Combating corporate crawl

The Problem: My private veterinary clinic is losing dollars and staff to the corporate practices moving into my area. What have they got that I have not? And how can I get it?

Solution: You cannot get what they have, but as an independent hospital, you have other muscles you can flex to stand up to corporate powerhouses.

The solo practitioner once needed to worry only about the veterinarian across town, who might have poached an employee or undercut them on the price of the rabies vaccine. However, the landscape began changing some 40 years ago when VCA Animal Hospitals (VCA) bought its first clinic, triggering a wave of corporate consolidation driven by private equity.^1-5

Mars Inc then rose to the top in 2017, when it purchased VCA, adding to a monster portfolio that already included other veterinary hospital chains. By then, nearly 14 percent of the US veterinary market had gone corporate.⁶ Then, over the next 5 years, 45 corporate conglomerates came to operate nearly 11,000 practices in the US.⁷

Today, corporate describes 1 in 4 primary care and 75% of specialty and emergency hospitals, which together account for half of veterinary revenues nationwide.⁸

Longitudinal data from 2000 to 2021 reveal a troubling trend for independent practices: When corporations enter their space, these incumbents experience declines of 6.9% in revenue and 5.7% in employment, respectively, and are almost 2% more likely to exit.⁹

“Private practices are probably not as savvy as the corporations,” said Michael Fugaro, VMD, DACVS, owner of Mountain Pointe Equine Veterinary Services in Long Valley, New Jersey.

“Savvy,” he added, is the product of bountiful resources and economies of scale. Corporations can consolidate back-office work, adopt technologies, hire effectively, negotiate volume discounts on products and services, stretch long marketing arms, and dip into deep pools of private equity-backed capital to expand.

When they roll into town, veterinary conglomerates, whose cowbird-style inroads have drawn recent scrutiny from the US Federal Trade Commission, bring tremendous market power: Existing shops are forced to fly smarter to endure.¹⁰

“Because of the great deal of market share they hold with distributors and manufacturers, corporations are able to negotiate lower prices that the independents can’t access,” said Amy Grice, VMD, MBA, founder of Montana-based equine veterinary mentorship firm Decade One.

Some hospital conglomerates have also gobbled up some of the goods and services providers they use, giving them a further competitive edge over independent practitioners. The mom-and-pops cannot just drop prices to survive.

“If they match the prices the corporations are charging to retain the clients, they are lowering their ability to cover their fixed expenses,” Grice stated.

Boost buying clout

Hope is not lost. There is a community for independent hospitals that mimics the structure and support of a megaorganization. Buying groups facilitate supplier discounts, and service providers are available for back-office support tasks like client reminders, online pharmacy fulfillment, and human resources management.

For example, members of the Independent Veterinary Practitioners Association (IVPA), which promotes the unique value independents deliver, can key into a network of vendors and service providers offering more for less.

The animal health industry is populated by several group purchasing organizations (GPOs) that offer volume discounts to single hospitals. Veterinary Management Groups (VMG), for instance, maintains a GPO branch that aggregates purchasing power to secure discounts and rebates on drugs and supplies through robust partnerships with purveyors.

“There are circumstances where you can look at 40% to 50% off list price in the right GPO,” said VMG member Justin Toth, DVM, who sits on IVPA’s board.

Fellow VMG member Judy Hung, VMD, owner of Eastside Veterinary Associates, with hospitals in Kirkland and Renton, Washington, also finds value. “I don’t know how much better the discounts are at the bigger corporates, but I’m grateful for having a relatively level playing field with VMG.”

Be the better boss

Big veterinary companies tender a smorgasbord of tasty perks designed to draw new workers, like great benefits, built-in continuing education offerings, enviable work-life balances, and the option to choose one’s own work location, which are very attractive to the younger generations.

“We can’t hire like these companies can,” Fugaro lamented. “We also can’t compete with the signing bonuses they’re throwing out there because we don’t have the deep pockets.”

A recent study showed that most associates preferred working for independent hospitals because of the practice administration, mentorship, and culture.¹¹ For veterinary professionals who are working at independent practices owned by 1 veterinarian, they were found to be more likely than veterinary professionals practices at corporate practices to remain for 5 years.¹²

Fugaro values the freedom he has in mentoring his employees. He also forges community at work through teambuilding events and staff socials. This is a pipe dream for the big-box shops, which are starting to woo workers with the promise of a more liberated work style.

