Not everyone gets a chance to get into government job and most of the modern vets look for freedom of work or setting up their own business. Investment may very from area to area or city. We have tried to list a few business ideas for your reference:
1. Pet Clinic / Pet Hospital
You can set up a pet clinic with basic amnesties and scale slowly according to the budget / need. For better management you can hire a vet assistant according to the need or a full-time veterinarian to run it. It will require good amount of investment. You can also think about multiple branches or franchise model. Investment like an angel investor in good projects can also help in making a good business.
2. Mobile Veterinary Service
In modern days; busy life of pet parents makes it difficult to find and run around in search of a pet clinic. Sometimes it is not possible to bring a pet to the clinic in case of serious illness or unavailability of help. In this case there is a scope for the providing basic mobile veterinary (clinic) services like treatment, vaccinations, blood sample collections for diagnostic purposes etc.
In serious health conditions or at last stage of life of a pet; pet parents take a tough decision to euthanise their pets and may appreciate the option of having this procedure performed in the comfort of their own home.
These services may need collaboration with other practitioners and it is feasible in both city and rural practice. Other tools needed may be social media advertising to reach out the needy ones.
3. Pet Ambulance Services
In case of motor vehicle accidents or other injuries that requires surgeries / immediate professional help or support, veterinary emergencies, relocation of sick pets, transport of aggressive animals under sedation or precious animals under the supervision of veterinary professional there may be requirement of pet ambulance service. It may require separate licence and may require collaboration with other clinics / emergency facility in the area. Feasibility of this business is more with collaborations in urban areas.
4. Online consultation service
Many veterinarians are offering online consultation services to the clients with the rise of telemedicine and technology. This can be a cost-effective and more convenient option for pet owners, and it also allows veterinarians to reach a wider client base. For second opinions in case of chronic issues, regular queries from existing clients or new pet parents an online consultation service may fulfil the need. It doesn’t require much investment but you must have good communication skills, a valid practitioners licence for that particular country / state / province, and knowledge of telemedicine guidelines for drugs allowed in this case (for digital prescriptions).
Please note that it is not a suitable service for emergency cases. You can guide/ instruct the clients in such cases about how they can minimize the risk and take their pet to the nearby emergency service centre / veterinary hospital immediately without wasting their time (ask them to inform the emergency service centre in advance about the type of emergency or brief history so they can prepare in advance for the quick response and mitigation).
5. Specialty practice
You can start speciality practice like cardiac medicine, exotic medicine/ surgery, ophthalmology, ultrasonography, radiodiagnosis, cancer treatment, endoscopy services, medical boarding for sick pets, diagnostic lab set up etc. This may require a referral or collaboration and a good investment in setting up the practice. To do this start focusing on a particular area of your interest in veterinary medicine first. This will also allow you to differentiate your practice and attract clients who are seeking specialized care for their pets.
6. Emergency care service
You can consider starting an after-hours or 24x 7 emergency care service for pets in your area. This can be a valuable resource for pet owners who need urgent care for their pets outside of regular business hours or during an emergency. It will require trained staff and good investment to start.
7. Alternative therapy services
With advancement in alternative therapies such as acupuncture, chiropractic care, veterinary homeopathy, physiotherapy etc people have started searching for these services. Either you can start a business that specialises in these therapies or start providing these services at your practice.
8. Training and behavior modification services
Most of the time pet owners struggle with training and behaviour issues of their pets. Consider offering search services to help these clients to improve the relationship with their pets. For better management you can do some basic or advance course in animal behaviour management.
9. Pet sitting and dog walking service
Sometimes pet owners either don’t have time or busy for regular walk. By hiring someone you can run this with good profit and a brand value will help in building trust in your services. One can start it with minimum investment.
10. Pet food or supply store
you can run a food or supply store along with over-the-counter supplements or medicines for pets. You can keep a wide range of products and prescription only diets for special needs like chronic kidney disease, diabetes, cardiac issues, obesity control, joint problems, kidney stones or bladder stones, hypoallergic diet, post operative care / after care diet. Along with this you can offer expert advice to the clients and at doorstep delivery for better client experience.
11. Pet grooming service
Pet owners look for professional grooming services and ready to pay to keep their pets looking and feeling their best. You can provide grooming services at your practice or start a mobile grooming business. You can customise it for show purpose, regular or medicated for special needs like skin infections or allergies.
12. Special Boarding and day-care facility
Many pet parents keep looking for a place to leave their pets while they are away for work or vacation. You can offer specialised boarding and day care facility to those pets who need special care (puppies, geriatric pets, pregnant or nursing female dogs or cats) or treatment or already on medication for their health issues (kidney, heart, thyroid, infections).
13. Clinic Management Software / Mobile Application Development
A veterinarian knows the needs of the profession or other veterinarians. In modern days it is hard to manage records of vaccination, staff, inventory and expenses in hard copy so clinic management softwares or mobile applications are the need of hour. With the help of a software developer, you can develop such tools with one time investment and sell them to create a business. It will require investment, good marketing skills or a sales representative.
14. Writing books / Design Courses or Guides
You can start designing courses or guides like behavioural modifications, management of dog with kidney failure, how to train your dog, taking care of puppy /pregnant female dogs. Books for undergraduate courses or certificate courses / training programmes / competition guides are also good option. You can also look for content generation for blog websites or paid articles.
These are a few ideas you can start with as a business if you are a veterinarian.
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