The public often sees veterinarians solely as caregivers who provide essential medical attention to animals in need. However, beyond the exam rooms and surgical suites, many veterinarians possess qualities that make them natural entrepreneurs — a blend of problem-solving skills and an intimate understanding of the needs of pets and their owners.
Veterinarians who step into the world of business leverage their professional insights to create innovative products, launch tech companies, develop specialized services and even influence policy. These trailblazers redefine what it means to be a veterinarian and make a lasting impact on how we care for animals.
Below, we highlight 10 veterinarians who have transitioned from traditional clinical practice to entrepreneurial ventures. Through their inspiring journeys and groundbreaking work, they keep their passion for animals at the heart of their mission.
The Relief of a Different Career Path
Cindy Trice, DVM
- Chief veterinary officer, Hound (current position)
- Founder and CEO, Relief Rover (sold to Hound in 2023)
- Bradenton, Florida
Dr. Cindy Trice was three months into a small animal internship when a cancer diagnosis forced her to drop out. “Once I recovered from treatment, I started working at a small animal practice,” she says. “I finished my internship in 2007, then worked as a relief vet for the next 15 years. Along the way, I realized being a relief vet could be a career — not only taking care of patients but also the business.”
Enter Relief Rover, a web-based service connecting relief veterinarians with practices across the United States looking for their services. It launched in 2018, and Dr. Trice networked tirelessly to spread the word. “Over time, word of mouth took over and people started joining,” she says.
While Relief Rover initially was free for job seekers and practices, she eventually monetized the operation by charging practices a subscription fee. In 2023, she sold Relief Rover to Hound, which provides recruiting, relief and retention software for veterinary teams. Today, Dr. Trice is Hound’s full-time chief veterinary officer, but she stays connected to clinical practice with one or two ER relief shifts a month.
Dr. Trice further flexed her entrepreneurial chops by cofounding another company, KickIt Pajamas. After her cancer experience, she saw a need for a better hospital gown and, with a group of likeminded women, brought one to market.
To veterinarians who may be considering a non-traditional path, Dr. Trice says, “Stay curious and look for where things could be done better or where there are gaps. And absolutely be a networker.
It’s a fantastic way to open your mind and lead you down paths you never would have expected.”
Giving Life to In-Home Euthanasia
Gary Hsia, DVM
- Co-founder, CodaPet
- Chicago, Illinois
“My personal journey to becoming an entrepreneur stemmed from the desire to have a more flexible schedule,” says Dr. Gary Hsia.
After working at mixed animal practices in Oregon and California, he decided to go out on his own and establish an in-home euthanasia practice in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2022.
“We were seeing an increased desire among pet parents to have an in-home experience for their pets at the end of life,” he says. “Given my initial success in building a small in-home euthanasia service, I decided to expand and offer this flexibility and fulfillment to other veterinarians. I wanted to give vets more autonomy over their schedules and finances, and more administrative support than they would find as an employee or hanging out their own shingle.”
So with co-founders Drs. Bethany Hsia and Karen Whala, CodaPet was born. Today, it’s a network of several hundred veterinarians providing in-home euthanasia to pets in 150-plus regions of the United States. Pet owners access the service via the CodaPet website.
Dr. Hsia’s foray into entrepreneurship has changed how he views success.
“My impact is magnified,” he says. “I have the opportunity to support hundreds of veterinarians who then have an impact across hundreds of communities, compared to a localized effort of helping just one family at a time.
“My ultimate wish is to have in-home euthanasia become the norm for how families say goodbye to their pets,” he adds.
Helping Early-Career Vets Thrive Through Mentorship
Dani Rabwin, DVM
- Founder and CEO, Ready, Vet, Go
- Benicia, California
“My entrepreneurial journey began in 2020 when I mentored a new graduate we hired,” says Dr. Dani Rabwin, a general practitioner at a Northern California veterinary clinic. “We had a wonderful mentor-mentee relationship, and she began bringing me questions from friends and classmates who weren’t receiving the same support. So, I invited them all to a Zoom group. We began meeting twice a month, and I found myself facilitating conversations with early-career veterinarians from across the country.
“It opened my eyes to the fact that a lot of the support new vets need isn’t clinical — it’s about building confidence, navigating imposter syndrome, learning leadership skills, and managing their time and emotions. When I saw there was no structured, remote mentorship program like this, I decided to create one.”
Ready, Vet, Go offers a seven-month program to support early-career veterinarians through a combination of professional development workshops, peer and mentor support, and a vibrant virtual community. Practices can enroll new graduates, or early-career vets can use their CE budget to enroll themselves.
“We’ve already grown beyond a mentorship program,” Dr. Rabwin says. “We have a growing student outreach initiative and offer RACE-approved continuing education.”