“In the past 6 months,” said IVPA President Arnold Goldman, DVM, MPH, “I [have seen] disingenuous hiring ads from corporations containing words like independent, run your own show, and piece of the development pie.”

Market your independence

Whether invested in restaurants, ski shops, or veterinary hospitals, private equity funds have a trademark life cycle. Patience describes the first year, when little changes in businesses they are backing. But over time, prices rise in a flurry to meet timelines of financiers, who look to cash out around year 5.

Stress levels mount, and employees jump ship. “It becomes a revolving door of vets,” said Goldman. This is a turn-off for most clients, he continued, who seek an enduring relationship with that veterinarian they trust. Owners can be intentional about avoiding corporate, Toth observed. “A lot of new clients call, and the first question they ask is, ‘Are you corporate-owned?’ ”

Goldman insists that small clinics do not need big media budgets to broadcast individuality. He put a sign in his lobby featuring pet photos with quotes like, “Privately owned means we consider our pet owners friends and do more to get to know them personally,” and “Our focus is on individualized patient care rather than shareholder profits.” Taglines on invoices can also advertise such sentiments cost-effectively.

Fugaro uses social media to convey the warm-and-fuzzy to clients, who frequently praise candids of his staffers and, say, a shot of a barn cat. For hospitals that lack the time or know-how to handle digital communications, the IVPA has web designers and social media consultants available to help members.

Christie Cornelius, DVM, MBA, who owns Galveston, Texas–based Fair Winds Senior Pet Care, said smaller clinics are hampered by the “marketing funnels” the conglomerates have etched out for themselves.

She gained marketing traction by developing an internal referral ecosystem comprising rehab doctors, neurologists, oncologists, crematories, groomers, and pet sitters.

Here is where the independent hospital has the edge, according to Goldman: “Engaging with the community in a more personal way than a corporation is going to do.”

Reference

1. Gärtner MC. Private equity challenge–capital structure. Master’s thesis. Universidade NOVA de Lisboa; 2023.
2. Reader D, Summers S. Paws for thought: putting UK vet acquisitions on a tightened leash. CompetitionPolicyInternational. June 28, 2024. Accessed August 28, 2026. https://www.pymnts.com/cpi-posts/paws-for-thought-putting-uk-vet-acquisitions-on-a-tightened-leash/
3. Chen IC. Ares Management to sell National Veterinary Associates. L.A. Business First. June 21, 2019. AccessedOctober 24, 2024. https://www.bizjournals.com/losangeles/news/2019/06/21/ares-management-to-sell-national-veterinary.html
4. Inflexion partners with TPP founders to support further growth. News release. Inflexion. July 2024. Accessed October 24, 2024. https://www.inflexion.com/news-and-insights/news/2024/inflexion-partners-with-tpp-founders-to-support-further-growth/
5. Wright M, Gilligan J, Amess K. The economic impact of private equity: what we know and what we would like to know. VentureCapital. 2009;11:1-21. doi:10.1080/13691060802151887
6. American Veterinary Medical Association. 2018 AVMA report on the market for veterinary services. Markets Reports of the Veterinary Economics Division. 2018. https://www.avma.org/sites/default/files/resources/2018-econ-rpt3-veterinary-services.pdf
7. Zak I. Veterinary consolidators: North American market analysis. Veterinary Integration Solutions. December 8, 2022. Accessed August 28, 2026. https://vetintegrations.com/insights/veterinary-consolidators/
8. Brakke Consulting. 2022 industry overview. Brakke Consulting; 2022.
9. Steinbach S. The corporatization of veterinary medicine and its impact on independent practices. J Agric and Appl EconAssoc. 2025;4(3):405-423. doi:10.1002/jaa2.70024
10. American Economic Liberties Project. Response to request for information on serial acquisitions, roll-up strategies across US economy. Docket ID FTC-2024-0028. September 20, 2024. Accessed September 14, 2026. https://www.economicliberties.us/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/AELP-Comment-on-FTC-DOJ-RFI-Roll-Ups-9.20.24-FINAL.pdf
11. Kogan LR, Rishniw M. Differences in perceptions and satisfaction exist among veterinarians employed at corporate versus privately owned veterinary clinics. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2023;261(12):1838-1846. doi:10.2460/javma.23.06.0326
12. McKayCH, Vaisman JM. Psychological safety, purpose, path, and partnership reduce associate veterinarian desire to leave current employment. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2023;261(10):1518-1524. doi:10.2460/javma.23.03.0158