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Veterinary preventative care has paved the way for pet owners and veterinarians to work together to ensure animals live longer, healthier lives. However, despite its importance, preventative care often lacks the connection necessary to maximise its impact. By embracing technology and new approaches, we can transform veterinary preventative care from a reactive strategy to a proactive one, benefiting pets and their owners alike.
Preventative health refers to proactive measures designed to protect animals from diseases and health issues before they arise. It focuses on treating potential conditions early, preventing them from developing into larger health problems. Common elements of effective veterinary preventative care include:
These foundational elements foster optimal health while reducing the likelihood of preventable diseases.
By transforming veterinary preventative care, pet owners and veterinarians can create a stronger partnership to improve the overall well-being of animals.
Preventative care:
The key benefit of transforming veterinary preventative care lies in fostering a proactive approach. It doesn’t just extend a pet’s life but also helps pet owners make informed decisions that enhance day-to-day wellness and keep them coming back to vets.
Despite its importance, veterinary preventative care faces notable challenges in practice. While both veterinarians and pet owners agree on the significance of preventative health, gaps remain in execution. For example:
These challenges highlight the need for stronger communication and support between veterinarians and pet owners so that critical information is readily available when needed.
Pet owners want the best for their pets, but they often encounter barriers after leaving the clinic. They may forget critical steps for their pet’s care or struggle to access reliable information when problems arise. At the same time, veterinarians possess the expertise that pet owners need but often lack the tools or resources to maintain consistent communication.
Veterinarians should strive to become a “lighthouse” in a pet’s life—a guiding presence that supports pet health even outside of clinic visits. To achieve this, we must transform veterinary preventative care into a continuous connection, ensuring pets receive the support they need every day, not just during check-ups or emergencies.
The solution to transforming veterinary preventative care lies in leveraging technology to improve communication, awareness, and follow-up care. Here’s how:
Use tools like social media ads and your website to educate pet owners about preventative care services. Simple yet effective outreach ensures that new clients seeking high-quality care find your practice. This added value builds trust and increases client engagement.
Stay connected to current clients after each clinic visit through digital platforms. For example, email reminders about vaccinations or dental check-ups ensure timely actions. Such communication reduces the burden on pet owners and reinforces your role as their trusted veterinary partner.
Transform veterinary preventative care by improving post-consultation support. The Pawl AI App offers seamless vet-to-home care, turning short clinic visits into continuous care cycles. Pet owners gain access to post-diagnosis and post-surgical recovery/management plans, the initial suite Pawl AI app will include post-op plans for TPLO, desexing, and dentals, while future updates will expand offerings to include general wellness features such as training, exercise and nutrition. By maintaining communication via apps like Pawl AI, vets can stay connected for 99% of a pet’s life, rather than just the 1% during clinic visits.
The time to embrace proactive care is now. By incorporating technology into your practice, you can empower pet owners, extend the duration of pet health, and reinforce your position as the go-to expert for animal care and wellness.
Interested in improving your approach to preventative care? Start by getting your free marketing assessment today to identify opportunities to grow your practice and improve your communications.
If you would like more information on the Pawl AI app and how it keeps vets connected with pets, visit https://pawl.ai/.
Dr James Ramsden is a vet with over 15 years of mass media and online marketing experience. James founded Petpack - Australasia's only digital marketing agency run by vets, for vets, after recognising the need for effective and regular communication to pet owners to increase animal health outcomes. James, and the Petpack team of both marketing and veterinary experts, use digital marketing to help vet clinics in two main ways: 1) Growth - using websites, Google Ads and other professional tools for clinics that are just starting out or simply want to grow or enhance their practice traffic, and; 2) Bringing pet owners back - using regular, vet-curated content to educate pet owners and keep them returning regularly, rather than waiting for the next emergency. James and the team (including veteran office dogs Poppy and Griff) are always happy to have an informal chat about how they can help your vet clinic thrive.
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