December 2019

The changing face of independent practice, with MWI Animal Health

With increased price pressure from the internet and growing competition from corporate practices, sometimes it can seem hard to see the wood for the trees. In this, a VBJ Buying Insight feature, help is at hand in the form of one of the largest, most trusted businesses in the sector.

16 mins

November 2019

Toothache? How to get your teeth into dentals

Dental disease is one of the biggest untreated issues among UK companion animals, so how can your practice increase the number of dental procedures it carries out? Here, Alan Robinson and Matthew Plumtree give their advice on how to drive up the rate of dentals in your practice...

23 mins
Imaging in practice: it’s a numbers game

Modern imaging modalities have revolutionised veterinary care, but deciding what you need, how much to pay for it and when to use it remain complicated decisions. Here, Mark Gill from Goddard Veterinary Group explains why it’s important to ensure the numbers add up...

24 mins
Practice Profile: Lambert, Leonard and May Farm Vets

Earlier this year, Lambert, Leonard and May (LLM) Farm Vets became the latest farm practice to join the VetPartners group. VBJ paid a visit to see how this change has impacted on one of the UK’s most highly respected farm animal outfits...

41 mins

October 2019

VBJ talks to Libby Sheridan, Nestlé Purina's veterinary technical manager, about the significance of a Purina finding, and why it is important to keep pushing the boundaries of pet nutrition.

17 mins
Practice Profile: West Midlands Veterinary Referrals

The UK has 725 referral practices, which means 17% of all veterinary sites are now dedicated referral centres or offer referral services. So, anyone thinking of entering this crowded marketplace needs to pitch their offering carefully...

3 mins
Face to face: Alan White from MWI Animal Health UK talks to VBJ

Alan White has become a familiar face in the veterinary sector since joining the St Francis Group almost 10 years ago. Now group commercial director of MWI Animal Health UK following its acquisition of St Francis in 2015, Alan sat down with VBJ to tell us a bit about the company and himself...

10 mins
Shadow of the leader: a case study from XLVets community

All successful veterinary practices require good leadership, but being a leader is about much more than just a title. Here, Mark John from Fenton Vets describes his journey and explains why being a brilliant boss is now more important than ever...

25 mins

In a VBJ Specials Insight feature, discover how this company can deliver personalised medicines that make a difference to your practice and patients.

14 mins
Building the dream part three – planning the perfect exit strategy

Deciding to sell your veterinary practice will probably be one of the biggest life choices you ever make. If you have the luxury of time, as Vicky Robinson explains, planning your sale will make a considerable difference to the financial outcome...

24 mins
The 2020 IR35 reform: what you need to know…

Practices have four months to prepare for off-payroll working rules changes that could have significant impacts on locums. From April 2020, they will have to check if locums need to pay income tax and national insurance contributions, shifting the responsibility from locums to practices.

20 mins
For future reference… Pet tech – friend or foe?

People are built to worry about the future, skilled professionals especially. In this article, futurists and innovation consultants Greg Dickens and Guen Bradbury outline some possible futures for the veterinary profession, and suggest ways to be ready to get the most out of it...

26 mins
Stand out from the crowd: look forward – look local

Veterinary medicine is ever-changing. It’s true the profession has had its fair share of challenges recently, but it’s also important to not lose sight of the one thing that bricks-and-mortar practices have over online – a local community to market to...

18 mins
Online marketing: don’t sweat the jargon

Forget the plethora of confusing terms like “algorithms”, “metadata” or “tagging”, the same rules apply to digital marketing as the offline version. Providing you’re matching outstanding service to the needs of your customers, follow these tips and you’ll be well placed to shout about it in the digital world.

10 mins

September 2019

Practice Profile: Cotswold Vets

Building a small animal practice right next door to a cattle market might not seem like the best piece of logic. But for Ben Gamsa and his team at Cotswold Vets, near Swindon, it made perfect sense...

3 mins
High street crisis: vets ‘part of the solution’, says VMG

Following latest figures from the British Retail Consortium, and customer data provider Springboard, vet practices are being urged to “remain alert and adaptable to change”.

5 mins
Continuing professional development: what, where, when and how…

An RCVS crackdown on non-compliance means the rules about when vets and RVNs can complete their CPD have changed. This could provide challenges to clinicians and the practices they work in, but, as VBJ discovered, it’s never been easier to access new learning opportunities...

1 mins
Face to face: Richard Smith from Hallmarq Veterinary Imaging talks to...

Hallmarq is well known as one of the UK veterinary sector’s real sucess stories. One man who is not so well known is the company’s new chief operating officer – so meet Richard Smith...

10 mins

August 2019

Practice Profile: Sutterton Veterinary Hospital

The recruitment crisis has hit hard in veterinary practices of all shapes and sizes across the UK. But in some places it’s hit especially hard, as VBJ discovered when it paid a visit to rural Lincolnshire.

2 mins
Telemedicine: the genie is out of its bottle

Telemedicine has been with us for many years in one form or another, but recent developments have upped the ante for veterinary practices of all shapes and sizes – so be prepared...

27 mins