Paw prints of progress: How pet healthcare is catching up to human medicine

If you’ve welcomed a furry friend into your home recently, you’re part of a growing trend. The past decade has witnessed an unprecedented surge in pet ownership, with over 80 million dogs now cherished as family members in two-thirds of US households, up from 56% in 1988.

This boom isn’t just a result of pandemic-induced companionship. We’re seeing a shift in lifestyle choices, with more couples postponing or foregoing having children, and instead, they’re getting pets. This phenomenon has even spawned a new term: “DINKWAD” (Dual Income No Kids With a Dog), evolving from the familiar “DINK”. This is reinforced by the fact that more than 50% are now owned by millennials and GenZ.

As pets become more integral to our lives, spending on their health has naturally increased. Many owners invest $50 to $250 monthly on their animal companions, with some going beyond $5,000! Consequently, the global pet market has burgeoned to over $320 billion, with projections suggesting it could reach a staggering $500 billion by 2030, according to the American Pet Products Association’s 2023-2024 National Pet Owners Survey.

Bridging the gap: From human to animal care

Despite this growth, pet healthcare has traditionally lagged behind human medicine in several key areas: therapeutics, medical devices, AI, electronic health records (EHR), and insurance. However, the surging demand for advanced veterinary care is creating opportunities for the industry to not only catch up but potentially surpass human healthcare in some aspects.

By leveraging lessons from human healthcare, the veterinary sector is on the brink of a revolution that promises to benefit both pets and their owners. Let’s explore some of these exciting developments.

Accelerating innovation: Drugs, therapies, and devices

The journey from lab to market for human drugs is long and costly, with an average investment of $375 million in clinical trials and only a 10% approval rate. However, the physiological similarities between humans and animals open up possibilities for repurposing drugs initially developed for humans.

Take Pimobendan, for instance. This heart medication, first tested on humans in 1988, is now marketed as Vetmedin, a medicine for dogs with heart conditions.

The streamlined approval process and lower costs of pet drug trials present opportunities for pharmaceutical companies to explore therapies that didn’t make the cut for human use. Industry leaders like Merck Animal Health, Zoetis, and Elanco Animal Health are at the forefront of this animal-specific therapeutic research.

Medical devices are another area of crossover. Wearable activity trackers like Fi smart collars, FitBark, and Tractive, continuous glucose monitoring systems such as Abbott’s FreeStyle Libre and Dexcom’s G6, and remote patient monitoring devices are being adapted for pet health.

Human health isn’t just influencing pet health; some innovations in animal health are paving the way for human treatments. Resilient Biotics, for example, is optimizing immune response treatments in animals with potential human applications. As Christopher Belnap, founder of Resilient, notes: “Building a new therapy in large mammalian species, like pigs, which are known to be more similar to humans in terms of anatomy and immunity is beneficial for understanding how we can translate the same approach to human health.”

AI: The new veterinary assistant

Artificial Intelligence is revolutionizing human healthcare across specialties, from dermatology to cardiology, improving diagnostic accuracy and speed. Now, it’s making inroads into veterinary care and is helping address critical shortages in the field.

The demand for veterinarians is projected to reach 40,000 by 2030, with a need for 133,000 vet techs. This shortage stems from various factors:

• Burnout: Veterinarians are burnt out due to high pressure and outdated technology.

• Financial strain: The average veterinary school debt is a whopping $188,853.

• Limited training capacity: With only 33 accredited vet schools in the U.S., meeting demand is challenging.

• Worsening pet-to-vet ratio: Pet ownership surged by nearly 30% during the pandemic, while the number of practicing vets increased by only 10%.

Source: Veterinary Practice News

AI is stepping in to alleviate these pressures. Companies like Moichor are leveraging AI to enhance animal lab work efficiency, reporting a 57% increase in disease detection and 10x less variability. As Shevy Karbasi, founder of Moichor, says: “AI is not meant to replace veterinarians but to empower them. By automating routine tasks and providing data-driven insights, AI can help veterinarians work more efficiently and effectively, ultimately improving the quality of care for pets.”

AI applications in veterinary care include:

• Triage: Prioritizing cases based on urgency

• Diagnostic support: Processing vast data to suggest diagnoses and treatments

• Remote monitoring: Collecting and analyzing pet health data for proactive care

As more data becomes available, we anticipate AI expanding into areas like imaging, predictive analytics for disease prevention, and even behavioral analysis and training.

Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2024.1347550/full 

Reimagining pet insurance

While human health insurance has seen innovations like prior authorization and AI-driven claims processing, pet insurance is catching up rapidly. Traditionally, pets were insured as property under P&C coverage, which is often difficult to claim and limited in scope.

Zabrina Thorson, co-founder of Odie Pet Insurance, an embedded pet insurance provider, says, “Pet insurance is not like human health insurance. The insurance industry looks at pets as property. You buy insurance for your house, car, and any other belongings before an accident happens. That’s why pre-existing conditions aren’t covered. There’s no current way or legal regulation to make sure people bring in their pets for annual exams and preventative care exams.” 

Currently, only 3% of US pet owners have pet insurance. However, a wave of startups is addressing this gap. Companies like Lemonade, Pumpkin, Pawp, and Bivvy are digitizing pet insurance, offering mobile app management, direct billing, and personalized policies.

Todd Haedrich, experienced in both vet tech and human health innovations, notes: “The digitalization of the veterinary industry has been a gradual process that has recently gathered momentum in the last decade. Without an equivalent HITECH Act, innovation and adoption of animal health EMRs have taken much longer. Similarly, pet insurance has only recently accelerated, with the first plans introduced in the 80s and electronic claim submission just starting over the past 20 years.”

These digital-first insurers are introducing innovations that could outpace traditional human health insurance:

1. Simplified underwriting using advanced analytics

2. Direct billing and reimbursement, reducing out-of-pocket expenses

3. Preventive care incentives to encourage proactive health management

4. Flexible coverage options tailored to individual needs

Miles Thorson, co-founder of Odie Pet Insurance, predicts: “We’re going to see more in-network versus out-of-network structures and pre-negotiated levels of care.”

A bright horizon for pet health

The convergence of increased pet ownership, higher spending on pet health, and unique opportunities in the pet health sector has created a fertile ground for innovation. There’s potential for pet health tech to not only catch up to human health tech but to lead in certain areas, potentially influencing the broader healthcare community.

As Timmy Yu from Proper Pet notes: “We always talk about pet-tech catching up with health-tech, but that is stage one. The next stage is a world where pet may lead, driven by lower regulatory barriers, agile innovation processes, and eager pet parents wanting to try everything for their pets.”

While much remains to be explored and developed, the potential for pet health tech to shape the future of healthcare is undeniable. As the lines between human and animal care continue to blur, we may find that our furry friends are not just companions, but pioneers in the next wave of healthcare innovation.