Commentary
Destined to become a clarifying pivot point in veterinary technology development, we’re sharing a new paper, Companion Animal Veterinary Software: Part I, Navigating Practice Challenges with Support of Technology and AI, authored by Jon Ayers, Jeff Dixon, Dr. Adam Little, and Adam Wysocki, with contributions from Andrew Luna.
As might be expected given this author group, the content includes situation analytics, acknowledges the gaps between clients and the clinic, between related clinics and employee readiness. Not a casual read, we recommend reading it for context and then returning to it to find actionable points to implement in the near term and understand the strategic implications over the next two to three years.
This paragraph in the paper highlights something to prepare for in the near term.
“AI-informed pet owners represent something qualitatively different than “Dr. Google” users: they may arrive with coherent differential diagnoses, treatment plan comparisons, and prognosis expectations. This changes the veterinarian’s role but does not minimize it. The consultation shifts from information provision to interpretation, contextualization, and collaborative decision-making. Veterinarians become trusted advisors who help pet owners navigate what AI has surfaced.”
Source: Today’s Veterinary Business, February 2, 2026. Link. Full paper <Link>.
Image: Link.
The future of the PIMS is not a hub-and-spoke model; it is a network of applications with AI coordinating between them. The most valuable node is still the PIMS and their systems of record, which is why these platforms have a duty to the profession and a commercial imperative to move [toward greater integration].”