleas & ticks in the winter? unfortunately, yes. learn about symptoms, prevention, and how to protect your pet this winter season. flea allergic dermatitis is one of the most common causes of itching in cats and dogs. here are signs & symptoms and treatment & preventative measures. pet insurance policies are underwritten by independence american insurance companypetpartners, inc. is located at 8051 arco corporate drive, suite 350, raleigh, nc 27617.premiums are based on and may increase or decrease due to the age of your pet, the species or breed of your pet, and your home address.insurance is underwritten and issued by independence american insurance company (rated a  "excellent" by a.m. best) with offices at 11333 n. scottsdale rd, suite 160, scottsdale, az 85254. insurance plans are administered by petpartners, inc. (ppi), a licensed agency (ca agency #of27261). “akc pet insurance” is a marketing name used by ppi and is not an akc business nor an insurer. akc does not offer or sell insurance plans. “akc” and its related trademarks are used by ppi under license; akc may receive compensation from ppi. for complete details, refer to www.akcpetinsurance.com/state documents and sample policies. © 2003 2025 petpartners, inc.

table of contents the historical progression of veterinary medicine is a fascinating journey that spans centuries, from ancient veterinary practices of the past to the technological achievements of the 21st century. the roots of veterinary medicine can be traced back as far as 3000 bc, when ancient egyptians were developing rudimentary medical practices for animals. however, it was during the ancient roman and greek empires that veterinary medicine truly began to flourish. during this time, the first known veterinary practitioners emerged, and the greeks even established specialized schools to train students in the field. veterinary medicine began to stagnate during the middle ages, as many essential animal care practices were lost to the test of time. it was not until the renaissance that the field began to evolve and modernize. establishment of the first veterinary schools one of the most important milestones in veterinary history was the establishment of the first dedicated veterinary schools towards the latter half of the 18th century. these institutions laid the groundwork for the formal education of veterinarians and played a crucial role in the development of scientific knowledge pertaining to animal health. in 1762, france opened the first veterinary school in lyon, while the united states started its first veterinary college on the west coast in 1852. the creation of these schools revolutionized veterinary medicine, as it allowed for more focused and structured education. this made it possible for qualified professionals to diagnose and treat previously untreatable animal illnesses, paving the way for the next era of veterinary advancements. the contributions of pivotal veterinarians throughout history, several veterinarians made significant contributions to the field. in the late 18th century, english veterinarian james lewisohn developed groundbreaking techniques for the understanding and treatment of animal diseases. he is often credited with the formalization of veterinary research and clinical practices. in the 20th century, k.t. lingard played a crucial role in shaping modern veterinary medicine. he was an advocate for the humane treatment of animals and is best known for his innovative canine distemper vaccine, which was developed in 1948. this discovery was a game changer, saving the lives of countless animals worldwide. major developments in the 20th century the 20th century witnessed substantial advancements in veterinary medicine, as new discoveries in the fields of anesthesia, surgery, and diagnostics revolutionized the treatment of animal diseases. these advancements played a significant role in improving the quality and length of life for animals, enabling them to live healthier, happier lives. advancements in anesthesia and surgery: anesthesia and surgical techniques vastly improved during the 20th century, resulting in safer and more successful operations on animals. the introduction of new anesthetic agents and refined surgical instruments allowed veterinarians to perform intricate procedures with greater precision. improvements in surgical protocol, pain management, and patient monitoring also greatly reduced risk and pain associated with surgical procedures. advancements in diagnostics: diagnostic medicine saw remarkable breakthroughs within the 20th century, transforming veterinarians’ ability to accurately and rapidly identify diseases, injuries, and other medical problems in animals. new diagnostic tools and techniques, such as x rays, ultrasound, blood tests, and endoscopy, allowed for early detection and intervention, which, in turn, led to better patient outcomes. looking back at the historical progression of veterinary medicine, from its humble beginnings in ancient civilizations to the remarkable achievements of the 21st century, illustrates the rapid development in the field and solidifies the impact of pioneering veterinarians on the health and well being of animals. in recent years, veterinary medicine has significantly evolved due to the rapid advancements in technology. these technological breakthroughs have led to improved diagnostics, treatments, and overall pet