Certified public accountant Denise Tumblin is the president and owner of WTA Veterinary Consultants and the founder of the Well-Managed Practice Benchmarks Study. She is also the co-founder and facilitator of WellMP Management Groups. The Columbus, Ohio, resident speaks at national and regional meetings on practice valuation and management topics and has written numerous articles on veterinary management.
1. How did you get into the veterinary field?
I took business classes in high school and then went the accounting route in college. I never once thought about medicine. I kind of fell into this profession. Back in the day, I answered a newspaper ad. You don’t do that anymore, but I truly lucked out. I’m thankful every day that I answered that ad and got the job.
2. Was the job veterinary-focused?
It was. My former business partner, the founding partner, was looking for a financial analyst. I think she advertised that she focused on the veterinary profession. I grew up on a farm, so I’ve loved animals my entire life and have liked the idea of working with people who care for them. If I help practices be better financially, they have more resources to take care of their medicine and patients.
3. Did you have any previous jobs?
The job before this one, I worked for a family-owned business that developed, built, and managed government-subsidized housing — HUD housing. However, the owner was not a nice person, and the family was very dysfunctional. One morning, you can do no wrong, and in the afternoon, everything you do is wrong. He was difficult and challenging. I worked with him for 13 years, but I decided life was too short and that I couldn’t live like that anymore. So, I started looking and blessedly found this job. Before that one, I worked for a trucking company where I was more about accounts payable, as I paid bills and things like that. Through college, I was a waitress at Pizza Hut, and I waitressed at a truck stop while in high school.
4. What was your farm life like?
It was a family farm. My dad’s twin brother lived next door with his kids. And then a half mile down the road was my dad’s older brother. We had Tumblin Road, and my grandparents lived there, too. We had pets and farm animals, including cows, pigs, sheep, chickens, horses, dogs, and cats. We also milked cows for a while. That’s a hard job because the cows have to be milked twice a day. At times, we had baby lambs in the house when the mama rejected them. I think we even had a baby calf inside at one point. When I was in first or second grade, we got out of the dairy business, but we still had beef cattle. I still, to this day, miss living in the country because it’s just different. It’s way more relaxing and low-key. There’s always something to do, but you don’t feel that “rush, rush, rush.”
5. Do you have any pets today?
I do. I live in the city and have for many years. I’ve had as many as four pets — three kitties and one dog — in the house at any given time. My oldest cat passed many years ago, my dog passed eight years ago, and my next-to-oldest kitty passed two years ago. I’m down to one kitty, Maddie Jo, who is 23, and she’s doing pretty well. I found Maddie Jo when I was out running with a friend in the country. This teeny-tiny little kitty came out of the weeds and started to follow us. I couldn’t leave her, so I brought her home. My neighbor had just lost her dog, so I asked her, “Do you want this little kitten?” She took her, but then a week later, brought her back. So, that’s how Maddie Jo came into my life. I had an old cat at the time, who was 19. She was not happy with Maddie Jo, who would always run up and give her a bear hug. She would look at me like, “Why did you bring this thing in the house?”
6. Do any mentors come to mind?
Cynthia Wutchiett, the founding partner of our company, who retired in 2006. She was the primary mentor in my early career, and I owe everything to her. I knew nothing about the profession, and she willingly shared her knowledge. I used to go to all the conferences and wasn’t speaking yet, but I would sit in on her sessions and learn right along with the audience. Dr. Charlotte Lacroix has also been a huge mentor, along with Patrick Keefe at CareCredit, as he continues to do so much for this profession. I have to say Cynthia was my first and probably biggest mentor in this profession.
7. Once Cynthia Wutchiett took a chance and hired you, how did you build your confidence with the clientele?
Initially, I was the financial analyst behind the scenes. I was running the numbers, which tell a story about a business. While I wasn’t working directly with clients, I was learning about trends and observing the different impacts. I was a student of the numbers, so I was building my confidence about working directly with somebody. In terms of speaking, I started with small meetings, including dinner meetings. And then I progressed to speaking at the Central Veterinary Conference because, at that time, Cynthia was the financial editor of Veterinary Economics. I also started co-authoring articles, and then I began writing articles on my own.
8. Do you remember your first speaking engagements? Were you nervous?
One of the first ones was at Ohio State University, with students. I still do it to this day at Mississippi State. I love doing student programs. It’s a different perspective coming from students and so valuable to hear their questions — what’s on their mind and what’s important to them. As for being nervous, my sister and I used to sing in church, so I was used to being up on stage. While I still get a little nervous when I’m speaking, it doesn’t bother me because I like people, and I’m just up there having a conversation.
9. Do you recall a significant, personal challenge and how you processed it?
One of the biggest challenges I faced for years is that I had big shoes to fill following Cynthia, because she was brilliant and very well known in the profession. That was intimidating, yet I brought something to the table that she didn’t have — my personality. I’m an introvert, but I like to say I’m an extroverted introvert. Cynthia is very private. She was a fantastic speaker, but it was not her first love. She preferred doing the evaluation work, and I preferred the consulting work, where I was more one-on-one with people. We became a very good team because her strengths were not necessarily my strengths, and my strengths were not necessarily her strengths. But combined, it was a great fit. So, I had to get over my feeling of “I’m not good enough because Cynthia is this wonderfully brilliant, well-known consultant, and I’m not.” I had to get over that and say, “You know what? I’m not Cynthia. I’m Denise. She has great strengths, but so do I.” That was hard, and people used to call me Cynthia all the time because they really thought I was her. That was an adjustment; you just learned to go with it. Sometimes I would say, “Well, I’m Denise.” At some point, you have to say, “I’ve got to let it go.”
