Stats from the Veterinary Industry Tracker powered by Vetsource and AVMA
August 17-23, 2025
A recent global survey from Merck Animal Health, “Pet Owner & Vet Perspectives on Parasite Treatment and Prevention [1],” has uncovered persistent gaps in year-round flea and tick protection, presenting a prime educational and service opportunity for veterinary practices.
Conducted between December 23, 2024, and January 28, 2025, this research involved 4,072 pet owners and 582 veterinarians across 15 countries. Takeaways from the survey include:
- 83% of pet owners recognize flea and tick prevention as an important part of their pet’s healthcare, but many face challenges with consistent compliance.
- 80% of pet owners feel confident administering flea and tick treatment. However, 74% of veterinarians express concern about missed or late doses, and 20% report owners not administering prevention at all.
- Nearly half of dog owners (46%) and over half of cat owners (51%) admit to forgetting parasiticide doses in the past year.
- In the U.S., two‑thirds of veterinarians report that most pet owners fail to follow a year‑round prevention plan.
- While owner awareness of pet health risks from fleas and ticks is high (82%), only 40% strongly agree that fleas and ticks pose a threat to their personal health.
- 65% of veterinarians would recommend an annual medication, while 75% of owners are willing to try once‑yearly treatment.
- Veterinarians and pet owners agree that prescription options are more effective than over-the-counter alternatives.
As parasite seasons and geographical habitats expand, practices should emphasize year-round protection, integrate parasiticides into client reminders, and consider promoting long-duration, prescription treatments. These strategies can improve client compliance, patient outcomes, and the clinic’s bottom line.
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| +1.0% Revenue YoY (Last Week) |
-3.5% Visits YoY (Last Week) |
Last week, year-over-year veterinary industry visits fell again from -3.4% to -3.5%. Revenue remained positive at 1.0%, but declined from the previous week’s 1.3%.
 -8.8%Heartworm YoY |
-7.5% Flea/Tick YoY |
 +2.3%Services YoY |
-3.2% Products YoY |
While year-over-year parasiticide purchases remained in negative territory last week, the numbers improved slightly compared to the week prior. Heartworm was -8.8% and flea/tick was -7.5%, changes from -9.2% and -8.4% respectively. Service revenue was 2.3% year over year, a decline from the previous week’s 2.7%, and product revenue fell from -3.0% to -3.2%.
| +2.2% Revenue YoY (Last 12 Months) |
-2.9% Visits YoY (Last 12 Months) |
The rolling 14-day trendline showed declines in revenue and visits over the past two weeks.
| 6,282 Practices |
2.2M Revenue per Practice (Last 12 Months) |
10.1K Visits per Practice (Last 12 Months) |
Last week, Maine and Connecticut enjoyed the most growth in year-over-year revenue at 6.0% and 5.5% respectively. Once again, Oregon was the only state to experience positive growth in year-over-year visits at 0.2%.
*Numbers are subject to change based on data availability and PIMS adjustments.
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