March 21, 2024 • 36 mins
Join us for another special edition of the Pets Add Life Podcast live from Global Pet Expo! This week, Chris and Kristen sit down with veterinary and animal health experts to discuss innovations in veterinary medicine to improve access to care for our pets. We discuss the rising costs of vet care, concerns about the shortage of veterinary professionals, and new products and services in the field to help mitigate these issues for pet parents. This episode is a must-listen for pet parents interested in the future of pet tech and pet care.
Special Guests:
- Greg Geckles, Vice President of Market Insights at Independence Pet Holdings
- Dr. Jeff Werber, Chief Veterinary Officer at AirVet Telemedicine
Pet Product Recommendations:
Related Links:
- AirVet
Social Channels:
- Follow AirVet on Instagram, Facebook, X & LinkedIn
- Follow Pets Add Life on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok & X
Submit a question to the podcast
Presented by: American Pet Products Association (APPA) & DOGTV
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Music.
(00:07):
Your guide to the latest in pet trends, products, and the joy of the human-animal
bond with Kristen Levine and Chris
Bonifanti, powered by the American Pet Products Association and Dog TV.
Welcome to day two of our Global Pet Expo special series of the Pets Add Life
podcast. Day two. We're still breathing. We're still upright.
How are you feeling? I'm feeling excited. I'm feeling a little tired.
(00:30):
Yeah. Honestly, just a little though, but mostly excited that the show is going
so well. We've got so many people in the building, so many people saying great
things about the redesign of our new product showcase, the redesign of our entrance units.
You're going to see a lot of that on film coming through Dog TV.
So be sure to pay attention to
the YouTube channel and things like that if you weren't able to make it.
(00:51):
But it's been a really exciting and absolutely game-changing show for us this
year. Well, they weren't able to make it because they're pet parents.
They can't come to the show.
Yeah, you know, it happens to the best of us. But we're bringing the show to
you. We're bringing the show to you.
We're bringing you the best parts of the show, right? You don't want to deal
with any of that annoying business stuff out here, the deals that are being made.
You just want to hear about the animals, their stories, and maybe- And the awesome
(01:11):
products. Yeah, a couple of cool products, too, which I'm sure we're going to
go over later in the show.
Yeah, we got some cool guests, so stick around. Pets Add Life.
So, Chris, we kind of have a veterinary theme today. Yeah, animal health.
Animal health, which is a hot topic.
I've been to many sessions where we're talking about the cost of veterinary
care and accessibility and all those kinds of things. We have a shortage of
(01:32):
veterinarians in this country.
And we had two really great guests to talk about the issues.
And one of them is Greg Jekylls from Independence Pet Holdings.
He'll tell you what that means when we... You'll hear from him.
And then we're going to bring in Dr.
Warber with AirVet, who's really changing the game when it comes to animal health
and the way you could get in touch with a veterinarian. Really great for a guy
(01:55):
like me who gets really anxious to pick up the phone and make an important call. Yeah.
Looking forward to speaking to both of these guys. Let's see what they have
to say, right? All right.
Beyond the Leash, exploring the untold stories of pet passion and professionalism.
Okie dokie, we are live at Global Pet Expo. This is our special series that
(02:15):
we're doing here at Global Pet Expo.
So this is series number two, and this is the Pets Out Live podcast.
And I am excited to introduce you all to Greg Jekylls from Independence Pet Holdings. Hi, Greg.
Hi, how are you today? I'm doing great. I'm doing great. We got to chat the
other day, so I'm glad we got you to sit down in front of a mic this time. Yeah.
(02:35):
Tell us what Independent Pet Holdings does.
Independence Pet Holdings is the largest provider of pet health insurance in
North America, as well as the largest provider of shelter software,
microchips, and lost pet services. Okay. Gotcha.
And what we wanted to talk about today is something that is really kind of a
(02:57):
very hot topic I'm hearing about at the show and something a lot of pet parents
are talking about and concerned about, and that is the increasing cost of veterinary care for their pets.
And so what are you seeing here at the show that kind of ties back to what's
happening in the veterinary world to address this?
Yeah, well, and the cost of care is a hot topic.
(03:19):
We've actually seen the cost of care increase, of veterinary care,
increase faster than inflation.
So we've all experienced inflation over the past couple of years.
It's actually veterinary care has outpaced the state of inflation for other categories.
We've seen over 19% increase since we started to see the increase in inflation. Very significant.
What's driving that? Well, we do have a massive shortage of veterinarians and veterinary staff.
(03:45):
So access to care is becoming more difficult.
But also there's more things available, more treatments available to help take care of pets.
And you're able to see more services that are very similar to what you could
receive in human medicine, actually, in the veterinary world.
So we're intimately familiar as being a pet health insurance provider with those
(04:07):
costs. But we're seeing a lot of innovation, both in the pet space and the vet
space, to help try to control some of that innovation.
I should say, improve the access to care and control that cost.
Okay. What are some of those things that you're seeing? You know, we're seeing products,
whether they are digital products, you know, apps, at-home diagnostics,
(04:32):
other things that will allow consumers a greater level of participation in the care for their pet.
Also, just recently, here we are in Florida, and Florida just passed legislation
to enable the virtual VCPR, which is the Veterinary Client Patient Relationship.
So you're able to actually have
telemedicine start virtually or have that relationship start virtually.
(04:57):
Okay. So telemedicine visits are
going to also help bring down the cost of care for a lot of pet parents.
Sure. And with things like the litter products that will do various detection that you see.
Yes, those are so amazing. They change colors depending on the composition of the urine.
So when you have those kind of things available to actually augment a telemedicine
(05:20):
visit, or you have at-home diagnostics that can augment a telemedicine visit,
the veterinarian is not relying just on what your interpretation is as a consumer.
Consumer as a pet parent, you're actually able to provide them with some great
tools to help them provide even better consultation.
Yeah, that is a great point. Can you tell our audience a little bit more about
(05:40):
what you mean by at-home diagnostics?
Because I know what I think of when you say that, but what could that encompass?
There's quite a few new companies out there. We don't have an interest in any
of them, but one that comes to mind is My Simple Pet Labs.
There are several There are several others that I've seen at the show over the
years where it may be collecting urine at home that you can send in and they'll
(06:05):
be able to provide the diagnostics there.
A lot of it has to do with pH levels and things that are easy for a consumer to do. Sure.
In fact, oh, and I apologize to them because the name of the company has slipped my mind.
But the one of the key people who worked for Everly Well has actually started
(06:26):
a veterinary line to where for consumers or a pet line. Okay.
Starting with fecal. So it's pretty easy.
That was easy. Easy to collect that and picking it up and just send it right
in so we can run the fecal tests there for them and do that remotely.
So really giving the pet parent more power and more control and more,
more, I don't mean to say like control, but participation in the care and also
(06:52):
saving time at the vet hospital potentially. Right. Oh, yeah.
And when I think about the advantages.
So access to care is a big topic, both in the humane world, as well as the veterinary world.
Yeah. We know that there's a shortage of veterinarians.
Some folks have had, you know, had to wait weeks to be able to get a veterinary appointment.
(07:18):
There's, there's also the logistics challenges for a lot of folks.
Right. You know, there, we talk about veterinary deserts. There may not be a
veterinarian anywhere nearby.
Right. And so being able to have access to telemedicine, have access to care
for those, and if it's a financial issue too,
I mean, that's another barrier that we can help bring down with some of these
(07:40):
remote diagnostics, telemedicine products or services. Right.
Overall, just providing a better opportunity for pet owners to provide the level
of care for their pet that their pet deserves.
Right. Right. And what is, because we're in the industry, you know,
I've known about telehealth for pets for many years. I've used it. I think it's fantastic.
(08:05):
But what is, how many pet parents are actually adopting telehealth?
Or, you know, is it slow to get popularity or is it gaining?
Like, help me understand that.
I don't have exact figures on that. Yeah.
What I can share with you is from the early days of telehealth,
(08:27):
and there's kind of a, we need to make a clarification. Yeah.
Quite a few providers and places all over the country where you are able to
have a telehealth visit. So advice.
