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MILLENNIALS, MPOSAND THE VETERINARY MARKETPLACE
OFFICE LEASE ADVICE
TEACHERS’ PENSION FUND AND PETVETCARE CENTRES
THE PROCESS OFSELLING A PRACTICE
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PUBLICATION MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT #41073506
A HELPFUL RESOURCE FOR YOU AND YOUR PRACTICEBACK ISSUES AVAILABLE ONLINE AT PROFITABLE-PRACTICE.COM/MAGAZINE/VETERINARY
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HOW TO REACH US
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
[email protected] 1155 Indian Road,
Mississauga, ON L5H 1R8
SUBSCRIBER SERVICES
[email protected] 1-888-764-4145
PERMISSIONS
Profitable Practice: Veterinarian Edition is printed and distributed 3 times a year by Jamieson-Quinn Holdings Ltd. dba Advertising In Print for ROI Corporation Brokerage. The contents of this publication are protected by copyright and may not be reproduced without the written permission of ROI Corporation Brokerage.
Please return undeliverable addresses to: 200 - 896 Cambie Street, Vancouver, BC, V6B 2P6. Tel: 604-681-1811 Fax: 604-681-0456. Publication Mail Agreement No. 41073506.
While the publisher has exercised every effort to ensure that the information presented is complete and accurate, it may contain errors, omissions or information that has subsequently become outdated by industry changes or conditions, new laws or regulations, or other circumstances. Neither author nor publisher accepts any liability or responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage alleged to have been caused, directly or indirectly, by the information, ideas, opinions or other content in this publication.
This publication complies with the Canadian Advertising-Editorial Guidelines and is printed by ROI Corporation Brokerage for education-al, marketing and informational purposes only. Our contributors are seasoned professionals who have agreed to share their advice in Profitable Practice and some of them partially fund this publication designed to provide our readers with timely information about industry news, analysis and stories in support of the veterinary profession across Canada.
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PUBLISHER ROI Corporation Brokerage is Licensed under the Real Estate and Business Brokers Act, 2002 (REBBA).
James Ruddy EDITOR
Karen Henderson MANAGING ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Natalia Decius PROJECT MANAGER FULLCONTACTMARKETING.CA
1. | EDITOR’S PAGES Snakes, Teachers’ Fund And PetVet Care Clinics, Jeremy D. Behar And Cirrus And More JAMES RUDDY
3. | INVESTMENT ADVICE
Buffetology: The Antithesis of Wall Street DR. MILAN SOMBORAC
5. | HEALTHCARE
Long Term Care Planning: What Is It And Why Should I Care? KAREN HENDERSON
7. | FEATURE INTERVIEW
Feature Interview: Rick Mares EDITOR
10. | PHILOSOPHY AND THE ANIMAL KINGDOM
I Know A Little About A Lot Of Things... DICK MOODY
12. | FEATURE INTERVIEW
Feature Interview: Dr. Evan Mavromatis MANAGING ASSOCIATE EDITOR
15. | PRACTICE MANAGEMENT
The Process Of Selling A Practice JACKIE JOACHIM
17. | OFFICE LEASE ADVICE
The Dangers Of Missing Your Veterinary Office Lease Expiry Date JEREMY D. BEHAR
19. | PRACTICE MANAGEMENT
Millennials, MPOs And The Veterinary Marketplace DAVID ROURKE
21. | Fun Snake Facts, Snakes And Lyme Disease And Subscription Information
PROFITABLE PRACTICES P R I N G 2 0 1 5
EDITOR’S PAGES
by James Ruddy
Snakes, Teachers’ Fund and PetVet Care Clinics, Jeremy D. Behar And Cirrus And More
This issue of Profitable Practice has two
main focuses. The general public often
has a negative perception of snakes. This
issue features an interview with a vet-
erinarian who specializes in snakes and
has 14 of his own as pets. In the inter-
view, Dr. Evan Mavromatis explains
how he became interested in snakes and
eventually dedicated a large portion of
his practice to their care.
