by Steve Dale, CABC
Have you been to the grocery store lately? It’s no surprise that finances are a reality when it comes to considerations for pet care.
For most clients, unlike with our own mixed bag of medical care, there is no safety net when it comes to pet care. Reported all over the nation, financial considerations are increasingly a factor, which makes the spectrum of care model more timely and potentially desirable, but that is the case only if clients are told there are options.
According to the newly released PetSmart Charities-Gallup State of Pet Care Study: Veterinarians’ Perspective on American Veterinary Care, the overwhelming majority of veterinarians (94 percent) say clients’ financial considerations sometimes or often limit theit ability to provide recommended care. Just under half (48 percent) say their training did not provide them with the tools to speak with clients specifically about financial barriers to care. And about two thirds (73 percent) say it’s difficult for them to see clients struggle to pay for veterinary care.
I suggest that the primary communicators in veterinary medicine are technicians. According to many surveys, credentialed technicians report they are under-utilized. Perhaps there is a gap here which technicians are perfectly able to fill if only they are given the opportunity to do so.
Supporting this recommendation, this new research also reveals a stark gap in perception between veterinarians and pet parents: 81 percent of veterinarians say they often or always recommend an alternative treatment plan when care is declined due to cost, now commonly known as the spectrum of care.
However, prior data revealed that 73 percent of pet parents who declined care due to affordability reported they were not offered a more financially accessible option by their veterinarian. So which is it? Do clients not catch on that they are being offered a less expensive alternative or perceive another option as less expensive? Or do veterinarians say they provide a spectrum of care when, in fact, they don’t really? There’s definitely a communication gap here.
Also, 41 percent of veterinarians report they often or always offer a payment plan. Still, for whatever reason, only 23 percent of pet parents report ever being offered such a plan.
I suggest technicians are often trusted in another way by clients when compared to veterinarians, and may have the time and skills to sit down and discuss what the spectrum of care is about, how it applies, and what payment plans an individual practice might offer.
Emotional Strain for Providers and Pet Families
Veterinarians report that clients’ inability to afford treatment or limitations in their ability to afford care often has profound emotional consequences for both pet families and veterinary teams.
Most veterinarians agree it is difficult to watch clients struggle with costs, as 74 percent say one of the toughest parts of their job is participating in some way in euthanasia only because a client can’t afford care. They agree that euthanizing a pet for financial reasons is one of the hardest aspects of their job. Forty-one percent report that euthanasia due to unaffordable treatment occurs sometimes in their practice. Theoretically, economic euthanasia should occur never but that is not reality.
Spectrum of Care Offers a Partial Solution
The Spectrum of Care approach that adapts treatment recommendations based on the needs of the patient, the client’s circumstances (which includes financial considerations), and the veterinary team’s capabilities, is now familiar to most veterinarians (88 percent). However, only about half (51 percent) say they often or always apply this framework.
When it comes to addressing costs, 17 percent of veterinarians say they proactively attempt to understand a client’s financial concerns before making treatment recommendations, compared with 49 percent who do so afterward, and 34 percent who address costs only if a client raises the issue.
Methodology
Results for the PetSmart Charities-Gallup State of Pet Care: Veterinarian Perspectives on American Veterinary Care study are based on a web-based survey conducted with 933 practicing veterinarians in the U.S.
Gallup conducted the survey between September 9 and October 5, 2025. Respondents were sourced from an opt-in, professional panel of U.S.-based veterinarians and referrals from the PetSmart Charities network to reach as broad a sample of veterinarians as possible.