To others considering an entrepreneurial venture, she says: “Do it! Yes, it’s scary to leave behind the comfort and identity of clinical practice. But stepping into something new can be incredibly fulfilling. It’s been humbling and joyful to challenge myself in new ways.”
Frustration, the Mother of Invention
Caleb Frankel, VMD
- Founder and CEO, Instinct Science
- Doylestown, Pennsylvania
While the old saying posits that necessity is the mother of invention, frustration was Dr. Caleb Frankel’s motivator. “I never intended to leave practice and would still happily be in it full time,” he says, referring to his two-decade career as an emergency care veterinarian.
Frustration with the state of practice management software motivated him to take a different route. “I decided to be part of the solution, so my co-founders and I started Instinct in my basement in 2016,” he says. “We built a prototype, tested it with industry colleagues, and quickly learned we were on to something. We launched in 2017, building a waitlist of customers. And we’ve never looked back.”
Today, Instinct’s flagship software product, Instinct EMR, runs behind the scenes at some of the largest specialty hospitals in the world and at many university veterinary teaching centers.
Was startup capital hard to come by? “Initially, we turned to friends and family,” Dr. Frankel says. “Then, after installing in our first few centers, we had clinicians and practice owners coming to us and saying, ‘This is incredible. Would you take investment?’
“Now we’ve grown to where we’re financially stable and well capitalized, allowing us to remain independent and founder led.
“I believe being a veterinarian is one of the best careers in the world,” he adds. “But if practice isn’t for you, make sure you chase something that you’re very passionate about, first and foremost. Because life’s too short to do it any other way.”
“There Will Always Be a Niche for the Privately Owned Laboratory”
John Peauroi, DVM, MPVM
- President, CEO and founding pathologist, Veterinary Diagnostics (VDx)
- Davis, California
Dr. John Peauroi went to work as a surgical pathologist in a commercial veterinary diagnostic laboratory after completing his pathology training and becoming certified by the American College of Veterinary Pharmacists in 1994. “My boss was a veterinary pathologist who understood the profession, the art of pathology and the importance of quality work,” he says. “It was a great setting in which to learn my craft and build my experience and confidence.”
But things changed when a large corporate entity bought the privately owned laboratory in 1997. “I was no longer working for a veterinarian and instead was working for a large publicly traded company managed by nonveterinarians focused on its share price,” he says. “No one there understood the work of a laboratory, the marketplace, veterinarians and their needs, and the mechanics of running a business better than me. It gave me the confidence to venture out on my own.”
He founded Veterinary Diagnostics (VDx) in 2001. “Stepping away from a dependable job to start a business in a competitive landscape was difficult,” he admits. “I had young kids and a house payment, and it took me a while to convince my wife it was a good idea.
“I started small. I self-funded in the early years, depleted some savings, refinanced my house a few times, and eventually borrowed money from family to buy our own office and lab space.”
Today, VDx employs 11 board-certified pathologists, who process over 30,000 specimens a year, serving primary care veterinarians and specialists in Northern California and throughout the United States.
“By far, the hardest part of running and growing a business is finding and hiring good people, managing and mentoring them, and dealing with the inevitable personnel changes,” Dr. Peauroi says. “This has meant I can’t spend 100% of my time being a practicing pathologist.
“There will always be a niche for the privately owned laboratory,” he adds. “The mighty corporate laboratories are very good at what they do, but our secret sauce is simple: Focus on quality work, quality service and dependable, fast turnaround. We’ve built our entire business operation around these principles, and it’s proven to be a successful formula.”
A Strategic Marketing Partner
Caitlin DeWilde, DVM
- Owner, The Social DVM
- Columnist, Today’s Veterinary Business
- St. Louis, Missouri
Dr. Caitlin DeWilde wanted to use her clinical skills on beef cattle after graduation. However, she entered the job market during a recession and ended up at a small animal practice in St. Louis, where she realized, “I didn’t miss the 2 a.m. farm calls as much as I thought I would.”
Over the next decade, she worked at two other practices, eventually becoming the medical director at a six-doctor clinic. But she was always drawn to the marketing and technology aspects of managing and growing a practice.
“After my attempt to buy two different practices fell through — both at the hands of corporate competition — I felt the universe was telling me to look in a different direction,” Dr. DeWilde says. “Truthfully, I loved what I was doing in marketing and wanted to do more of it.”
So, in 2013, she founded The Social DVM, a digital marketing firm that offers social media management, content creation, and consulting and coaching services to veterinary practices and other industry partners.
“Understanding a veterinary team’s pain points and devising solutions that work — we couldn’t do that without having been in their shoes,” Dr. DeWilde says. And, as a self-described data nerd, “I’ve always had the data to prove the marketing we were doing brought more people in the door, not just online clicks.”
