Travis, Taylor, and the Triple Bottom Line

Hello 👋

What do Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift have to do with veterinary medicine? Absolutely nothing.

But we haven’t been in your inbox in a few weeks and since Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have been making headlines, we just wanted to fit in. And before you tell us that the moment has passed - both Travis and Taylor made cameos on SNL last night.

Lastly, we would be remised if we didn’t acknowledge that the last week has been one filled with emotion as violence reignited in the Middle East. Our thoughts are with those affected and their families. Please take care of yourselves. And if you have Jewish, Israeli, or Palestinian friends or family, we highly encourage you to check in with them ❤️ 

This week, we will once again bring you our favorite triple bottom line:
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 People
🐶 🐱 Pets
💰 Profits

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 People

Aaron Frazier has been promoted from his role at VCA Canada to become the new Chief Operating Officer of VCA. There are big things to be done and we look forward to seeing how you tackle the multitude of challenges for our profession in your new role. Congratulations, Aaron.

Veterinary academia is suffering. Across North America, finding clinicians to support the teaching, research and service missions at underfunded institutions is a challenge. Specialists make too much money in private practice and are asked to do too much with too little in academia. But Blue Pearl is looking to shake things up with their new Blue Pearl University Partnership Program. The first clinician to enter the program is Trevor Arnold, an Ophthalmologist who will split his time between private practice (75% of the time) and academia at Colorado State University (25%). It is a somewhat novel approach to solve staffing shortages and we look forward to keeping an eye on how it goes. You know, asking for a friend and all…

Is there actually a veterinarian shortage? Somewhat surprisingly, this has been up for debate in recent weeks. Following the AVMA’s assertion that the numbers don’t add up, we have seen both an explosion of new Veterinary Colleges opening as well as an increase in the number of seats available at existing colleges across the United States. Unless everyone is enrolling in Blue Pearl’s new program we have no clue how all these hospitals will be staffed and the demand in learning will be met. The only thing we’re sure of is that we know where you can get high quality continuing education.

Next week Mentor Vet is offering 90 minute mentorship sessions at the NAVC HiVE Vet Nurse and Tech event in Austin.

CareVet veterinary hospitals has partnered with Blendvet and Hill's Pet Nutrition to add diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) content into its company-wide employee education platform.

🐶🐱 Pets

Veterinary Forensics, the field of study applying veterinary medicine to investigate crimes against animals has grown over the past 15 years as VIN explored this week. The growth has resulted in two master’s degree programs, a fellowship for veterinary pathologists, a peer-reviewed journal and several diagnostic centers in the U.S. The field also helps protect people from violence, as animal abuse is often linked to crimes against humans. However, the field also requires emotional resilience, proper training, collaboration and ethical standards. As VIN News explored in part two of their focus on animal welfare, this training is something many veterinarians lack,

A new study on grain-free diets and DCM is a hot topic right now. The study’s authors claim that after 210 days, the longest prospective study on record, dogs fed a grain free diet showed no increase in the development of DCM. There are just two small massive problems with this study and claim… First, its only 210 days, which may be a long time in the prospective study world, but it is not a long time in the “we eat this diet for a few years” world. Second, the authors formulated their own diets instead of using one of the multitude of diets previously attributed to DCM.

Embark has announced a partnership to provide DNA test kits to members of Assistance Dog International’s breeding cooperative. The goal is to identify inherited disorders in service animals to allow the healthiest animals to work as assistance dogs.

Plus, something to make you smile:

@weratedogs

Today we are recognizing dogs whose souls are trapped in wood… #weratedogs

💰 Profits

Trupanion is suing Roy Stein, the prior founder of BabelBark, an app they acquired in 2020. Stein is accused by the company of breaking the terms of his agreement, as they claim he has released a new app which is nearly identical to BabelBark in his new role at Destination Pet. The website for his new app, Yourgi, is much nicer, so if Trupanion wins perhaps they can spend the money on a web designer?

Following a $6.4 million IPO, Inspire Veterinary Partners Inc is shifiting into acquisition driven growth. With 13 locations across nine states, the company currently has $19 million in annual revenue and plans to add 10 more locations in the coming years.

Urban Animal, a Seattle-based veterinary clinic, will become the first worker cooperative veterinary practice in the United States. Dr. Cheri Trusheim, the founder, believes the transition will empower employees, resist corporatization, and provide option-based care. The goal is for the 110-employee clinic to become a 100% worker owned co-op over time. It’s an interesting concept in a profession that is increasingly corporatized.