Okay. Right. So 24 seven, you can actually make that call, talk to a veterinary
professional, find out, is this an emergency?
(08:47):
Do I need to go in? Right. Is this normal? Is it not normal?
But they can't provide a diagnosis. Right. So in the areas where telemedicine is available.
That's where they could get a diagnosis and potentially receive a prescription that could be sent in.
Okay. So telehealth and telemedicine are different. Yeah. Two different things.
(09:08):
We want to be careful. That's very important.
I'm glad I learned that. There's a lot of providers now who have started in
telehealth who are now able to branch out and do more in telemedicine.
And we're finding it to actually be a big big employee benefit push as well.
So there are several companies that are telehealth or telemedicine or both.
(09:31):
Right. And they actually work with some of the largest employers to where that
becomes an employee benefit.
And that makes a lot of sense. When you think about it, hey,
you need your employees to be able to come into work and show up or be able to take care of that.
So providing a benefit to them to allow them to access telehealth or telemedicine.
(09:52):
To make sure that they're available for their job instead of needing to take
time off to go to the veterinarian.
It's a big win. And just seeing the number of companies that are adopting that
as a benefit and the number of companies providing those services,
the demand's pretty evident. That's great. That's great to hear.
So, Greg, what is the future? Let's just say five years from now.
(10:15):
What does veterinary care look like for the average pet parent? it?
Or what tools will most of us be?
I've seen so many. I'm asking you to look into a crystal ball.
I'm going to do my best because that's one of the things I love to do.
I love to look at the crystal ball.
When I imagine what veterinary care can be and all of the great advancements
(10:41):
that we're seeing, especially with some of these apps that are amazing,
you're able to use your cell to take a picture.
Instead of actually collecting the fecal matter and sending it in,
you can take a picture with your phone and it can actually run the diagnostics
right there. That's amazing.
We're seeing that happen in both with fecal samples,
gait analysis, where you can actually see the animal walking and it will take
(11:06):
the video and do an analysis in the back end and tell you what's the likelihood
that this may have a situation that needs to be treated.
Hip dysplasia or if it's got issues with a cruciate ligament.
Those kind of things, I think, are only going to advance even more and more.
(11:26):
We're seeing some of these companies are focusing on now eyes and ears to be
able to use those tools as well.
And as we see those evolve and more veterinarians partner with these companies
to be able to bring those in, some of the wearables now are amazing.
And they can detect, you know, it's not just how much motion does a pet have.
(11:48):
They'll detect, you know, respiration rate and heart rate and temperature.
And so now we're actually creating the tools to allow more access to care because
now I can connect with veterinarians.
And as the as more states, more state veterinary boards adopt the virtual VCPR,
(12:09):
we're going to see more of those veterinary deserts disappear.
Right. And I think overall, it's going to be great for consumers.
I also see all the folks who are really focused on preventive medicine,
not just with pharmaceuticals and I mean, flea, tick, heartworm preventives,
all those are extremely important, but even focusing on the basics,
(12:31):
like let's make sure the nutrition is right. And let's really focus on that.
Obesity is the number one challenge with pets right
in the united states and yeah is it something like
cats 50 of cats are overweight or obese
and dogs are not far behind that that statistic
right and you know just because you're it's you may think oh fluffy he's a little
(12:56):
chubby but that's okay well it's really not okay and you know we often think
about like weight in terms of how much do they weigh but really there's something
something called the body condition score.
Let's make sure that we can use some of these digital tools to help evaluate
a BCS as well. Right, right.
And really understand, you know, not always is a lab a lab. You know,
(13:20):
it's not the same. You may have a small lab.
Right, true. So if that small lab is 85 pounds, that's going to be overweight.
That's a big small lab. But if you've got a big male, it might have a great BCS score at 85 pounds.
So the number game, I think, is a little bit dangerous in that area.
But again, focusing on nutrition, making sure that we're not over-treating,
(13:42):
making sure that we're providing everything they need to be healthy up front
also helps us rely less on treatments in the back end.
So really, the industry is really kind of helping us have this holistic approach
to having our pets be healthier and happier and living longer.
(14:02):
And it sounds like the future is very bright for improving access to care with
all these great tools available.
I do have one last question, though. You mentioned that at the beginning about
the shortage of veterinarians. Yeah.
And what do you use either what's being done or what do you what's in your crystal
ball as to how we're going to address the shortage of veterinarians going forward?
(14:24):
Well, one of the great things that's happening, we're seeing new veterinary schools open.
I forget the number that's opening right now.
Mark Cushing and the Animal Policy Group, they have done some amazing work to
help get some of these new schools open.
And I also believe that it's a controversial subject, but I'm going to go out
(14:46):
on my limb and say, I think there is a real need for a mid-level veterinary professional.
I agree. Explain what that means.
So much like you can go see a nurse practitioner, you would be able to see a
veterinary practitioner.
Right. And especially for some of the things that you don't need to see a DVM to treat.
(15:09):
I mean, when you think about how many times you've visited a veterinary hospital
and you have, there are certified veterinary technicians, registered veterinary
technicians, licensed veterinary technicians.
And that word, I think.
Confuses a lot of people and we've got so many different variables there
but the ones who have gone to
(15:31):
school and have studied and and can perform
the the various tasks sure like vaccinations for example right super you know
we need to be able to enable them more and i think that's going to make a big
difference as far as helping us in the short term while we do see an increase
in the the number of veterinarians that are coming out of school.
(15:54):
Fantastic. Well, again, like I said, I think the future is bright,
even though costs are up significantly.
I can't, that's an astonishing increase, the 19%. But obviously,
the industry is working very hard to eliminate those challenges for people.
And we're going to continue to work hard and create new products.
Like I said, we are the largest provider of pet health insurance.
(16:16):
We will continue to do our best to innovate there. Your best interest to make
sure that accessibility is there.
Accessibility, yeah. We'll do our best to innovate and bring new products to
market to help folks on the financial side. Yeah.
We know that that's an important piece too. Yeah. But yeah, I think...
The future of this industry is really bright. Excellent. Well,
(16:39):
I think that's a great way to wrap it. All right. We'll wrap with that.
Greg Jekylls from Independence Pet Holdings. Thank you so much for being with
us today. Thank you for having me. Of course.
Jeff is here. Woo-hoo! All right. Woo-hoo! Oh, come on, fellas. Come on. Oh, yeah.
Our live studio audience. You deserve the applause, Dr. Jeff.
(17:01):
So, hardly. Thanks for being here. Thanks. Thanks for having me.
It's great. Let me more formally introduce you. Dr.
Jeff Werber, celebrity veterinarian, veterinarian tooth celebrities,
and just all around amazing guy.
Well, thank you. I don't know who celebrities are, but no, no,
it's, you know, it's, I always say it's hard to work in Hollywood and not have
(17:22):
some celebrity clients.
Of course. You know, it's nice when they bond to you. I've had some for many,
many years. Right. And you know, it's fun.
As a matter of fact, some of them are texting you as we were waiting to record
this podcast. Probably, yes. Who would have thunk celebrities being a little
pushy? I don't know. It seems off to me.
What's great is when I get a referral from a celebrity about another celebrity.
(17:46):
Oh, that's cool. Yes. That does happen. It's really cool. They call that networking. Yeah.
But the fact that they think of me, that's great. Absolutely. Ultimate compliment.
So, Doc, one of the things that I think is so impressive about you is you still practice medicine.
Full time. time. You work with your son's company, Air Vets,
which we're going to talk about in a second.
And you're just so involved in what's going on in the pet industry and in the vet space.
(18:10):
How do you do it all? It's a great space, first of all. I love it.
I'm one of those guys that wanted to be a vet ever since I was five,
according to my parents.
And so here it is. I'm in my 40th year, soon to have my 40th year of practice.
This. And it is like day one.
I still love it. I cannot imagine not doing it.
(18:31):
And it's that bond that I sort of formed with my clients and my patients.
And to me, that's what makes it so worth it.
Oh, that's wonderful. That's why they love you so much. It's my golf.