The second theme deals with the impor-tance of pets from different points of view. In previous issues we have reported how pets are having a positive impact on the care of autistic children. In fact, some perceived pets take on a much greater role as service dogs, rescue dogs and police dogs, to name but a few. We interviewed Rick Mares in an earlier issue and update his condition and relationship with his Leader Dog, Gizmo. David Rourke, a regular contributor to Profitable Practice, looks at pets from the point of view of the young and single. He sug-gests for some young people pets fill a void resulting from later marriages or long term (even permanent) single lifestyle choices.
Teachers’ Pension Fund and PetVet Care Centres
The Wall Street Journal in early January of 2015 reported that Catterton, a private-eq-uity firm, sold PetVet Care Centres to On-tario Teachers’ Pension Fund (Teachers’) for approximately $440 million. The sale price is almost 11 times PetVet’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortiza-tion—which reflects a very optimistic appraisal of the investment potential of the pet market.
The favourable appraisal may be explained (in part) because the American Pet Products Association reported that in 2014, Americans spent an estimated $58.51 billion on their pets. More than a quarter of that amount was spent for veterinary services. It is not surpris-ing that Teachers’ (a very highly regarded fund) and other financial institutions are assessing the investment opportunities in the pet care and pet product industries.
Dogs and dentophobia
Dr. Paul A. Weiss, a pediatric dentist in Williamsville, New York, uses Brooke, his therapy dog, to calm his young patients and alleviate fears they may have of their dental appointment. Brooke is present at certain times of the week and is available for hugs and tugs by Dr. Weiss’ patients. Brooke is very well suited for her dental duties, allow-ing herself to be petted and happily accepts her role as a playmate. Dr. Weiss points out there are sterile issues having Brooke in the office only when he is doing procedures that warrant careful attention to cleanliness. Besides alleviating fears, Dr. Weiss’ patients have an additional reason to come to their dental appointments and often schedule their re-calls when Brooke will be in the office.
Welcome to Jeremy D. Behar and Cirrus
Profitable Practice is pleased to welcome Jeremy D. Behar, the President & CEO of the Cirrus Consulting Group as a regular contributor to our magazine. Jeremy’s article provides expert advice on office leasing and is entitled, The Dangers of Missing Your Veteri-nary Office Lease Expiry Date.
More content notes
Friedrich the Austrian, author of Monday Morning Millionaire has revealed himself to be Dr. Milan Somborac, a dentist who practices in Collingwood, Ontario. Profitable Practice will continue to serialize his book in
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Back Issues of Profitable Practice Magazine are available at: profitable-practice.com/ magazine/veterinary
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James Ruddy James Ruddy is the Editor of Profitable Practice Magazine and can be reached at [email protected].
future issues. See his most recent chapter summary on page three. Jackie Joachim provides a realistic analysis of the major role played by practice sales representatives when it comes to selling a veterinary/healthcare practice. Dick Moody imparts a little whimsy and philosophical wisdom about the animals and their kingdom, and what we can learn from them. His article is entitled, I know a little bit about a lot of things… . Karen Henderson outlines and explains in a concise and easy to understand point form, the nature and importance of long term health care planning for everyone.
Letters to the editor
From time to time, we publish letters we receive. Here’s one we enjoyed reading:
Thank you for sending me an edition of Profitable Practice. I am not practicing any longer as I am close to 94… in this stage of my life I am rather more interested in what is new in the LCBO store.
– Dr. Jan Dobrucki
Check out this latest App for pets
PetMatch—There’s An App For That!
Looking for that ideal pet? There’s a new phone app to help you find your perfect match… dog or cat.
PetMatch helps you find dogs or cats to adopt in your area. Just start with a picture! Take or use a picture of a pet you like and PetMatch will find you similar pets in your area that are up for adoption right now. Don’t have a picture? Use THEIR huge sample gallery!
Once you open the app, take a picture, upload from your collection, or use a picture from the PetMatch sample gallery to get started. Behind the scenes, PetMatch uses Superfish’s patented image recognition technology to find similar adopt-able pets in your area (such as PetFinder). PetMatch gives you all the information you need to connect with the adoption agency. Take a “Pelfie” of you and your new pet and post it on our PetMatch Facebook page, Twittter, and Instagram accounts.
