Stronger pet-parent bonds are shaping veterinary tech adoption
CURRENT BRIEF VERSION: Veterinary teams may want to rethink technology adoption through a relationship lens. New research from the Human Animal Bond Research Institute, or HABRI, and Chewy Health found that the human-animal bond is at its strongest level recorded in HABRI surveys, and that stronger bonds are linked with more veterinary visits, higher willingness to spend, and greater openness to pet care technology. The findings, highlighted in a January 6, 2026, dvm360 Vet Blast podcast episode and detailed in an October 6, 2025, announcement, come from a nationally representative survey of 2,005 U.S. dog and cat pet parents fielded in February 2025. The study found pet parents were most willing to adopt tools that help them afford, find, and manage veterinary care, while satisfaction with veterinary care rose when practices paired traditional communication with added channels like texting, apps, email, or telehealth. The broader veterinary conversation is already moving in that direction, with recent dvm360 Vet Blast episodes spotlighting teletriage, telementorship, anesthesia teleconsulting, and virtual assistant models that use technology to extend access and support rather than replace in-clinic care. (dvm360.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, the takeaway isn't simply that clients want more technology. It's that communication technology appears to work best when it strengthens trust, access, and continuity rather than replacing the clinic relationship. That matters in a market where AVMA data show client communication software is in use at 59.9% of practices, online scheduling at 33.4%, and telehealth at 29.2%, suggesting there is still room for adoption even as many practice leaders say time and cost slow them down. It also aligns with how veterinary innovators are framing newer tools: teleconsulting platforms that let anesthesiologists remotely monitor cases in real time, teletriage and telementorship services that help general practitioners manage more cases confidently, virtual assistants that offload administrative work, and AI-enabled software vendors urging practices to experiment as capabilities change quickly. For clinics serving younger pet parents, multi-pet households, or pets with chronic illness, the HABRI-Chewy findings suggest demand may be strongest for tools that reduce friction around care navigation, affordability, education, and follow-up. (prnewswire.com)
What to watch: Expect more vendors and practice groups to frame digital tools less as efficiency products and more as extensions of the veterinary-client relationship, especially around messaging, affordability support, telehealth-enabled follow-up, remote specialty support, and AI-assisted workflows. (prnewswire.com)