She hasn’t entirely left veterinary practice behind. “I was lucky enough to become a veterinarian,” she says, “and to not use it every day sometimes feels like I’m letting the animals down, which is why I still do clinical work at least a couple of days a month.”
She has no regrets about the career route she chose, which includes serving as the Today’s Veterinary Business Socially Acceptable columnist.
“While being a veterinarian was the be-all and end-all for me from the time I was in high school, once I took into account the other things I wanted to do personally and professionally, a nontraditional path was a much better fit,” she says.
To veterinarians grappling with the direction they want to go, she advises simply, “Don’t be afraid to find or carve the path you need to give you what’s right for your personal and professional life.”
Does success feel different now that Dr. DeWilde is no longer in private practice full time?
“Honestly, much of it is the same,” she says. “I still want to feel like I helped someone every day. I also want to provide for my family, and I want to go home on time. The only thing that’s changed is coming home without being peed or anal-glanded on.”
Redefining What Pet Care Looks and Feels Like
Audrey Wystrach, DVM
- Co-founder and co-CEO, Petfolk
- Boca Raton, Florida
When it comes to veterinary care, Petfolk aims to build a better mousetrap. Co-founded in 2020 by Dr. Audrey Wystrach and her brother Michael, Petfolk is reimagining the veterinary experience through a connected care model that blends modern brick-and-mortar care centers with 24/7 app-based virtual care.
“My early career experiences in a predominantly rural setting taught me the importance of meeting customers where they are figuratively and literally,” Dr. Wystrach says. “It was in those moments of treating pets on kitchen floors and in remote pastures that I realized veterinary care could be much more than just a clinical experience. It could be personal, accessible and transformative.”
Everyday practice also revealed barriers that made exceptional care harder to deliver. “I witnessed long wait times, fragmented communication and a lack of modern conveniences,” she says. “But after 25-plus years of experience, I saw these challenges as an opportunity to leverage technology to bridge the gap between physical visits and digital support.”
Her move away from traditional practice wasn’t without skeptics. “Many questioned how a completely de novo, tech-driven, connected care model could work at scale,” she says. “It was uncharted territory and, for many, that level of innovation seemed unfathomable.
“But I’ve always believed that if your vision doesn’t make you uncomfortable, you’re probably not dreaming big enough,” Dr. Wystrach adds. “I surrounded myself with forward-thinking people who understood that real change doesn’t come from playing it safe. Together, we built Petfolk on the foundation that great ideas are often misunderstood before they’re celebrated.”
Today, the company has 34 centers in 11 regions of the country, with more in development.
“What we’re building at Petfolk is going to change the way care teams and pet parents experience veterinary care,” she says. “We’re not just expanding, we’re redefining. We’re not following a path, we’re creating a new one. And it’s only the beginning. We’re just scratching the surface of what’s possible in terms of proactive, tech-enabled care.”
Solving Systemic Challenges in Veterinary Practice
Richard Gebhart, DVM
- Co-founder and chief medical officer, Patch Ventures
- Pioneer, California
Dr. Richard Gebhart knows how to build a business. One year after graduating from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine in 1967, he purchased a small animal practice in West Los Angeles and, over the next decade, grew it from a solo operation into a 20-doctor group with a renowned internship program.
In 1978, he spearheaded the development of Veterinary Systems Inc. (VSI) practice management software, which VCA Animal Hospitals adopted and used for 25 years. In 1986, he sold his West LA Veterinary Medical Group to VCA and, since that time, has continued to own numerous hybrid practices.
“But after nearly two decades of building and managing a high-volume practice, I realized my passion lay in solving systemic challenges — workflow inefficiencies, opaque fee structures and data fragmentation,” Dr. Gebhart says. “Selling the practice freed me to tackle these issues at scale, and I stepped away from full-time clinical work in 2014.”
Today, he is the chief medical officer at Patch Ventures, a firm he cofounded in 2024 with three others to fulfill a simple mission: to help veterinarians help pets by connecting technology, data, artificial intelligence and veterinary medicine.
“Our platform works with data captured by the practice information management system, alongside our AI medical records app, to build a robust set of hospital data, which a practice can operationalize,” he explains.
“My passion is our flagship analytics platform, which is designed to create a fair, transparent and sustainable fee schedule. Every tool at Patch reflects a pain point I witnessed firsthand, and I’m excited to continue to make a difference in the profession I love.”
And while Dr. Gebhart was undeniably successful as a clinician and practice owner, he measures success differently now.