care. some of these groundbreaking technologies include dna analysis, 3d printing, and robotic surgery, to name a few. this section will discuss the impact of these advancements on veterinary medicine and pet care. the development of advanced medical imaging techniques has allowed veterinarians to gain a more in depth understanding of an animal’s internal systems. magnetic resonance imaging (mri), computed tomography (ct) scans, and ultrasound provide highly detailed images of an animal’s organs, tissues, and blood vessels. as a result, veterinarians can better diagnose and treat various medical conditions with greater accuracy and efficacy, leading to improved overall health and well being for pets. with the help of advanced technology, veterinary medicine now boasts more precise treatment options for pets. innovations in chemotherapy, gene therapy, radio frequency ablation, and laser procedures provide veterinarians with the tools to treat very specific issues, often with fewer side effects and greater effectiveness than previous methods. these treatments have been particularly beneficial for pets with cancer or other chronic illnesses. telemedicine has rapidly gained popularity in veterinary medicine due to the ongoing covid 19 pandemic. this technology allows veterinarians to consult with pet owners remotely, providing guidance on common health concerns, prescriptions, and follow up care. telemedicine has not only reduced the risk of viral transmission between humans and pets but has also made veterinary care more accessible and convenient for pet owners. preventive medicine is becoming increasingly crucial for maintaining the health and well being of our beloved pets. regular check ups and vaccinations are essential for preventing illnesses and ensuring that our pets can lead long and healthy lives. regular check ups by a veterinarian are vital for identifying any health issues early on before they become more severe and harder to treat. vaccinations protect pets from various diseases, such as rabies, distemper, and parvovirus, which could be life threatening if contracted. in addition to regular check ups and vaccinations, preventing threats from external sources is essential for our pets’ health. heartworm and parasite prevention, including treatments for fleas and ticks, help protect pets against these harmful external factors. dental care is another essential aspect of preventive healthcare. regular teeth and gum check ups, combined with appropriate dental hygiene practices, help prevent dental diseases and keep our pets healthy. furthermore, maintaining a balanced diet and proper nutrition is vital to support overall health and disease prevention. obesity in pets can lead to various health issues, such as cardiovascular problems, diabetes, and joint disorders. overweight animals can also be at risk for developing certain cancers, therefore, keeping your pet at a healthy weight is essential. regular exercise and appropriate nutrition and portion control play a significant role in managing pet weight and minimizing the risk of health concerns. spaying and neutering not only help reduce the number of unwanted litters but also decrease the risk of reproductive organ related cancers in pets. undergoing these procedures at an appropriate age ensures that animals maintain a healthy hormonal balance and experience fewer behavioral issues, such as aggression or marking territory. by focusing on preventive healthcare, we can help our pets live longer, healthier lives and avoid many of the health issues that can arise without proper care. advancements in veterinary medicine have led to a better understanding of pain management and stress reduction for pets. in recent years, veterinary professionals have developed various strategies to alleviate pain and improve the quality of life for animals. here, we will explore those methods and their benefits, as well as how they contribute to a better experience for pets and their owners. modern veterinary practices offer a range of therapies for pain relief and stress reduction. these therapies include: by using these various therapies for pain relief and stress reduction, veterinarians can provide: providing pet owners with knowledge and support resources can empower them to be more involved in their pets’ pain management and stress reduction plans. by understanding the available options and collaborating with veterinary professionals, pet owners can work together to ensure that their furry friends receive the best possible care. in the ever evolving field of veterinary medicine, there has been a growing trend towards personalized medicine for pets. this approach has numerous benefits, including more accurate diagnosis, predictions of disease susceptibility, and targeted treatment based on individual pet needs. here’s an overview of the different aspects of personalized medicine that are reshaping the world of companion animal care. advancements in genetics and genomics have provided veterinarians with the ability to more accurately diagnose diseases and make predictions about an animal’s susceptibility to certain conditions. by understanding an animal’s genetic makeup, veterinarians can identify potential health risks and provide preventive care before the onset of symptoms. this, in turn, can lead to more effective treatment and improved long term outcomes for the pet. companion animal