It's your golf. People say, you play golf? Oh, yeah, I go to work every day. Yeah, I golf.
I golf at this hospital. Yeah, I heal animals. It's the same thing.
Same, same. I would imagine that golf is probably, honestly,
more frustrating than practicing medicine.
(18:52):
Although I've never been a doctor, so I don't think I could make a fair comparison.
Though I do struggle on the golf course. So talk to us a bit about this company,
AirVet, and what it seeks out to
do. So AirVet, I actually started its predecessor. It was called LiveDVM.
And the goal was, because I've been concierge my entire career,
(19:14):
how do we bring that value to most veterinarians that aren't willing to give
their cell phone out, want to actually have a life? I don't know what that means.
And so what happens to those patients and clients when they're not around or not unavailable?
So since I know the value of the benefit of being able to converse,
to talk to one of my clients live, real time, on video,
(19:37):
I said, you know, why don't we bring that to every vet who doesn't have the
time or just doesn't choose not to want to do that? All right. So we started live DVM.
My son was watching what we were doing.
Marketing was a little difficult for us at first. And the first thing,
my son, who is a techie, business guy, he said, Dad, nobody knows what DVM is. I go, of course you do.
(19:59):
I know it is because I'm a son of one, but most people don't know.
Case in point, one of my partners in LiveDVM, he's been in the pet business for years.
Huge, one of the better microchip companies.
His name was Chance. And Chance was at dinner one night. We happened to be talking
to him and Brandon heard a lot of noise in the background.
Chance, where are you? He goes, I'm at dinner with some friends.
(20:19):
Oh, you're with some friends. That's great. Give the phone to the guy on your right.
So he gives the phone to the guy, right? And Brandon says, hi,
my name is Brandon. I'm a friend of Chad's. He says, what's DVM?
No idea. Pass the phone to you. No way. Five people, not one knew DVM.
Isn't that where I got my driver's license? Right. Exactly.
So thus, Brandon kind of took over the helm. He had an investor friend who said,
(20:42):
Brandon, what are you doing now?
My Brandon son sold his interest in a company he was working with.
He goes, I'm working with my dad.
He's got some pet telemedicine company, but doesn't know what the heck he's doing.
And the guy goes pet telemedicine and brandon
says yeah he goes brandon if you were running that company i would
invest right now wow and the guy wrote a check for half
a million dollars no way and brandon became ceo and
he is doing an amazing job so i'm cvo chief veteran officer he's ceo and we
(21:08):
are now working we have oh god several hundred thousand users we have about
2200 veterinarians across the country and we are available 24 7 and what we
started doing now which has been the best thing ever,
we are going to large companies because we figure 70% of the US households own pets.
That means 70% of the employee force probably has pets.
So why don't we provide pet care to those 70% of employees?
(21:33):
So we've gone to the large companies. We have Coca-Cola, Pepsi,
Synchrony Financial, Samsung, Adobe, working on Nike, working on large companies
companies like that, and providing it as an unemployed benefit.
Wow. And the employers love it. It's engaging.
It's forming that bond with their employees to stay because we're taking care of your pets too.
(21:55):
Tell us how it works from the pet parent side. So you download the app.
Right. It's on the App Store or Google Play.
It's called AirVet. Right. You put down, if it's one of your companies that
you're working for, you put down your employee name.
Not your personal email. It automatically goes, we know who that employer is
because they're on our email system. Sure.
And you say you want to talk to a vet, you want to schedule an appointment,
(22:19):
and if you want to talk to a vet now, within one to three minutes.
Wow. That's pretty impressive.
Yeah. One thing I'll say as a millennial who gets anxiety when I have to pick
up the phone to order a pizza, this certainly would take a lot of that anxiety
out of having to contact a vet or find a vet.
Is that something that you find is one of the attractive parts?
Absolutely, because first of all, I personally, as CVO, have taken over 4,000 virtual visits.
(22:44):
Wow. And I will tell you, of the 4,000, probably 200 needed emergency vet now. Really? Yeah.
So that tells you the vast majority are not emergencies.
Right. It's the peace of mind. Yes. It's the suggestions.
I call it tele-advice, tele-education. Right.
Right. It's not necessarily always telemedicine. though now in many states,
(23:05):
California included, if I can establish the VCPR, that's the veterinary client
patient relationship, we can establish it virtually, and then I can actually prescribe medication.
It's great. That's going to be a game changer. That's the way it was in human
medicine all these years.
And now in veterinary medicine, 11 or 12 states have already modified that VCPR
(23:26):
where you can establish it virtually. And I think there are going to be more states to,
Excellent. There's a relative shortage of veterinary care. Yeah.
And this addresses a hot topic here that we've been hearing a lot about at the
show, and that's accessibility to veterinary care and cost of veterinary care.
Yep. All has gone up. And what we can try to do at AirVet is try to limit.
We're trying to bring practical medicine into the arena and not just academic medicine. Sure.
(23:51):
And I've been a practical doctor my entire career, and I know the value.
I know the value of building bonds with my clients.
And that's what AirVet. I mean, we want the users to trust AirVet as their alternative
source when their doctor's not available.
Of course, if you need to be seen, go to your doc. Of course.
But sometimes you don't know. Or you don't know, is it in a rush?
Do I have to do it today? Or can I make an appointment for a week from now?
(24:14):
Because I got a busy week this week.
AirVet would be the solution. So you said you've done 4,000 virtual visits yourself.
How many other veterinarians are part of AirVet? We have about 2,200 that are
signed on and active at any time, about 600 vets. Okay.
So we can definitely handle it. And these are all, generally speaking,
vets who have a practice somewhere and they're just looking to- Or a lot of
(24:36):
relief vets like to do this because they're not relieving.
Right. This gives them an opportunity to make some money.
Right. Right. And look, I enjoy the conversations I have with clients.
And in fact, that's probably my biggest problem at work is why I'm always so
overworked is because I'm spending too much. I mean, I know what I need to do
in the first five minutes, but I want to see how Billy's doing his baseball
and I want to see how's her husband. We sit and schmooze.
(24:59):
Your staff is probably always dragging you out of the room into the next room.
They actually have one of those comical large hooking canes to get them away
from you. Right. They're not. Dr. Will be a three, four, five, six.
So what else are you seeing at the show that's exciting for you in terms of
this whole veterinary innovation? For me, it's energy.
Yeah. I love to see that. It's interesting how there are certain trends,
(25:23):
People wouldn't be amazed at how many food companies are here.
Sure, yeah. And one of the questions I always get is, Doc, what's the best food?
Well, me telling you what's the best food for your dog is like me telling you
what's your kid's best ice cream.
I mean, God, there's so many out there. I always start, there is no best.
There are a lot of good ones, and it all depends specifically on what is right
(25:46):
for your dog. First of all, most importantly, does he eat it?
If he doesn't like it, it's not so bad. It doesn't really matter,
yeah. You can buy that Rolls Royce without an engine and seats. Not so good.
So you got to go with what they like. Does it leave their coat nice and shiny?
Do they have nice normal stools? Do they have lots of energy?
Well, if you're checking all those, then what are you changing for?
(26:08):
What are you asking me for? You got the perfect food for your dog.
Now, are there some recommendations made by a veterinarian if there's a problem? Of course.
And that's when you work with a veterinarian. but don't be
fooled by the grain freeze okay veterinarians
nutrition is all over grain is not terrible for
your dog in fact sometimes it's good so don't buy it raw that's a sore spot
(26:31):
for me the well god i mean in in nature their ancestors used to eat raw yeah
but that was a different gut flora that's not the same as the domesticated dog
anymore so there are dogs that to get listeria and campylobacter and E.
Coli and salmonella because you fed them raw meat.
That's like going to a regular store, buying a hunk of fish and eating it raw.
(26:52):
No, you got to buy sushi grade. There's a difference. They test the fish for
bacteria. I mean, it's not the same.
When it comes to raw, look for a process like freeze-dry or HPP,
which is high-pressure pasteurization, or they call it high-pressure processing.