10. Do you binge-watch TV shows? Any favorites?
Yes, although I gave away my television during COVID because I was tired of paying the crazy subscription fees for cable TV, I hated commercials, and all I ever watched was the Food Network. Of course, I have streaming services now. I sometimes watch on my laptop computer but mostly on my iPad. My current binge-watch is “The Morning Show” with Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon. I really like “Landman” with Billy Bob Thornton. One of my favorite actors, Sam Elliot, is on there now. Also, I like “Mayor of Kingstown” a lot, and when it was still new, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.”
11. Are you a fan of books, and if so, what are you reading?
I love legal dramas and women sleuths who are figuring out a crime or are FBI agents. I also read romance novels. I mostly read fiction — it’s my escape. One of the most fun things I did when growing up was that my mom would take us to town to the library to check out books, to piano lessons, and to the grocery store.
12. What role has music played in your life?
I have a nice upright grand piano, but I don’t play it often anymore. It was one of my first big purchases as an adult. When I was in elementary and junior high school, I played clarinet. Also, my sister and I played and sang in church — we were the Sunday music many times. I like all kinds of music, depending on my mood. I’m listening to a lot of outlaw country and some of the folk singers now.
13. What do you do for self-care?
I haven’t been great about that for the past few years, but I’m reenergizing. My neighbor and I have started walking together, and we have a gym just up the street from our houses. I just joined and haven’t been there yet. I also do a little bit of strength training at home. My goal is to go to the gym and get back in shape. I used to run every day, but I haven’t really done it in years. Walking is much easier on my aging body. I taught aerobics for 20 years. A lot of my friends were in my class, and we’d go out for dinner afterward. When I was heavy into running, I ran with my friend, as I wasn’t as good doing it by myself. That’s why I’m thankful my neighbor has been willing to go walking. I also enjoy cooking, especially if I have somebody to cook for.
14. What are your favorite things to cook?
Deviled eggs. Anytime we have a family thing, I have to bring the deviled eggs. Also, I made the beef roast for Christmas, and I did a fantastic turkey breast and ham for Thanksgiving. I also make a pretty good lasagna and a good pot of chili.
15. Any notable regrets?
One regret I have as a consultant is I have so much interaction with people during the day that when I go home at night, I don’t want to talk to anybody. So, I’ve lost touch with my friends and neighbors, and my goal is to rectify that. Reconnecting with them will be wonderful so that we can do fun things or whatever.
16. Is that connection worthwhile?
Oh, absolutely. It really started during COVID because we were isolated. Then I had this whole situation when drug dealers moved into the house next door, and I was afraid to leave. It became very comfortable to come home and not talk to anybody, even on the weekends, and not leave my house. That’s not healthy, as I do like people, but it became almost, “I don’t even want to talk to anybody. I don’t want to be around anybody.” A few weeks ago, another neighbor invited me and some other neighbors over, and I felt lighter. You don’t realize how depressed you become when you’re alone. So, I want to reconnect with people and reconnect with my family and friends.
17. Relationships are …?
Well, the first thought that popped into my head is vital. Relationships are how we stay grounded and connected to the world. As wonderful as all our technology is, as wonderful and efficient as AI and the internet are, we’ve lost a lot. I look at young people who are challenged to have a conversation with somebody. They can communicate very, very well with text, but they’ll do it from across the room. They’re in the same room with somebody and talking through their devices. And I get it; I understand. Yet it makes me a little sad, too. You get so attached to your device because it is so convenient, but we lose our relationships.
18. What is your hope for the veterinary profession?
My first hope is that private practice ownership survives. In the past five years, there’s been such a shift, and it’s not just in veterinary medicine. I was talking to somebody at my dentist’s office, and they’re corporate-owned. The ophthalmology profession is all corporate-owned. I’m not bashing corporate-owned businesses — I don’t mean to do that — but I do hope private practice ownership survives in our profession because there’s a difference in the heart and soul of the practice, in the people. My next hope is that people outside of this profession will stop blaming everything wrong on veterinarians and their teams. I’m going to get emotional about that because where would we be without veterinarians? I hope this world can somehow shift back and be kinder in general and kinder to veterinarians and their teams.
19. What personal or professional goals do you have in 2026?
I’m retiring at the end of 2026. So, for 2026, my goal is to continue serving my clients through the end of the year. I hope I’ve left this profession just a little bit better or at least contributed to it being a little better than when I joined. I’m getting accustomed to the idea of not working anymore, but who knows? Maybe by the end of the year I’ll say, “Well, I’m going to keep working a little bit longer.” But right now, my goal in 2026 is to go quietly into retirement.
20. Anything else you’d like to share?
I still think this is an amazing profession to work in. You’ll meet so many wonderful people from all over the country and all over the world. While it can be a challenging profession, like many, it’s so rewarding. We all love animals and wouldn’t work in this profession if we didn’t. Even though I’m not a veterinarian, knowing I have a small part to play in helping the people who help animals means so much.
DID YOU KNOW?
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HOT OFF THE PRESS
The latest Well-Managed Practice Benchmarks Study is “Fees 2026: Redefining Value Through Strategic Pricing.” Learn more at wmpb.vet.
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According to the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy, there were 653,408 actively licensed certified public accountants as of Aug. 28, 2025 (Hawaii and New Mexico excluded).
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