Weekly Companion Animal News: June 2, 2025
Chewy Health, LMU support Animal Services building in Florida
Clay County (Florida) officials joined representatives from Chewy Health and Lincoln Memorial University (LMU) for a groundbreaking ceremony at the site of the county’s new Animal Services building in Middleburg. Chewy has pledged a $1 million donation— in partnership with LMU—to support the construction of an educational space within the new facility, which will serve as a mixed-use space for LMU veterinary students.
Rising costs lead to skipped visits to the vet. What’s the solution?
Over 50% of pet owners have skipped needed veterinary care in the past year, according to a recent PetSmart Charities-Gallup study. Robyn Jaynes, DVM, director of veterinary affairs at PetSmart Charities, believes the reasons are the rising costs of veterinary care and the rising cost of living in general. Veterinary practices should stay flexible and adapt with the times, whether by offering payment plans or simply more treatment options.
Hill’s, Harvard researcher develop central resource for pet microbiome science
Hill’s Pet Nutrition and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health researcher Dr. Curtis Huttenhower launched a new web portal for the One Health Microbiome Resource (OHMR). The portal, intended to serve as a central resource for academia and industry, includes standardized protocols and computational tools for studying the role of the microbiome in pet health and disease. It also provides a repository for studies of the pet gut microbiome.
Mars, Johns Hopkins apply lessons from human healthcare to veterinary care
Mars Veterinary Health’s global patient safety team and the Johns Hopkins Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety conducted a study to assess differences in incident type, patient outcomes and species between primary care and/or emergency practices from patient safety events (PSEs). Their analysis indicated that much can be learned from reporting systems in human healthcare to accelerate learning in veterinary medicine.
Petfolk among most loved workplaces
Petfolk has been named the No. 2 company on Newsweek’s 2025 Global Most Loved Workplaces® list, in collaboration with Most Loved Workplace®, a division of Best Practice Institute (BPI). The list recognizes 100 global companies where employees express the highest levels of satisfaction, engagement and emotional connection to their workplace.
Veterinary receptionists association names Advisory Council
The North American Association of Veterinary Receptionists (NAAVR) announced the formation of its President’s Advisory Council. Newly appointed members are Caitlin Palmer, who brings 13 years in general practice and two in specialty; Kelly Kulhavy, with four years as a veterinary assistant and nine as a CSR; Rachel Santes, who has seven years of experience in emergency and general practice; and Sam Anderkay, a seven-year CSR in a small animal general practice.
Missed charges usually stem from workflow challenges, not laziness
Missed billing in veterinary clinics are a silent revenue leak, writes Dr. Thom Jenkins in Pets App. Think of the times a busy vet forgets to charge for a dispensed medication or a diagnostic test gets left off the invoice. Missed charges usually stem from workflow challenges – not laziness or malice. Solutions should focus on making the process easier and more foolproof rather than simply blaming staff.
Veterinarians must speak out against extreme conformations in dogs, says UK vet
The veterinary profession has abdicated its responsibility on canine health for decades, argued veterinarian and academic Dan O’Neill at the recent Animal Welfare Foundation discussion forum in London. Dr. O’Neill urged the veterinary sector to step up and have a voice against the continuing demand for extreme conformations in dogs.