Flash freeze. There are other ways to take raw, not cook it,
(27:14):
not destroy the nutritional value, the vitamins and minerals,
but to make sure we're not getting all those bad bacteria ingested by your pet.
So those are the trends I like to see. What's interesting I'm seeing less of
this year that I've seen years past is the CBD craze. Yes, I noticed that too.
And boy, every other booth last year and the year before was CBD.
(27:37):
Do you have any idea what that means? I think veterinarians are accepting it.
It's readily available. And I think people are just, you know, give it a try.
It's safe. And one of the things, you know, I've done this, my ninth Global
Pet Expo. So one of the things we always say is not every business is going to be successful.
That's just the reality of the situation. And when a trend emerges like CBD,
(27:58):
just because we're starting to see less CBD companies doesn't mean that CBD is more or less viable.
It simply means a lot of people jumped onto that trend and now the winners remain.
The people who really figured it out, the ones with the best product,
the ones with the best marketing, the ones with the best leaders.
So it doesn't necessarily mean that CBD is more or less viable.
It's just we've only got the winners now.
(28:19):
Right. And what I also love is this dog TV.
Yes. I mean, when you think about it, and now going to a trend where you're
going to be having programming for the consumer, because the pet parent,
what makes a good pet parent is an educated pet parent.
So if we can educate those pet parents-
then we have better pets, healthier pets. And the pet parent has to turn the TV on anyway.
(28:41):
Right. So might as well sit down and watch it. And there are a lot of programs they could see already.
I mean, you have other networks that are all about animals.
Why not? Why not talk TV? Exactly. So anyway, just throwing that in there. Fantastic.
Thanks for the plug. We appreciate it. So what else are you doing these days
besides? You've got your practice
and your air vets, and you probably don't have a lot of extra time.
(29:01):
I do not have, but they say, if you want something done, give it to a busy person.
I do. I just got back from, I go to a lot of the trade shows.
One of my favorite is the Colorado Vet Med Association has called SKYCE, S-K-E-C-E.
So I'm a snowboarder. And so it was in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. It was fantastic.
The segment, the whole lectures that were on, they picked subject typically was ophthalmology.
(29:26):
And I do a lot of ophthalmic work and ophthalmic surgery.
So I was thrilled to be at this conference. And I still learned a lot.
Yeah. It's very eye-opening. Oh, very eye-opening. That's very good.
So it was great. So I go to VMX and Western and here.
And what else do I do? I get enough free time. I do. I do.
(29:49):
You sound like you're trying to convince yourself. I do. I am. I am.
I play basketball Tuesday nights. I won't miss that. That's my, I live for it.
So I'm good. I'm good. I don't play golf. And that takes a lot of time.
It does. It takes a lot of time. Don't tell my boss how often.
That would be wasted time.
Because you can't be very good at it. Right, right. And I just, I'm in a good balance.
(30:13):
Work-life balance, whatever that means. Whatever it is for me, I hit it. There we go.
So if you are listening and you're an employer, they can reach out to AirVets
to talk about getting that program into their company for the employees.
For the employees. I will tell you that what the employers like about it is
we're very reasonably priced.
Okay. The key really is that they've noted less time off of work because the pet is- Wow. Sure.
(30:39):
Right. And the employees note that, oh my God, my boss loves me.
They're taking care of us. Yes. So what it does, it's a win-win.
There we go. And we had, as I said, I think my son told me, Adobe,
in the first quarter, they had more calls, virtual visits requested by their
(30:59):
employees than they expected in a year.
Wow. Really? Yeah. In the first? First quarter. Quarter for the whole year.
Wow. Oh, that's pretty cool.
I mean, it makes a lot of sense. You err on the side of caution when it comes to health, right?
So if I, you know, I don't know anything about animal health.
If my cat starts acting up, my first instinct is going to be,
I got to take a sick day. I got to bring the cat in.
So wouldn't it be great to just be able to send a text and them to say,
(31:21):
no, your cat just has gas.
Right. Well, it's live video calls. Right. Now, we do text with our technicians.
Sure. So the veterinary nurses, veterinary techs, they can do texting.
When you speak to a vet, it's going to be live. Face-to-face.
Face-to-face chat. Because if a picture is worth a thousand words,
a live video is worth a hundred thousand. That's true.
Sure. Good point. I can see so much just by looking at how that pet is running
(31:45):
around, interacting with their owner.
Body language. Whatever it is. Exactly. The body language. Whatever it is,
I can tell you it's not an emergency.
This dog is not going to drop dead in the next two days. And peace of mind is so valuable. Right.
And the pet parents love the engagement also.
And once a case is open, it's open for 72 hours. So even if we don't resolve
(32:06):
the case today at this visit, this virtual visit, they have three days to just
put a request back in. It goes to the same doctor.
And I said, no, doc, I tried what you were saying. And he's still,
he's a little better, but not much better. We can talk a little bit.
And then the doctor, after the consult, does their SOAP, Subjective Objective Assessment Plan.
(32:27):
And that goes part of the medical record.
And every, if they have a veterinarian, we can send that on to their veterinarian.
And every single virtual visit is rescheduled.
So when someone said, no, but the doctor didn't tell me that.
And we go back and look at the video. Play the tape.
Yes. Roll the tape. You know what? It's like the modern day house call.
(32:48):
Yeah. It is a modern day house call. I love it. What a brilliant idea.
Yeah. So we're loving it. Well, best of luck to you and your son with AirVets.
Thank you. And it's great to see you again. And thanks for sitting down and
chatting with us today. Thanks for coming in.
Enjoyed it very much. All right. Bye-bye. The product of the week.
All right, Chris, you go first with your product. Okay, great.
Well, I have a really fun one here today.
(33:11):
This was sent to me by a coworker. The company name is called Swell Gelato.
And as a proud Italian man myself, I never turned down the chance for gelato.
And honestly, I think our animals should be treated to some of the similar fine things in life.
There's this really interesting trend happening in pet products right
(33:33):
now where we're starting to treat our pets more and
more like people so i've seen you know wine for cats
and beer for dogs but this is the first time i've seen
gelato for dogs and it acts
as either a standalone cup or it comes in
a tube as a topper comes in
all sorts of different flavors obviously sugar-free sugar
(33:54):
is very bad for your animals don't be giving your animals sugar obviously sugar-free
obviously tested and made for animals and I've
tasted a bit of it myself while I won't say it's the best while
I won't say it's the best definitely edible as a human definitely
edible for people too so if you see it on your shelves you feel like your dog's
been a particularly good boy this week maybe they just had a difficult visit
(34:15):
to the to the vet maybe freedom to some swell gelato yeah I I so the flavors
range the two that I've noticed they do they do some fruity stuff and then they also do the savory.
It'd be really interesting. I don't know about you, like maybe like a tuna fish gelato.
So as I sound to you guys out there,
I don't know, but maybe Fido will appreciate it. So give it a whirl.
(34:37):
Proud APA members, they're here at Global Pet Expo. So if you're listening to
this and you're about to go into day three of the show, maybe go check out their booth. Pets Add Life.
I've got a cat product I want to tell you about. It's from World's Best Cat
Litter and it's called Poop Fighter.
Now you have a cat, so this may interest you. I feel like I'm the poop fighter.
(35:00):
Well, you actually are the poop fighter. But this is litter that's actually
going to make your job scooping the poop even better, even easier.
Now, from what I understand, World's Best Cat Litter is all natural cat litter
made from corn that is highly compressed. So it's super absorbent.
But what's unique about this new poop fighter is that it uses botanical,
(35:20):
let's see, what do they call it? It's like some kind of botanical technology.
Botanical blockers, that's it. But botanical blockers that kind of weigh down the stinky, the stink.
I know. So it doesn't waft up. Okay. Okay.
So maybe I'm butchering how this actually works.
But from what I understand, it just keeps it so you don't really smell it.
(35:42):
You might smell it a little bit as you go to scoop it.
Yeah. But you're not going to
like all of a sudden know that your cat just relieved himself in the box.
That sounds like a deal to me. Pretty good technology. and actually me, myself and Dr.
Courtney Campbell are going to be doing a Facebook Live with Facebook.
