Smart financing gets a closer look in veterinary practice growth
Bottom line
Veterinary practices are being urged to treat financing less as a last resort and more as a planning tool, according to a new Vet Blast Podcast episode from dvm360 featuring Erin Wondra of KLC Financial. The discussion centers on how clinics can use equipment financing and leasing to upgrade imaging, anesthesia, lab, and other practice technologies without tying up large amounts of cash, while also challenging the idea that borrowing automatically signals financial weakness. The episode frames financing as part of a broader growth strategy, especially for practices trying to modernize services, preserve liquidity, and match capital spending to revenue generation. (dvm360.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, the message lands at a time when many practices say they’re trying to keep up with technology but face real cost barriers. In AVMA’s 2025 economic report, 69.5% of practice owners said they felt they were keeping up with technology, but 19.3% said they were falling behind, with financial constraints cited by 26.3% of that group. That makes financing strategy more than an accounting issue; it can shape whether a clinic can add diagnostics, improve workflow, or spread the cost of upgrades over time rather than delaying needed investments. (ebusiness.avma.org)
What to watch: Expect more attention on how independent practices fund capital upgrades as economic pressure, technology adoption, and competition continue to reshape veterinary care. (ebusiness.avma.org)
A new Vet Blast Podcast episode from dvm360 is putting a familiar but often uncomfortable topic in front of veterinary leaders: borrowing. In “Modernizing veterinary practices through smart financing,” Erin Wondra of KLC Financial discusses how equipment financing and leasing can help clinics modernize and expand without taking a large immediate hit to cash flow, positioning financing as a deliberate business tool rather than a fallback option. (dvm360.com)
That framing comes as practices continue to balance pressure to invest with caution about costs. AVMA’s 2025 report on the economic state of the profession found that while most practice owners believe they’re generally keeping pace with technology, nearly 1 in 5 said they were falling behind. Among those who felt behind, financial constraints were one of the most commonly cited reasons, alongside time constraints. In other words, the modernization challenge isn’t just whether new tools are clinically useful, but whether practices can adopt them on a timeline that makes operational sense. (ebusiness.avma.org)
The podcast’s core argument is that financing can help bridge that gap. Rather than paying cash upfront for equipment or software-related upgrades, practices can spread costs over time, preserve working capital, and align payments with the revenue those investments are expected to generate. That approach is consistent with broader equipment-finance trends in healthcare, where leasing, independent lenders, bank financing, and other structures are commonly used to acquire capital equipment. The Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s 2025 healthcare outlook notes that providers use a mix of financing methods and that alternative structures, including pay-per-use models, are also part of the market. (elfaonline.org)
There’s also a wider economic context behind the conversation. A 2025 Frontiers in Veterinary Science paper on U.S. veterinary practice strategy argued that practices should identify aging capital equipment in advance, gather quotes early, and consider leasing options that reduce upfront capital outlay or allow deferred payments, particularly during periods of economic strain. The authors suggested that even in a softer market, practices that plan capital needs carefully may be better positioned for recovery and long-term growth. That doesn’t amount to an endorsement of any one lender or structure, but it does reinforce the idea that equipment strategy and financing strategy are increasingly linked. (frontiersin.org)
As for the guest, Wondra is part of KLC Financial’s business development team and has been publicly recognized by the company for her equipment-finance work. KLC describes itself as a provider of tailored equipment financing across industries, which helps explain why the podcast focuses less on one product and more on financing as a category of practice management decision-making. (klcfinancial.com)
Why it matters: For veterinarians, practice managers, and hospital leaders, the practical takeaway is that modernization decisions don’t happen in a vacuum. Diagnostic and workflow upgrades can improve care delivery, staff efficiency, and client experience, but the method of paying for those upgrades affects liquidity, debt capacity, and risk tolerance. In a market where some practices feel they’re keeping up and others say cost is holding them back, a more structured approach to financing could help clinics move on needed investments sooner, especially if they’re evaluating return on investment, replacement cycles, and service-line expansion together rather than separately. (ebusiness.avma.org)
That said, smart financing isn’t the same as automatic financing. The strongest takeaway from the surrounding research is that practices need to understand the terms, the total cost of capital, and whether the equipment will truly support growth or efficiency. For some clinics, preserving cash may be the priority; for others, minimizing long-term cost may matter more. The value for veterinary professionals is in treating financing as a strategic lever, not a reflex. (elfaonline.org)
What to watch: The next phase to watch is whether more veterinary business content, lenders, and practice advisors start tying equipment investment decisions more explicitly to technology adoption gaps, economic pressure, and independent practice competitiveness over the next 12 months. (ebusiness.avma.org)