“Then, success was a fully booked surgery schedule and a thriving internship program,” he says. “Today, success is measured by how many veterinary practices we help transform — by how much we reduce wasted time and improve patient outcomes across thousands of clinics.”
Dr. Gebhart’s advice to veterinarians considering a nontraditional route is this: “Veterinarians are natural problem solvers armed with rigorous training, yet they too often stay confined to the exam room. Identify the day-to-day issues that frustrate you the most, then prototype solutions. Talk to colleagues, test early versions, and don’t be afraid to fail fast.”
Igniting a Passion for Learning
Jill Clark, DVM
- Founder and chief visionary officer, Ignite Veterinary Solutions
- Austin, Texas
Veterinary medicine is a second career for Dr. Jill Clark, who spent 17 years as an assistant director in film and television before attending veterinary school. “I was ready for a change,” says the lifelong animal lover.
She began practicing in 1996 at a six-doctor clinic before joining National PetCare Centers, a group of eight hospitals that grew to 80 and where she eventually became vice president of operations. Next, she spent 12 years at VCA Animal Hospitals, first in operations, overseeing 22 general and specialty practices, then as a vice president in Los Angeles, supervising the doctor recruiting team, campus relationships and intern/resident placement.
In 2010, she took on the responsibility of creating WOOF-U, VCA’s award-winning corporate university. “We trained more than 24,000 veterinary learners, and WOOF-U remains VCA’s primary training vehicle to this day,” she says.
Her passion for learning fueled her dream to create Ignite. Founded in 2016, the company is devoted to advancing the skills of veterinary practice teams while improving medical outcomes. Ignite offers learning programs on topics relevant to practice owners, practice managers, veterinarians, veterinary technicians, veterinary assistants and customer service staff.
“We wanted to innovate and disrupt traditional learning and uniquely deliver the education tools that veterinary teams need whenever, wherever and however they need it,” Dr. Clark says. “It’s the culmination of all that that I’ve learned about the neuroscience of learning and how adults and veterinary teams learn best.”
Today, Ignite’s digital courses serve over 10,000 members worldwide.
What’s her best advice for veterinarians pondering their future, even if it involves veering away from clinical practice? “The first thing is to set goals,” she says. “Once you know what you want to accomplish, put it out to the universe and make those goals known. You never know whom you may connect with who can play a role in your success.
“Be persistent and loud,” she adds. “The more you think about what your success looks like and make connections, the more likely it is to happen.
“If someone had told me after graduation I would be doing what I am today, I wouldn’t have believed them. Veterinary medicine can take you in so many wonderful directions. Be open to ideas that challenge you. They may turn out to be the best decisions you have ever made.”
Using Technology to Deepen the Bond
Thom Jenkins, VetMB, MRCVS
- Co-founder and CEO, PetsApp
- Maple Grove, Minnesota
“I caught the entrepreneurial bug long before I became a vet,” says Dr. Thom Jenkins. “Around age 13, I swapped my paper route for web development. Before I’d even left school, I was managing digital projects across North America, Europe and Asia. I went to veterinary school knowing I wanted to work at the intersection of pet care, technology and business.”
He got there quickly. After earning his veterinary degree, Dr. Jenkins became the chief operating officer of a veterinary group in Asia. While living in China, he attended Stanford University’s Executive Program for Growing Companies and met entrepreneur Nuno Job. When Dr. Jenkins returned to the United Kingdom after nearly five years in China, Job invited him to join the board of his London-based software and design consultancy.
“While I’d always planned to start something of my own, that experience — and Nuno’s encouragement — gave me the final nudge to leap into entrepreneurship,” Dr. Jenkins says.
Today, he is the CEO of PetsApp, a client communication and engagement platform. PetsApp enables veterinary clinics to chat with clients, send automated reminders and offer online appointment booking. It also supports veterinary practices in launching subscription services like wellness plans. PetsApp’s AI suite offers such features as Scribe, which transcribes consults into medical notes that integrate with a practice management system and auto-generates summaries for pet owners.
“My veterinary background is central to how we build the product,” Dr. Jenkins says. “That experience drives us to design tools that genuinely reduce friction for veterinary teams while improving care and communication for pet owners.
“The arc of my career has always centered on one question: How can we make veterinary expertise more accessible in ways that genuinely serve companion animal welfare? PetsApp was born from that mission. Our goal is to keep the local veterinary clinic at the heart of the pet-care journey by layering convenience onto an already high-trust, high-quality touchpoint.”
Where are the biggest opportunities for likeminded entrepreneurs to innovate in the pet health space? “AI offers tremendous opportunity, not just to improve the client experience but also to meaningfully support veterinary teams,” Dr. Jenkins says. “And ultimately, that’s what any veterinary professional wants: to be able to do well by doing good.”