Well, obviously with Facebook. And with World's Best Cat Litter live on Tuesday
(36:05):
night at 8 p.m. Eastern talking about all things cat poop.
All things. All things. I think there's some parts of cat poop I don't want
to talk about, but I'll still tune in.
Okay. I'll still tune in. Sounds good. All right. Yeah.
I think that's the end of the segment. I think that's the end of the segment.
I think that's the end of the segment. Yeah, we'll see you tomorrow.
Music.
(00:07):
Your guide to the latest in pet trends, products, and the joy of the human-animal
bond with Kristen Levine and Chris
Bonifanti, powered by the American Pet Products Association and Dog TV.
Welcome to day two of our Global Pet Expo special series of the Pets Add Life
podcast. Day two. We're still breathing. We're still upright.
How are you feeling? I'm feeling excited. I'm feeling a little tired.
(00:30):
Yeah. Honestly, just a little though, but mostly excited that the show is going
so well. We've got so many people in the building, so many people saying great
things about the redesign of our new product showcase, the redesign of our entrance units.
You're going to see a lot of that on film coming through Dog TV.
So be sure to pay attention to
the YouTube channel and things like that if you weren't able to make it.
(00:51):
But it's been a really exciting and absolutely game-changing show for us this
year. Well, they weren't able to make it because they're pet parents.
They can't come to the show.
Yeah, you know, it happens to the best of us. But we're bringing the show to
you. We're bringing the show to you.
We're bringing you the best parts of the show, right? You don't want to deal
with any of that annoying business stuff out here, the deals that are being made.
You just want to hear about the animals, their stories, and maybe- And the awesome
(01:11):
products. Yeah, a couple of cool products, too, which I'm sure we're going to
go over later in the show.
Yeah, we got some cool guests, so stick around. Pets Add Life.
So, Chris, we kind of have a veterinary theme today. Yeah, animal health.
Animal health, which is a hot topic.
I've been to many sessions where we're talking about the cost of veterinary
care and accessibility and all those kinds of things. We have a shortage of
(01:32):
veterinarians in this country.
And we had two really great guests to talk about the issues.
And one of them is Greg Jekylls from Independence Pet Holdings.
He'll tell you what that means when we... You'll hear from him.
And then we're going to bring in Dr.
Warber with AirVet, who's really changing the game when it comes to animal health
and the way you could get in touch with a veterinarian. Really great for a guy
(01:55):
like me who gets really anxious to pick up the phone and make an important call. Yeah.
Looking forward to speaking to both of these guys. Let's see what they have
to say, right? All right.
Beyond the Leash, exploring the untold stories of pet passion and professionalism.
Okie dokie, we are live at Global Pet Expo. This is our special series that
(02:15):
we're doing here at Global Pet Expo.
So this is series number two, and this is the Pets Out Live podcast.
And I am excited to introduce you all to Greg Jekylls from Independence Pet Holdings. Hi, Greg.
Hi, how are you today? I'm doing great. I'm doing great. We got to chat the
other day, so I'm glad we got you to sit down in front of a mic this time. Yeah.
(02:35):
Tell us what Independent Pet Holdings does.
Independence Pet Holdings is the largest provider of pet health insurance in
North America, as well as the largest provider of shelter software,
microchips, and lost pet services. Okay. Gotcha.
And what we wanted to talk about today is something that is really kind of a
(02:57):
very hot topic I'm hearing about at the show and something a lot of pet parents
are talking about and concerned about, and that is the increasing cost of veterinary care for their pets.
And so what are you seeing here at the show that kind of ties back to what's
happening in the veterinary world to address this?
Yeah, well, and the cost of care is a hot topic.
(03:19):
We've actually seen the cost of care increase, of veterinary care,
increase faster than inflation.
So we've all experienced inflation over the past couple of years.
It's actually veterinary care has outpaced the state of inflation for other categories.
We've seen over 19% increase since we started to see the increase in inflation. Very significant.
What's driving that? Well, we do have a massive shortage of veterinarians and veterinary staff.
(03:45):
So access to care is becoming more difficult.
But also there's more things available, more treatments available to help take care of pets.
And you're able to see more services that are very similar to what you could
receive in human medicine, actually, in the veterinary world.
So we're intimately familiar as being a pet health insurance provider with those
(04:07):
costs. But we're seeing a lot of innovation, both in the pet space and the vet
space, to help try to control some of that innovation.
I should say, improve the access to care and control that cost.
Okay. What are some of those things that you're seeing? You know, we're seeing products,
whether they are digital products, you know, apps, at-home diagnostics,
(04:32):
other things that will allow consumers a greater level of participation in the care for their pet.
Also, just recently, here we are in Florida, and Florida just passed legislation
to enable the virtual VCPR, which is the Veterinary Client Patient Relationship.
So you're able to actually have
telemedicine start virtually or have that relationship start virtually.
(04:57):
Okay. So telemedicine visits are
going to also help bring down the cost of care for a lot of pet parents.
Sure. And with things like the litter products that will do various detection that you see.
Yes, those are so amazing. They change colors depending on the composition of the urine.
So when you have those kind of things available to actually augment a telemedicine
(05:20):
visit, or you have at-home diagnostics that can augment a telemedicine visit,
the veterinarian is not relying just on what your interpretation is as a consumer.
Consumer as a pet parent, you're actually able to provide them with some great
tools to help them provide even better consultation.
Yeah, that is a great point. Can you tell our audience a little bit more about
(05:40):
what you mean by at-home diagnostics?
Because I know what I think of when you say that, but what could that encompass?
There's quite a few new companies out there. We don't have an interest in any
of them, but one that comes to mind is My Simple Pet Labs.
There are several There are several others that I've seen at the show over the
years where it may be collecting urine at home that you can send in and they'll
(06:05):
be able to provide the diagnostics there.
A lot of it has to do with pH levels and things that are easy for a consumer to do. Sure.
In fact, oh, and I apologize to them because the name of the company has slipped my mind.
But the one of the key people who worked for Everly Well has actually started
(06:26):
a veterinary line to where for consumers or a pet line. Okay.
Starting with fecal. So it's pretty easy.
That was easy. Easy to collect that and picking it up and just send it right
in so we can run the fecal tests there for them and do that remotely.
So really giving the pet parent more power and more control and more,
more, I don't mean to say like control, but participation in the care and also
(06:52):
saving time at the vet hospital potentially. Right. Oh, yeah.
And when I think about the advantages.
So access to care is a big topic, both in the humane world, as well as the veterinary world.
Yeah. We know that there's a shortage of veterinarians.
Some folks have had, you know, had to wait weeks to be able to get a veterinary appointment.
(07:18):
There's, there's also the logistics challenges for a lot of folks.
Right. You know, there, we talk about veterinary deserts. There may not be a
veterinarian anywhere nearby.
Right. And so being able to have access to telemedicine, have access to care
for those, and if it's a financial issue too,
I mean, that's another barrier that we can help bring down with some of these
(07:40):
remote diagnostics, telemedicine products or services. Right.
Overall, just providing a better opportunity for pet owners to provide the level
of care for their pet that their pet deserves.
Right. Right. And what is, because we're in the industry, you know,
I've known about telehealth for pets for many years. I've used it. I think it's fantastic.
(08:05):
But what is, how many pet parents are actually adopting telehealth?
Or, you know, is it slow to get popularity or is it gaining?
Like, help me understand that.
I don't have exact figures on that. Yeah.
What I can share with you is from the early days of telehealth,
(08:27):
and there's kind of a, we need to make a clarification. Yeah.
Quite a few providers and places all over the country where you are able to
have a telehealth visit. So advice.
Okay. Right. So 24 seven, you can actually make that call, talk to a veterinary
professional, find out, is this an emergency?
(08:47):
Do I need to go in? Right. Is this normal? Is it not normal?
But they can't provide a diagnosis. Right. So in the areas where telemedicine is available.
That's where they could get a diagnosis and potentially receive a prescription that could be sent in.
Okay. So telehealth and telemedicine are different. Yeah. Two different things.
