VIN News Service‘s Edie Lau gives us an inside view into one of the current dilemmas faced by veterinary practices today — the big decline in visits to clinics and animal hospitals.
A study presented at the recent North American Veterinary Conference in Orlando looked at the factors impacting the challenges veterinary practices are facing:
One notable factor is that the number of companion-animal practitioners has exploded in the past decade, rising from 30,255 to 44,785 between 1996-97 and 2006-07, a rate of 48 percent — greater than the rate at which the pet population grew during the same period.
The upshot is that the median number of active clients per full-time-equivalent veterinarian is in steady decline, dropping from 1,200 in 2001 to 1,070 in 2009, according to Financial & Productivity Pulse Points, published by the American Animal Hospital Association Press.
The study goes on to suggest that the rising number of practicing veterinarians isn’t creating the problem, but rather, increasing it. Another cause? Believe it or not, the internet.
John Volk, a senior consultant for Brakke Consulting, the firm which produced the study with Bayer Animal Health, pointed to several causes (which Lau recounts in her article), but he maintains that there are times when spending a day or three doing research on a veterinary issue can become problematic.
Thirty-nine percent of pet owners surveyed indicated that they always or usually look online first when they notice that their pets are sick or injured.
Fifteen percent completely or somewhat agreed with the statement, “With the Internet, I don’t rely on the vet as much.”
Volk acknowledged that some pets recover on their own but said that in those that don’t, the delay in treatment is evident to practitioners. “I’m seeing pets three days sicker these days,” one veterinarian told researchers.
It’s a thought-provoking study, and I hope people study its conclusions carefully. Veterinarians are too important to lose or take for granted.
The Honest Kitchen’s new vendor pledge: On the heels of one recall after another for various types of contamination, it’s refreshing to see a pet food company taking a firm stand for saftety. The Honest Kitchen (full disclosure: a Pet Connection sponsor) is instituting a formal vendor pledge. Meaning, if you’re going to do business with THK by supplying them with ingredients, you must certify your adherence to a series of guidelines, including:
Not genetically modified or subject to engineered recombinant DNA technologyVerification that it is free of chemicals or adulterantsPost-harvest handling: verification that it is free of chemical preservatives such as EthoxyquinSustainability and fair-trade attributes where applicableVerification of screening for contaminants such as salmonella, e-Coli, Coliform, lead, arsenic, mercury and melamine, in accordance with human food safety standardsA promise that the ingredient does not originate from China
That wasn’t so hard now, was it? Certain companies out there would do well to follow THK’s lead. We don’t need to name them here.
Pet flight travel report: Did you know there’s a site where you can view an accounting of recent incidents in pet flight travel? Check out petflight.com‘s page on December 2010 reports. Since Gina’s Faith (a.k.a. FayBee, Charter Member of the Bad Girls’ Club) is going to be boarding a plane later this week for a little vacation, I thought this would be a good time to get the word out. Have fun, FayBee! Try to be nice to the inflight crew, OK?
Texas police dog undergoing treatment: A police dog from Waco, Texas is being treated at the famed University of California-Davis Veterinary Hospital for a life-threatening case of leptospirosis. News 10 of central Texas has the story. Last fall I was fortunate enough to get a guided tour of the hospital where Torro is being treated. It’s an incredible facility. Torro is in excellent hands.
Life’s ruff: A man named Chris Dignan has created a program called “Life’s Ruff,” which is a show about shelter dogs trained to do some great stuff. There’s a video here, which you might end up watching a few times.
Puppy Bowl VII approaches: Next Sunday afternoon, there will be a nationally televised event that people have been waiting for all year. Parties are held to celebrate the athletic achievement. Commercials for the event cost more. No, I’m not talking about the Packers playing the Steelers in Arlington, Tex. I’m referring to Puppy Bowl VII, being shown on Animal Planet. This past week, the starting lineups were unveiled. Facebook users can take part in official betting pools on who the MVP (Most Valuable Puppy) will be. I have a favorite, but I’m not sayin’ who it is.
Important flow chart: People like me (dog owners who don’t have cats…what did you think I meant?) need simple visual aids to understand how the other half lives. I stumbled upon this handy dandy chart, and I feel I’m better informed now.
Hamster agility! I’ve seen dog agility. I’ve seen cat tricks. I’ve seen remarkable horses. Agile rabbits. I’ve never seen this.
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Doxy in snow: I’m asked a lot whether Cami and Harry like heavy snowfalls, and how they cope. This might be as good an answer as any (thanks, Ericka).
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Not one but TWO pictures of the day:
A very, VERY good Golden retriever (thanks again, Patti), and a street sweeper in Moscow who would prefer not to disturb some citizens (thanks to Marge for that one).
I always like to hear from readers, especially if you have tips, and links for interesting stories. Give me a shout in the comments, or better yet, send me an e-mail
Photo credit: Cat with veterinarian, Flickr Creative Commons (Jeffrey Beall)
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