How will you leave your mark on the veterinary profession when you retire? As an independent veterinary practice owner, you can leave a legacy that reaches into the future by selling your thriving practice to another independent owner. Whether you sell to an associate who knows your practice and clients well or to an outsider keen to establish strong bonds is up to you. Developing a pipeline of potential new independent practice owners is our joint responsibility as a profession. Together we can help to sustain a strong and caring legacy of independent veterinary practice.
VMG supports independent veterinary practices
At VMG, supporting a thriving independent veterinary practice segment is our North Star. We believe passionately that independent veterinary practices are critical to a robust veterinary profession that improves the lives of animals, their owners, and society. We are committed to helping independent practice owners improve their own quality of life and that of their staff, by providing opportunities for education, peer support and collaboration. VMG Study Groups are powerful tools that combine personal and professional development with a business mindset to create a supportive community for veterinarians in the sometimes-lonely job of private practice owners.
VMG members also benefit from members-only discounts and rebates through our exclusive Preferred Partner program; VMG members have already earned more than $230 million in rebates and discounts from just our top 6 partners. From diagnostics, medications, and equipment for better patient care, to payment services and marketing support, VMG partners help independent veterinary practice owners compete successfully against the big corporate practices that now control almost 50% of the companion animal veterinary market.1
The benefits of independence
As in any market, the independent veterinary practice segment provides more choices for pet owners and encourage innovation. Markets dominated by a few gargantuan corporations have well-known downsides including poor customer service and higher prices.2,3
Independent veterinary practices, on the other hand, bring their own strengths (LINK TO STRENGTHS BLOG) to the table. These include stronger community ties, more nimble decision-making and happier teams, all of which contribute to a positive work culture in the practice and improve client trust and loyalty.4
How to build your legacy
Independent veterinary practice owners who want their practice to be their legacy to the profession need to start working now to support the next generation of private practice owners. Here’s where they need to focus:
Make ownership part of the discussion
Ask your associates and interviewees if they are thinking about potential ownership in the future. The answer may surprise you; even new graduates may be looking at your practice as a future purchase. You’re not obligated to sell your practice to a member of your team, but you can help a potential future owner prepare for success.
Only associates with the financial capacity for a significant investment can turn the dream of practice ownership into a reality. In a recent survey of former VMG members who sold their practices to corporations, 71% reported that they would have preferred to sell to an independent veterinarian, if they could have received equivalent value for the practice.5 Why didn’t they find that independent buyer? The primary reason was that no associate had the financial capacity to pay that value.5 Although veterinary medicine is widely recognized as a viable industry, individual veterinarians may be limited to the traditional and highly restrictive lending market.6 Creation of new, non-traditional sources of funding represents an opportunity for the independent practice segment.4
Mentor the next generation
Business sustainability requires a strong talent pipeline. We often think of mentoring in veterinary medicine in terms of patient care, resilience, or navigating difficult client conversations. Running a practice requires business skills too. If one of your associates is interested in practice ownership, help them develop the financial literacy and leadership they will need to succeed.
Look beyond the current generation of associates. Today’s veterinary students are tomorrow’s potential practice owners. If your alma mater or local veterinary school has a chapter of the Veterinary Business Management Association, offer to mentor their members. Not only will you help the profession stay strong, you might also find a new associate or potential successor.
Work with organized veterinary medicine
Veterinary organizations, most notably the AVMA (American Veterinary Medical Association), can magnify your voice. This influence grows, however, only if independent veterinary practice remains at the top of their agenda. The Independent Veterinary Practitioners Association (IVPA) is an advocacy group already working on behalf of independent practices; formal recognition of the IVPA by the AVMA’s House of Delegates would further strengthen their efforts.7 The AVMA could propose new laws or changes to existing laws that regulate veterinary practice, so that Credentialed Veterinary Technicians (CVTs) or certified veterinary practice managers could also become practice owners. They will only do so if today’s independent practice owners make their wishes known.
Start strengthening your legacy today
“You don’t want to wait until you are three years from retirement to make your hospital better” – Dr. Dan Herbert, Duxbury Animal Hospital, VMG member since 2014.
Every veterinarian leaves a legacy in the patients they care for and the lives they touch. Independent veterinary practice owners have the additional opportunity to maintain a strong independent practice sector, keeping our profession vibrant into the future. At VMG, your success is our passion – we’re here to help you succeed!
References
- Brakke Consulting 2022 Animal Health Industry Overview. Presented 17 January 2022, VMX, Orlando FL.
- Department of Justice. Competition and monopoly: Single-firm conduct under section 2 of the Sherman Act: Chapter 2. (2022). Accessed 21 June 2025. https://www.justice.gov/archives/atr/competition-and-monopoly-single-firm-conduct-under-section-2-sherman-act-chapter-2
- Social Market Foundation. Consumers and the economy are getting a bad deal because companies don’t face enough competition. (2017). Accessed 21 June 2025. https://www.smf.co.uk/consumers-economy-getting-bad-deal-companies-dont-face-enough-competition-event
- Traub-Werner, M., Salois, M., McKay, C., & Platt, M. Making the case for a resurgent US independent veterinary practice segment: a SWOT analysis. Frontiers in Veterinary Science. 2025;12,1558745
- Data on file, VMG Survey of former members, 2024.
- Hamarat Ç, Broby D. Regulatory constraint and small business lending: do innovative peer-to-peer lenders have an advantage? Financial Innovation. 2022 Aug 15;8(1):73.
- Independent Veterinary Practitioners Association website. Accessed 14 April 2025. https://www.iveterinarians.org