(09:08):
We want to be careful. That's very important.
I'm glad I learned that. There's a lot of providers now who have started in
telehealth who are now able to branch out and do more in telemedicine.
And we're finding it to actually be a big big employee benefit push as well.
So there are several companies that are telehealth or telemedicine or both.
(09:31):
Right. And they actually work with some of the largest employers to where that
becomes an employee benefit.
And that makes a lot of sense. When you think about it, hey,
you need your employees to be able to come into work and show up or be able to take care of that.
So providing a benefit to them to allow them to access telehealth or telemedicine.
(09:52):
To make sure that they're available for their job instead of needing to take
time off to go to the veterinarian.
It's a big win. And just seeing the number of companies that are adopting that
as a benefit and the number of companies providing those services,
the demand's pretty evident. That's great. That's great to hear.
So, Greg, what is the future? Let's just say five years from now.
(10:15):
What does veterinary care look like for the average pet parent? it?
Or what tools will most of us be?
I've seen so many. I'm asking you to look into a crystal ball.
I'm going to do my best because that's one of the things I love to do.
I love to look at the crystal ball.
When I imagine what veterinary care can be and all of the great advancements
(10:41):
that we're seeing, especially with some of these apps that are amazing,
you're able to use your cell to take a picture.
Instead of actually collecting the fecal matter and sending it in,
you can take a picture with your phone and it can actually run the diagnostics
right there. That's amazing.
We're seeing that happen in both with fecal samples,
gait analysis, where you can actually see the animal walking and it will take
(11:06):
the video and do an analysis in the back end and tell you what's the likelihood
that this may have a situation that needs to be treated.
Hip dysplasia or if it's got issues with a cruciate ligament.
Those kind of things, I think, are only going to advance even more and more.
(11:26):
We're seeing some of these companies are focusing on now eyes and ears to be
able to use those tools as well.
And as we see those evolve and more veterinarians partner with these companies
to be able to bring those in, some of the wearables now are amazing.
And they can detect, you know, it's not just how much motion does a pet have.
(11:48):
They'll detect, you know, respiration rate and heart rate and temperature.
And so now we're actually creating the tools to allow more access to care because
now I can connect with veterinarians.
And as the as more states, more state veterinary boards adopt the virtual VCPR,
(12:09):
we're going to see more of those veterinary deserts disappear.
Right. And I think overall, it's going to be great for consumers.
I also see all the folks who are really focused on preventive medicine,
not just with pharmaceuticals and I mean, flea, tick, heartworm preventives,
all those are extremely important, but even focusing on the basics,
(12:31):
like let's make sure the nutrition is right. And let's really focus on that.
Obesity is the number one challenge with pets right
in the united states and yeah is it something like
cats 50 of cats are overweight or obese
and dogs are not far behind that that statistic
right and you know just because you're it's you may think oh fluffy he's a little
(12:56):
chubby but that's okay well it's really not okay and you know we often think
about like weight in terms of how much do they weigh but really there's something
something called the body condition score.
Let's make sure that we can use some of these digital tools to help evaluate
a BCS as well. Right, right.
And really understand, you know, not always is a lab a lab. You know,
(13:20):
it's not the same. You may have a small lab.
Right, true. So if that small lab is 85 pounds, that's going to be overweight.
That's a big small lab. But if you've got a big male, it might have a great BCS score at 85 pounds.
So the number game, I think, is a little bit dangerous in that area.
But again, focusing on nutrition, making sure that we're not over-treating,
(13:42):
making sure that we're providing everything they need to be healthy up front
also helps us rely less on treatments in the back end.
So really, the industry is really kind of helping us have this holistic approach
to having our pets be healthier and happier and living longer.
(14:02):
And it sounds like the future is very bright for improving access to care with
all these great tools available.
I do have one last question, though. You mentioned that at the beginning about
the shortage of veterinarians. Yeah.
And what do you use either what's being done or what do you what's in your crystal
ball as to how we're going to address the shortage of veterinarians going forward?
(14:24):
Well, one of the great things that's happening, we're seeing new veterinary schools open.
I forget the number that's opening right now.
Mark Cushing and the Animal Policy Group, they have done some amazing work to
help get some of these new schools open.
And I also believe that it's a controversial subject, but I'm going to go out
(14:46):
on my limb and say, I think there is a real need for a mid-level veterinary professional.
I agree. Explain what that means.
So much like you can go see a nurse practitioner, you would be able to see a
veterinary practitioner.
Right. And especially for some of the things that you don't need to see a DVM to treat.
(15:09):
I mean, when you think about how many times you've visited a veterinary hospital
and you have, there are certified veterinary technicians, registered veterinary
technicians, licensed veterinary technicians.
And that word, I think.
Confuses a lot of people and we've got so many different variables there
but the ones who have gone to
(15:31):
school and have studied and and can perform
the the various tasks sure like vaccinations for example right super you know
we need to be able to enable them more and i think that's going to make a big
difference as far as helping us in the short term while we do see an increase
in the the number of veterinarians that are coming out of school.
(15:54):
Fantastic. Well, again, like I said, I think the future is bright,
even though costs are up significantly.
I can't, that's an astonishing increase, the 19%. But obviously,
the industry is working very hard to eliminate those challenges for people.
And we're going to continue to work hard and create new products.
Like I said, we are the largest provider of pet health insurance.
(16:16):
We will continue to do our best to innovate there. Your best interest to make
sure that accessibility is there.
Accessibility, yeah. We'll do our best to innovate and bring new products to
market to help folks on the financial side. Yeah.
We know that that's an important piece too. Yeah. But yeah, I think...
The future of this industry is really bright. Excellent. Well,
(16:39):
I think that's a great way to wrap it. All right. We'll wrap with that.
Greg Jekylls from Independence Pet Holdings. Thank you so much for being with
us today. Thank you for having me. Of course.
Jeff is here. Woo-hoo! All right. Woo-hoo! Oh, come on, fellas. Come on. Oh, yeah.
Our live studio audience. You deserve the applause, Dr. Jeff.
(17:01):
So, hardly. Thanks for being here. Thanks. Thanks for having me.
It's great. Let me more formally introduce you. Dr.
Jeff Werber, celebrity veterinarian, veterinarian tooth celebrities,
and just all around amazing guy.
Well, thank you. I don't know who celebrities are, but no, no,
it's, you know, it's, I always say it's hard to work in Hollywood and not have
(17:22):
some celebrity clients.
Of course. You know, it's nice when they bond to you. I've had some for many,
many years. Right. And you know, it's fun.
As a matter of fact, some of them are texting you as we were waiting to record
this podcast. Probably, yes. Who would have thunk celebrities being a little
pushy? I don't know. It seems off to me.
What's great is when I get a referral from a celebrity about another celebrity.
(17:46):
Oh, that's cool. Yes. That does happen. It's really cool. They call that networking. Yeah.
But the fact that they think of me, that's great. Absolutely. Ultimate compliment.
So, Doc, one of the things that I think is so impressive about you is you still practice medicine.
Full time. time. You work with your son's company, Air Vets,
which we're going to talk about in a second.
And you're just so involved in what's going on in the pet industry and in the vet space.
(18:10):
How do you do it all? It's a great space, first of all. I love it.
I'm one of those guys that wanted to be a vet ever since I was five,
according to my parents.
And so here it is. I'm in my 40th year, soon to have my 40th year of practice.
This. And it is like day one.
I still love it. I cannot imagine not doing it.
(18:31):
And it's that bond that I sort of formed with my clients and my patients.
And to me, that's what makes it so worth it.
Oh, that's wonderful. That's why they love you so much. It's my golf.
It's your golf. People say, you play golf? Oh, yeah, I go to work every day. Yeah, I golf.
I golf at this hospital. Yeah, I heal animals. It's the same thing.
Same, same. I would imagine that golf is probably, honestly,
more frustrating than practicing medicine.
(18:52):
Although I've never been a doctor, so I don't think I could make a fair comparison.
Though I do struggle on the golf course. So talk to us a bit about this company,
AirVet, and what it seeks out to
do. So AirVet, I actually started its predecessor. It was called LiveDVM.