genomics is an emerging field that focuses on understanding the genetic basis of various traits and diseases in pets. by studying the genome of different breeds, researchers can gain insights into breed specific health risks and develop tailored treatment plans accordingly. over time, this field has the potential to revolutionize pet care by enabling earlier diagnoses and more personalized treatment options. in treating cancer in pets, veterinarians can utilize personalized medicine to design targeted treatment plans based on the genetic profile of the animal and the specific characteristics of the tumor. this approach can lead to more effective treatments with fewer side effects, as opposed to the one size fits all method that has been traditionally used. nutrigenomics is another area where personalized medicine is making a significant impact. this field of study examines the relationship between an animal’s genetic makeup and their response to nutrition. by understanding how an individual pet’s genes affect its nutrient metabolism, veterinarians can recommend dietary plans that best support overall health and well being. personalized nutrition plans can help pets achieve optimal body weight, maintain a healthy immune system, and even address specific health concerns, such as food allergies or digestive disorders. pharmacogenomics is the study of how an individual’s genetic makeup affects their response to medications. this approach allows veterinarians to tailor drug therapies based on a pet’s specific genetic profile, ensuring the right drug, dose, and treatment duration. with this level of customization, the risk of adverse drug reactions is minimized, and the effectiveness of the treatment is maximized. as the understanding of pharmacogenomics deepens, it opens up new possibilities for more efficient and safer medical interventions. in the ever evolving world of veterinary medicine, it has become increasingly important for veterinarians, specialists, and researchers to work together in order to provide the best possible care for our beloved pets. fostering collaboration between these professionals not only supports the sharing of knowledge and expertise, but it also enables them to effectively address more complicated cases that require a multi disciplinary approach. in general practice, veterinarians gain experience in treating a wide range of common medical conditions, conducting routine check ups, and administering vaccinations. however, more specialized and complex cases often call for the expertise of a trained specialist, who focuses on a particular area of veterinary medicine, such as internal medicine, surgery, or oncology. by working together, general practitioners and specialists can ensure that pets receive comprehensive and individualized care. here’s a brief overview of some of the most common areas of veterinary specialization: one key method for fostering collaboration between professionals is through veterinary conferences and continuing education programs. these events enable practitioners and specialists to share their knowledge and expertise with each other, as well as stay updated on the latest advancements in veterinary medicine. some of the most popular and highly regarded veterinary conferences include: continuing education programs, such as those offered by the navc institute, allow veterinarians and their staff to expand their skill sets, ensuring that they provide the best possible care to pets. in addition to in person events, online resources have made it easier than ever before for veterinarians, specialists, and researchers to collaborate and share their knowledge. social media platforms, online forums, and professional networking sites have all contributed to the creation of a global veterinary community that is dedicated to advancing animal healthcare. as emphasized by dr. susan little, professor of dermatology at the oklahoma state university center for veterinary health sciences: as modern veterinary medicine continues to evolve, the importance of collaboration among professionals becomes increasingly essential. by working together, veterinarians, specialists, and researchers can help ensure that our pets receive the best possible treatment and care. through conferences, continuing education programs, and online resources, the veterinary community can continue to pave the way for exceptional pet care. as we stand on the precipice of an era marked by incredible advances in technology and medicine, the field of veterinary medicine is poised for significant growth and progress. this section will discuss potential future advancements in animal healthcare, including the use of artificial intelligence in diagnostics, the role of epigenetics in treatment development, and the use of stem cell therapy and regenerative medicine. we will also explore the ways in which the veterinary profession will need to adapt to these new developments, emphasizing the importance of lifelong learning and the adoption of innovative practices to ensure best in class care for our furry friends. a key area of potential future advancement in veterinary medicine is the application of artificial intelligence (ai) in diagnostic processes. ai has already shown great promise in various fields of human medicine, and its potential applications in veterinary medicine are vast. researchers from the university of helsinki and folkhälsan