In June of 1999, two veterinarians and a talented entrepreneur introduced a web site that could serve as an educational resource for owners of all types of animals, and a unique marketing and e-commerce tool for practitioners. The resulting service, Vetcentric.com, has two main goals: “To improve the state of animal care, and to provide e-business infrastructure to the veterinary medical industry,” explained John Schroeder, President and Chief Executive Officer of Vetcentric.

Vetcentric created vetcentric.net, where practitioners and veterinary clinics have the opportunity to have a web site hosted free of charge to advertise a clinic’s services. A veterinarian can syndicate Vetcentric’s reference content directly on to his or her own web site, and can print out articles for clients with the clinic’s name and contact information on each page. Additionally, the sites will become centers for e-commerce in June of 2000, as veterinarians will have the ability to renew or write prescriptions through their web sites, and have the medications drop-shipped to their clients.

Veterinarians already are plugging into the resource. “A hundred sites are already in the rear view mirror,” Schroeder said. “The veterinarians are from 44 states, and represent a great mix of large and small animal practices.” Owners will be able to locate local veterinarians through the main web site.

Vetcentric also will have veterinarians answer questions from owners seeking information on the condition of their animals after an initial visit and diagnosis from their own veterinarians. If a horse has a condition and has not been examined by a veterinarian, the online response will be to call the vet immediately