Veterinary Practices

The 26,300 veterinary practices in the US provide preventative, medical, and surgical care for a wide variety of animals. Most veterinary practices are small, independent operations – 86% have a single location, and 85% have fewer than 20 workers. Most practices are private practices and are owned by a licensed veterinarian. Some vets focus on large animals and livestock and work at the client's location.

High Capital Costs

Diagnostic equipment and full laboratory set-ups can require a significant investment.

Shortage of Food Animal Veterinarians

While the number of veterinary school graduates grows at a steady rate, a shrinking percentage of vets choose to specialize in the care of animals used as livestock.

Oct 19, 2026 - Cost Concerns Increasingly Influence Veterinary Treatment Decisions

• About 86% of US veterinary professionals adjust recommended treatment plans at least weekly because of client affordability concerns, according to a September 2026 report from Pawlicy Advisor and the American Animal Hospital Association. The survey of 451 veterinary professionals found that 85% encounter clients declining recommended care costing $1,000 or less. Respondents reported an average of five cost-related treatment adjustments weekly, up from 4.7 in 2025. Additionally, 87% agreed that pet insurance helps clients accept recommended care. The findings highlight growing affordability challenges for US veterinary practices, potentially limiting service revenue and delaying necessary treatment. Offering payment options, discussing pet insurance, and communicating treatment priorities could help practices improve patient care acceptance and maintain client relationships.
• Average educational debt reached $227,588 among veterinary graduates with loans in 2026, while full-time new hires earned an average starting salary of $131,784, according to preliminary American Veterinary Medical Association data reported in October. The earnings gap between newly hired and established veterinarians widened to 28%, compared with 19% in 2025, while 7.4% of graduates had not received a job offer. Educational loan repayment was the most frequently requested unavailable benefit among veterinarians surveyed by AVMA. For US veterinary practices, high student debt and compensation pressures could complicate recruiting and retaining veterinarians, particularly for smaller independent clinics. Employers may need to consider competitive compensation packages, loan repayment assistance, mentorship, and career development opportunities to attract qualified professionals.
• As US veterinary practices head into late 2026, labor costs remain a central pressure on prices and profitability, according to a recent Veterinary Practice News analysis. Veterinary-service prices are roughly 40%–45% higher than in 2019, compared with about 25% for overall consumer prices, highlighting how sharply practice costs have risen since the pandemic. Staffing shortages, turnover, signing bonuses, overtime, relief-vet expenses, and higher compensation for technicians and support staff continue to lift payroll. At the same time, practices may expand teams to support more advanced diagnostics, monitoring, and treatment standards. The outlook remains challenging: practices may need further price increases to protect margins, but rising client resistance could make affordability a bigger constraint on visit frequency and treatment acceptance. Retention, staffing efficiency, and productivity will be increasingly important.
• US veterinary practices should benefit from continued growth in dog ownership and strong spending on veterinary care, according to the American Pet Products Association's (APPA) 2026 Dog Report. Dog ownership reached 71 million US households in 2025, up 4% from the prior year, while veterinary care accounted for 29% of dog-owner spending—the largest share of the pet budget. These trends support a favorable demand outlook for veterinary services. At the same time, the APPA report shows owners are becoming more value-conscious, shifting some routine care and grooming into the home and looking for lower-cost ways to manage pet expenses. For veterinary practices, this suggests essential, preventive, diagnostic, and higher-acuity care should remain comparatively resilient, while clients may scrutinize prices more closely or defer nonurgent services. Practices that emphasize preventive care, convenience, transparency, and value should be best positioned.

Industry size & Structure

A typical veterinary practice operates out of a single location, employs about 18 workers, and generates about $2.7 million in annual revenue.

• The veterinary care industry consists of 26,300 practices that employ 488,000 workers and generate $73 billion annually.
• Most veterinary practices are small, independent operations - 86% have a single location, and 85% have fewer than 20 workers. Most practices are private practices and owned by a licensed veterinarian.
• About 70% of vets provide care primarily for companion animals; 5% operate a mixed practice; 4% care for food animals; and 4% care for horses.
• Large companies include Mars Veterinary Health (VCA, Banfield Pet Hospitals, BluePearl), Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialists, and Antech.