The Veterinary Market and Animal Health Industry
The veterinary and animal health market has been consistently growing to meet the demands of pet owners, agribusiness and comparative clinical research. The animal health market is an integral part of the US economy, including product manufacturing, veterinary services, disease surveillance, and food animal production. The global animal health market is estimated to approach $40 billion dollars.
Animal Health Market Information
Global Animal Health Market: Global ex-manufacturer sales of animal health products is approximately $40 billion dollars, and the United States represents ~33% of this market. The veterinary market can be generally categorized by species, product type, channels of distribution, and geographic regions. Each of these veterinary market sectors has varying economic factors to take into consideration when pursuing the development of animal health products. The general categories of veterinary products are medicinal feed additives, biologics, parasiticides, anti-infectives, and pain management drugs.
Woods Consulting, LLC works with clients to review their technology and determine the appropriate species and target disease to pursue.
Veterinary Products and Animal Health Industry Overview
The US veterinary market yields approximately $14 billion in ex-manufacturers sales of veterinary products for companion animal (e.g., dog, cat, horse) and food animal (e.g. cattle, poultry) markets, roughly 33% of the total animal health market.
Key US veterinary product categories includine veterinary drugs (e.g., anti-microbials, anti-inflammatories, parasiticides), veterinary biologics (e.g., vaccines, immune modulators), medicated feeds, and pet nutraceuticals and petfood.
veterinary products (% mix)
veterinary products (% of sales)
Approval Timeline for Veterinary Products: As a rule of thumb, most veterinary drugs and biologics for companion animal use can take 3-5 years to obtain veterinary market approval. For livestock, veterinary drugs may take even longer as approvals for food production animals also requires residue testing and other studies to evaluate the veterinary drugs potential effects in the food chain.
Veterinary Medicine
# US Veterinarians by Professional Area
CAE=companion animal exlusive; CAP=companion animal predominant; Eq=equine; MA=mixed animal; FA=food animal; Ex=exotic; Ind=Industry; Aca=academia
# US Veterinarian Salaries
Veterinary Medicine: Specialists
Many veterinarians pursue advanced training after their 4 years of veterinary medical school. Below are a few links to veterinary specialty organizations.
American College of Veterinary Dermatology
American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine
American College of Veterinary Microbiologists
American College of Veterinary Nutrition
American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists
American College of Veterinary Radiology
American College of Veterinary Surgeons
American College Veterinary Emergency & Critical Care
Large Corporate Veterinary Practices
VIP Pet Care
National Veterinary Associates (NVA)
VCA
VetCor
PetVet Care Centers
Thrive Pet Healthcare
VetStrategy
Southern Veterinary Partners
Comparative Medical Diseases
There are a variety of common veterinary diseases, many of which mimic those in people. Dogs and cats (companion animals) suffer from a range of diseases and disorders, which often require treatment with veterinary drugs, devices, biologics, supplements, special diets, etc.
Listed below are some of the common veterinary diseases and reasons for dogs and cats presenting to veterinary hospitals for treatment. Many of these conditions and diseases are very similar to human diseases, and many of the same treatments are used in dogs and cats as they are in people.
- Musculoskeletal and orthopedic disease
- Dental disease and periodontal disease
- Gastrointestinal tract, hepatic and pancreatic disease
- Cardiac disease including congestive heart failure and dilative cardiomyopathy
- Lower urinary tract and kidney disease
- Ocular diseases such as cataracts and dry eye
- Neurologic and spinal cord disease
- Infectious disease (bacterial, fungal, viral)
- Cancer and neoplastic disease
- Dermatologic disease including atopy and allergic dermatitis
- Ear disease including infections
- Endocrine diseases such as diabetes and thyroid disorders
- Respiratory tract disease
- Obesity
- Behaviorial problems including phobias and separation anxiety