Updated December 13, 2020
Ever wondered about how vet practices are owned? No? I’m not surprised; it really doesn’t matter that much.
For those with a passing interest, though, there has been a bit of a shakeup in the past few years.
Major acquisitions of vets by corporate entities have been happening across Australia. I personally received three letters of interest in one year!
As of 2020 there are three major groups active in South Australia. As vets near retirement and find how easy it is to sell to these groups, this list is sure to lengthen. I’ll try to keep it updated but given the fast pace of change and private nature of sales I cannot guarantee the accuracy of this list.
Does Ownership Matter?
It’s still early days, but I don’t think the corporates will cause any loss of quality or service. In fact, they may add a level of training and support unavailable to independent practices, and give a standardised level of care to patients.
Disadvantages might be a loss of diversity in opinion (raw bone feeding for example!), the inability to offer charity to special cases or a gradual escalation of pricing. On the other hand they could also end up providing a very challenging competitive environment which benefits all clients. Only time will tell.
Here are the major groups in SA with interstate connections. There are also several large locally-based veterinary chains.
Greencross Limited
National group of over 150 clinics, affiliated with Petbarn.
South Australian vets include:
- Animal Emergency Centre
- Greencross Vets Holden Hill (with PetBarn)
- Greencross Vets Gawler
- Greencross Noarlunga Centre (with PetBarn)
- Greencross Vets Paradise
- Greencross Vets Para Vista
- Greencross Vets Strathalbyn
- Greencross Vets Wellington Road Mount Barker
Vet Partners Australia Pty Ltd
International group of 150 clinics, most in Australia.
South Australian vets include:
- Aberfoyle Hub Veterinary Clinic
- AdelaideVet Goodwood Road
- AdelaideVet Prospect
- AdelaideVet Stirling
- AdelaideVet Trinity Gardens
- Angle Vale Veterinary Clinic
- Cottage Grove Veterinary Centre
- Dernancourt Veterinary Clinic
- Golden Grove Emergency Hospital
- Lincoln Veterinary Centre
- Mawson Lakes Veterinary Hospital
- Northgate Veterinary Hospital
- Paralowie Veterinary Surgery
- Ridgehaven Veterinary Centre
- Salisbury Park Veterinary Hospital
- Vets First Riverport Goolwa
- Vets First Victor Harbor
As of 2020 it seems like VetPartners have acquired National Veterinary Care Ltd. This brings their total to around 250 clinics.
South Australian vets include:
- Birdwood Veterinary Clinic
- Woodside Veterinary Clinic
PETstock VET
15 vets so far with no doubt more to come. Only one is in SA so far.
- Mount Gambier
By Andrew Spanner BVSc(Hons) MVetStud, a vet in Adelaide, Australia. These blogs are from a series regularly posted on email and Twitter. Subscribe via email here to never miss a story!
Have something to add? Comments are welcome below and will appear within 24 hours.
I recently visited my Vet practice in Salisury SA , as my little dog had a lump . I was told I couldn’t see the Vet until I paid up front . Then l couldn’t collect the prescription until I paid up front !
Is this an order for the Wealthy organisation that owns them . ?
Hi Janet. It’s not a standard practice so I’m not sure of their reasoning. It’s not normally associated with corporate ownership though.
Dear Andrew ,
great article with an excellent evidence based approach. Can you recommend any like-minded vet in North Sydney and its surrounds?
Hi Antony. Sorry, I can’t. It’s a lot easier for me considering the size of Adelaide vs that of Sydney.