institute of genetics, in collaboration with the broad institute of mit and harvard, have developed an ai based diagnostic system that can identify genetic disorders in dogs. according to their research, the ai based system can accurately diagnose complex genetic disorders with high accuracy, offering a potential game changer for assessing and treating genetic diseases in companion animals. epigenetics, the study of heritable changes in gene expression without alterations to the underlying dna sequence, is another emerging field with implications for both human and veterinary medicine. research into epigenetics in dogs, for example, could have significant implications for understanding the development of genetically driven diseases in animals and may eventually lead to targeted treatments. dr. elaine ostrander, chief of the comparative genetics branch at the national human genome research institute, has stated that “the extent to which genes are actually expressed is modulated by the epigenome   a layer of chemicals on top of the dna that changes with the environment.” stem cell therapy and regenerative medicine represent another exciting area of potential growth in the field of veterinary medicine. these cutting edge techniques offer the possibility of repairing or replacing damaged tissues and organs in animals, effectively mitigating the need for more invasive surgeries. recent studies conducted by the [faculty of veterinary medicine at the complutense university of madrid](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmc5740355/) have demonstrated the potential of stem cell therapy for the treatment of degenerative joint diseases in dogs. as the veterinary profession embraces these new advancements, it must also adapt to ensure that the best possible care is provided to our pets. this will mean adopting practices such as lifelong learning and incorporating innovative techniques that are supported by rigorous scientific research. the continued engagement of veterinarians, specialists, and researchers in collaborative efforts such as veterinary conferences, continuing education, and online resources will bolster the sharing of knowledge and expertise, ultimately improving the lives of pets and their human families. the future of veterinary medicine holds myriad opportunities for growth and progress, which will require the continued commitment of dedicated professionals within the field. as cutting edge developments in ai, epigenetics, and regenerative medicine come to the fore, we can look forward to a new era of innovation in animal healthcare, ensuring our furry friends the best possible quality of life. category: healthcare (708) 458 2970 6050 s. harlem avesummit, il 60501 mon, tue, thu: 08:00 am   06:00 pm wed, sat 09:00 am   01:00 pm fri: 09:00 am   05:00 pm sun: closed 6050 s. harlem ave summit, il 60501 phone: (708) 458 2970 fax: (708) 458 1357 business hours mon 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newsletter we explain the changing world of pet health care. by katie thomas pets these days are just like us. they get birthday cakes, day care and rubber boots to wear in the snow. their health care is becoming more human, too   for better and for worse. decades ago, animal care was relatively rudimentary. veterinarians usually owned their own clinics, and the options to treat a sick or injured pet were limited. today, animal hospitals are equipped with expensive magnetic resonance imaging machines, round the clock critical care units and teams of specialists in cancer, cardiology and neurology. for pets and the people who love them, the advances are welcome. but as animals’ health care has changed to more closely resemble our own, it has also taken on some of the problems of the human system, including the biggest one: cost. the price of veterinary care has soared more than 60 percent over the past decade, outpacing inflation. private equity firms have snapped up hundreds of independent clinics, in a trend reminiscent of corporate roll ups of doctors’ offices. veterinarians around the country told me that they worry this is changing the way that they practice, as they face growing pressure to push costly treatments and order more tests. the changed landscape means that even as veterinarians can do more for dogs and cats than ever before, pet owners face sometimes heartbreaking decisions about whether they can afford the care. (read more in our story on the topic.) about one quarter of primary care clinics and three quarters of specialty clinics are owned by corporations, according to brakke consulting, which focuses on the animal health industry. sometimes, the corporate ownership is not obvious: many private equity firms do not change the name of the vet clinic when they take it over. most veterinarians are paid, at least in part, based on how much money they bring into a practice, whether that is by ordering tests, selling prescription dog food or performing procedures. one veterinarian said she quit her job after she was told her “cost per client” was too low; another said she was told she needed to see 21 animals a day, about a half dozen more than her current workload.

 alex douzet is ceo of pumpkin, a pet insurance and wellness care provider founded to help ensure pets live their healthiest lives. pet ownership is at an all time high, with 66% of u.s. households owning at least one pet.