And the goal was, because I've been concierge my entire career,
(19:14):
how do we bring that value to most veterinarians that aren't willing to give
their cell phone out, want to actually have a life? I don't know what that means.
And so what happens to those patients and clients when they're not around or not unavailable?
So since I know the value of the benefit of being able to converse,
to talk to one of my clients live, real time, on video,
(19:37):
I said, you know, why don't we bring that to every vet who doesn't have the
time or just doesn't choose not to want to do that? All right. So we started live DVM.
My son was watching what we were doing.
Marketing was a little difficult for us at first. And the first thing,
my son, who is a techie, business guy, he said, Dad, nobody knows what DVM is. I go, of course you do.
(19:59):
I know it is because I'm a son of one, but most people don't know.
Case in point, one of my partners in LiveDVM, he's been in the pet business for years.
Huge, one of the better microchip companies.
His name was Chance. And Chance was at dinner one night. We happened to be talking
to him and Brandon heard a lot of noise in the background.
Chance, where are you? He goes, I'm at dinner with some friends.
(20:19):
Oh, you're with some friends. That's great. Give the phone to the guy on your right.
So he gives the phone to the guy, right? And Brandon says, hi,
my name is Brandon. I'm a friend of Chad's. He says, what's DVM?
No idea. Pass the phone to you. No way. Five people, not one knew DVM.
Isn't that where I got my driver's license? Right. Exactly.
So thus, Brandon kind of took over the helm. He had an investor friend who said,
(20:42):
Brandon, what are you doing now?
My Brandon son sold his interest in a company he was working with.
He goes, I'm working with my dad.
He's got some pet telemedicine company, but doesn't know what the heck he's doing.
And the guy goes pet telemedicine and brandon
says yeah he goes brandon if you were running that company i would
invest right now wow and the guy wrote a check for half
a million dollars no way and brandon became ceo and
he is doing an amazing job so i'm cvo chief veteran officer he's ceo and we
(21:08):
are now working we have oh god several hundred thousand users we have about
2200 veterinarians across the country and we are available 24 7 and what we
started doing now which has been the best thing ever,
we are going to large companies because we figure 70% of the US households own pets.
That means 70% of the employee force probably has pets.
So why don't we provide pet care to those 70% of employees?
(21:33):
So we've gone to the large companies. We have Coca-Cola, Pepsi,
Synchrony Financial, Samsung, Adobe, working on Nike, working on large companies
companies like that, and providing it as an unemployed benefit.
Wow. And the employers love it. It's engaging.
It's forming that bond with their employees to stay because we're taking care of your pets too.
(21:55):
Tell us how it works from the pet parent side. So you download the app.
Right. It's on the App Store or Google Play.
It's called AirVet. Right. You put down, if it's one of your companies that
you're working for, you put down your employee name.
Not your personal email. It automatically goes, we know who that employer is
because they're on our email system. Sure.
And you say you want to talk to a vet, you want to schedule an appointment,
(22:19):
and if you want to talk to a vet now, within one to three minutes.
Wow. That's pretty impressive.
Yeah. One thing I'll say as a millennial who gets anxiety when I have to pick
up the phone to order a pizza, this certainly would take a lot of that anxiety
out of having to contact a vet or find a vet.
Is that something that you find is one of the attractive parts?
Absolutely, because first of all, I personally, as CVO, have taken over 4,000 virtual visits.
(22:44):
Wow. And I will tell you, of the 4,000, probably 200 needed emergency vet now. Really? Yeah.
So that tells you the vast majority are not emergencies.
Right. It's the peace of mind. Yes. It's the suggestions.
I call it tele-advice, tele-education. Right.
Right. It's not necessarily always telemedicine. though now in many states,
(23:05):
California included, if I can establish the VCPR, that's the veterinary client
patient relationship, we can establish it virtually, and then I can actually prescribe medication.
It's great. That's going to be a game changer. That's the way it was in human
medicine all these years.
And now in veterinary medicine, 11 or 12 states have already modified that VCPR
(23:26):
where you can establish it virtually. And I think there are going to be more states to,
Excellent. There's a relative shortage of veterinary care. Yeah.
And this addresses a hot topic here that we've been hearing a lot about at the
show, and that's accessibility to veterinary care and cost of veterinary care.
Yep. All has gone up. And what we can try to do at AirVet is try to limit.
We're trying to bring practical medicine into the arena and not just academic medicine. Sure.
(23:51):
And I've been a practical doctor my entire career, and I know the value.
I know the value of building bonds with my clients.
And that's what AirVet. I mean, we want the users to trust AirVet as their alternative
source when their doctor's not available.
Of course, if you need to be seen, go to your doc. Of course.
But sometimes you don't know. Or you don't know, is it in a rush?
Do I have to do it today? Or can I make an appointment for a week from now?
(24:14):
Because I got a busy week this week.
AirVet would be the solution. So you said you've done 4,000 virtual visits yourself.
How many other veterinarians are part of AirVet? We have about 2,200 that are
signed on and active at any time, about 600 vets. Okay.
So we can definitely handle it. And these are all, generally speaking,
vets who have a practice somewhere and they're just looking to- Or a lot of
(24:36):
relief vets like to do this because they're not relieving.
Right. This gives them an opportunity to make some money.
Right. Right. And look, I enjoy the conversations I have with clients.
And in fact, that's probably my biggest problem at work is why I'm always so
overworked is because I'm spending too much. I mean, I know what I need to do
in the first five minutes, but I want to see how Billy's doing his baseball
and I want to see how's her husband. We sit and schmooze.
(24:59):
Your staff is probably always dragging you out of the room into the next room.
They actually have one of those comical large hooking canes to get them away
from you. Right. They're not. Dr. Will be a three, four, five, six.
So what else are you seeing at the show that's exciting for you in terms of
this whole veterinary innovation? For me, it's energy.
Yeah. I love to see that. It's interesting how there are certain trends,
(25:23):
People wouldn't be amazed at how many food companies are here.
Sure, yeah. And one of the questions I always get is, Doc, what's the best food?
Well, me telling you what's the best food for your dog is like me telling you
what's your kid's best ice cream.
I mean, God, there's so many out there. I always start, there is no best.
There are a lot of good ones, and it all depends specifically on what is right
(25:46):
for your dog. First of all, most importantly, does he eat it?
If he doesn't like it, it's not so bad. It doesn't really matter,
yeah. You can buy that Rolls Royce without an engine and seats. Not so good.
So you got to go with what they like. Does it leave their coat nice and shiny?
Do they have nice normal stools? Do they have lots of energy?
Well, if you're checking all those, then what are you changing for?
(26:08):
What are you asking me for? You got the perfect food for your dog.
Now, are there some recommendations made by a veterinarian if there's a problem? Of course.
And that's when you work with a veterinarian. but don't be
fooled by the grain freeze okay veterinarians
nutrition is all over grain is not terrible for
your dog in fact sometimes it's good so don't buy it raw that's a sore spot
(26:31):
for me the well god i mean in in nature their ancestors used to eat raw yeah
but that was a different gut flora that's not the same as the domesticated dog
anymore so there are dogs that to get listeria and campylobacter and E.
Coli and salmonella because you fed them raw meat.
That's like going to a regular store, buying a hunk of fish and eating it raw.
(26:52):
No, you got to buy sushi grade. There's a difference. They test the fish for
bacteria. I mean, it's not the same.
When it comes to raw, look for a process like freeze-dry or HPP,
which is high-pressure pasteurization, or they call it high-pressure processing.
Flash freeze. There are other ways to take raw, not cook it,
(27:14):
not destroy the nutritional value, the vitamins and minerals,
but to make sure we're not getting all those bad bacteria ingested by your pet.
So those are the trends I like to see. What's interesting I'm seeing less of
this year that I've seen years past is the CBD craze. Yes, I noticed that too.
And boy, every other booth last year and the year before was CBD.
(27:37):
Do you have any idea what that means? I think veterinarians are accepting it.
It's readily available. And I think people are just, you know, give it a try.
It's safe. And one of the things, you know, I've done this, my ninth Global
Pet Expo. So one of the things we always say is not every business is going to be successful.
That's just the reality of the situation. And when a trend emerges like CBD,
(27:58):
just because we're starting to see less CBD companies doesn't mean that CBD is more or less viable.
It simply means a lot of people jumped onto that trend and now the winners remain.
The people who really figured it out, the ones with the best product,
the ones with the best marketing, the ones with the best leaders.
So it doesn't necessarily mean that CBD is more or less viable.
It's just we've only got the winners now.
(28:19):
Right. And what I also love is this dog TV.
Yes. I mean, when you think about it, and now going to a trend where you're
going to be having programming for the consumer, because the pet parent,
what makes a good pet parent is an educated pet parent.
So if we can educate those pet parents-
then we have better pets, healthier pets. And the pet parent has to turn the TV on anyway.
(28:41):
Right. So might as well sit down and watch it. And there are a lot of programs they could see already.
I mean, you have other networks that are all about animals.
Why not? Why not talk TV? Exactly. So anyway, just throwing that in there. Fantastic.
Thanks for the plug. We appreciate it. So what else are you doing these days
besides? You've got your practice
and your air vets, and you probably don't have a lot of extra time.
(29:01):
I do not have, but they say, if you want something done, give it to a busy person.
I do. I just got back from, I go to a lot of the trade shows.
One of my favorite is the Colorado Vet Med Association has called SKYCE, S-K-E-C-E.
So I'm a snowboarder. And so it was in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. It was fantastic.
The segment, the whole lectures that were on, they picked subject typically was ophthalmology.
(29:26):
And I do a lot of ophthalmic work and ophthalmic surgery.
So I was thrilled to be at this conference. And I still learned a lot.
Yeah. It's very eye-opening. Oh, very eye-opening. That's very good.
So it was great. So I go to VMX and Western and here.
And what else do I do? I get enough free time. I do. I do.
(29:49):
You sound like you're trying to convince yourself. I do. I am. I am.
I play basketball Tuesday nights. I won't miss that. That's my, I live for it.
So I'm good. I'm good. I don't play golf. And that takes a lot of time.
It does. It takes a lot of time. Don't tell my boss how often.
That would be wasted time.
Because you can't be very good at it. Right, right. And I just, I'm in a good balance.
(30:13):
Work-life balance, whatever that means. Whatever it is for me, I hit it. There we go.
So if you are listening and you're an employer, they can reach out to AirVets
to talk about getting that program into their company for the employees.
For the employees. I will tell you that what the employers like about it is
we're very reasonably priced.
Okay. The key really is that they've noted less time off of work because the pet is- Wow. Sure.
(30:39):
Right. And the employees note that, oh my God, my boss loves me.
They're taking care of us. Yes. So what it does, it's a win-win.
There we go. And we had, as I said, I think my son told me, Adobe,
in the first quarter, they had more calls, virtual visits requested by their
(30:59):
employees than they expected in a year.
Wow. Really? Yeah. In the first? First quarter. Quarter for the whole year.
Wow. Oh, that's pretty cool.
I mean, it makes a lot of sense. You err on the side of caution when it comes to health, right?
So if I, you know, I don't know anything about animal health.
If my cat starts acting up, my first instinct is going to be,
I got to take a sick day. I got to bring the cat in.
So wouldn't it be great to just be able to send a text and them to say,
(31:21):
no, your cat just has gas.
Right. Well, it's live video calls. Right. Now, we do text with our technicians.
Sure. So the veterinary nurses, veterinary techs, they can do texting.
When you speak to a vet, it's going to be live. Face-to-face.
Face-to-face chat. Because if a picture is worth a thousand words,
a live video is worth a hundred thousand. That's true.
Sure. Good point. I can see so much just by looking at how that pet is running
(31:45):
around, interacting with their owner.
Body language. Whatever it is. Exactly. The body language. Whatever it is,
I can tell you it's not an emergency.
This dog is not going to drop dead in the next two days. And peace of mind is so valuable. Right.
And the pet parents love the engagement also.
And once a case is open, it's open for 72 hours. So even if we don't resolve
(32:06):
the case today at this visit, this virtual visit, they have three days to just
put a request back in. It goes to the same doctor.
And I said, no, doc, I tried what you were saying. And he's still,
he's a little better, but not much better. We can talk a little bit.
And then the doctor, after the consult, does their SOAP, Subjective Objective Assessment Plan.
(32:27):
And that goes part of the medical record.
And every, if they have a veterinarian, we can send that on to their veterinarian.
And every single virtual visit is rescheduled.
So when someone said, no, but the doctor didn't tell me that.
And we go back and look at the video. Play the tape.
Yes. Roll the tape. You know what? It's like the modern day house call.
(32:48):
Yeah. It is a modern day house call. I love it. What a brilliant idea.
Yeah. So we're loving it. Well, best of luck to you and your son with AirVets.
Thank you. And it's great to see you again. And thanks for sitting down and
chatting with us today. Thanks for coming in.
Enjoyed it very much. All right. Bye-bye. The product of the week.
All right, Chris, you go first with your product. Okay, great.
Well, I have a really fun one here today.
(33:11):
This was sent to me by a coworker. The company name is called Swell Gelato.
And as a proud Italian man myself, I never turned down the chance for gelato.
And honestly, I think our animals should be treated to some of the similar fine things in life.
There's this really interesting trend happening in pet products right
(33:33):
now where we're starting to treat our pets more and
more like people so i've seen you know wine for cats
and beer for dogs but this is the first time i've seen
gelato for dogs and it acts
as either a standalone cup or it comes in
a tube as a topper comes in
all sorts of different flavors obviously sugar-free sugar
(33:54):
is very bad for your animals don't be giving your animals sugar obviously sugar-free
obviously tested and made for animals and I've
tasted a bit of it myself while I won't say it's the best while
I won't say it's the best definitely edible as a human definitely
edible for people too so if you see it on your shelves you feel like your dog's
been a particularly good boy this week maybe they just had a difficult visit
(34:15):
to the to the vet maybe freedom to some swell gelato yeah I I so the flavors
range the two that I've noticed they do they do some fruity stuff and then they also do the savory.
It'd be really interesting. I don't know about you, like maybe like a tuna fish gelato.
So as I sound to you guys out there,
I don't know, but maybe Fido will appreciate it. So give it a whirl.
(34:37):
Proud APA members, they're here at Global Pet Expo. So if you're listening to
this and you're about to go into day three of the show, maybe go check out their booth. Pets Add Life.
I've got a cat product I want to tell you about. It's from World's Best Cat
Litter and it's called Poop Fighter.
Now you have a cat, so this may interest you. I feel like I'm the poop fighter.
(35:00):
Well, you actually are the poop fighter. But this is litter that's actually
going to make your job scooping the poop even better, even easier.
Now, from what I understand, World's Best Cat Litter is all natural cat litter
made from corn that is highly compressed. So it's super absorbent.
But what's unique about this new poop fighter is that it uses botanical,
(35:20):
let's see, what do they call it? It's like some kind of botanical technology.
Botanical blockers, that's it. But botanical blockers that kind of weigh down the stinky, the stink.
I know. So it doesn't waft up. Okay. Okay.
So maybe I'm butchering how this actually works.
But from what I understand, it just keeps it so you don't really smell it.
(35:42):
You might smell it a little bit as you go to scoop it.
Yeah. But you're not going to
like all of a sudden know that your cat just relieved himself in the box.
That sounds like a deal to me. Pretty good technology. and actually me, myself and Dr.
Courtney Campbell are going to be doing a Facebook Live with Facebook.
Well, obviously with Facebook. And with World's Best Cat Litter live on Tuesday
(36:05):
night at 8 p.m. Eastern talking about all things cat poop.
All things. All things. I think there's some parts of cat poop I don't want
to talk about, but I'll still tune in.
Okay. I'll still tune in. Sounds good. All right. Yeah.
I think that's the end of the segment. I think that's the end of the segment.
I think that's the end of the segment. Yeah, we'll see you tomorrow.
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