The app is from startup Superfish and uses its patented image-recognition technology. It scans your photo, register-ing details like the shape of an animal’s mouth, the distance between its eyes, its coloring and its general size and shape.
Users can share their own photos or ones from the Web, It then performs a similar search on PetFinder, a database with photos of hundreds of thousands of animals up for adoption throughout the United States, and gives you the closest over-all matches, as well as the closest ones in your area.
Of course, it’s not perfect. If the picture you upload shows an animal at an odd angle, is blurry or otherwise differs from typical shots by animal-rescue groups, there’s no telling what it will return for you.
The app also doesn’t necessarily consider the breed of the animal you photograph, if that’s something that’s important to you.
And, of course, we love our animals for reasons other than their appearance. Photos don’t show personality. Or intelli-gence. Or, in special circumstances, megalomaniacal tenden-cies and palpable disdain for underlings.
We tested the app with a photo of Cash, a gray-and-white Scottish Fold cat in Atlanta, and it returned matches of cats
with similar colouring in Jefferson, Georgia; Knoxville, Ten-nessee; Huntsville, Alabama; Charlotte, North Carolina, and other neighboring states.
A few of the cats looked vaguely like Cash, although most did not. But the pool of available cats may grow larger as more pet shelters connect with the database.
The PetMatch app is currently available only on Apple’s iOS.
Bottom Line: There’s an app for everything. Source: CNNTech
Dogs can smell prostate cancer
On May 18, a study presented to the American Urological Association stated that highly trained dogs can detect prostate cancer with 98 per cent accuracy.
Researchers in Italy enrolled 902 participants and divided them into two main groups: 362 men with prostate cancer, ranging from very-low-risk tumours to metastatic disease, and a control group of 540 healthy men and women. All participants provided urine samples.
Two young female German shepherds were trained to rec-ognize prostate-cancer-specific volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the samples.
The dogs were instructed to sit in front of each sample where they detected the prostate cancer VOC. Dog one achieved 100 per cent accuracy in detecting samples from prostate cancer patients and 98 per cent accuracy in eliminating samples that did not come from a prostate cancer patient. Dog two was close, with a 98.6 per cent accuracy in detect-ing prostate cancer and 96.4 per cent accuracy in eliminating those who did not have the disease. Source: Reuters
More on snakes
On page 21, we have provided some interesting snake facts for your clients especially the younger ones. Also we have sourced an article which relates to snakes and the control of Lyme disease.
Things to remember
Readers are reminded to go to the inside back cover of this magazine for subscriber information. We encourage you to become a subscriber if you are not one already, and we hope you will pass the publication onto your colleagues! As always we welcome your comments and suggestions; if you would like to write for the magazine or have a story to tell that would interest our veterinary professional reading audience, please contact: editor@ profitablepracticemagazine.com. If you want to access back issues of the magazine go to http:// profitable-practice.com/magazine/veterinary.
INVESTMENT ADVICE
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Buffettology: The Antithesis Of Wall Street
Editor’s Note: Profitable Practice is pleased to serialize
chapter summaries of Monday Morning Millionaire
previously available online and written under the
pen name Friedrich the Austrian. The author’s
real name is Dr. Milan Somborac, a Collingwood,
Ontario based dentist. He has removed the book’s
availability online, as he believes its investment
advice will be adversely affected if it is in wide
circulation. Profitable Practice will continue to seri-
alize Monday Morning Millionaire in future issues.
Warren Buffett and his partner Charlie Munger base their buying decisions on the techniques of funda-mental analysis as taught by Buffett’s mentor, Benjamin Graham, in his Columbia University course. Anyone trained in fundamental analysis, formally or self-taught, can uncover value, although it can take some time to profit from this knowledge. Fundamental analysis is neither piezoelectricity nor particle physics nor brain surgery. However, no one can predict short-term mar-ket or stock movements. All explanations of short-term stock or market moves like we see in the financial press daily are the essence of uselessness.
by Dr. Milan Somborac
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Buffett’s and Munger’s favourite holding period is “forever.” Nobel Prize laureate in economics Paul Samuelson said that investing should be more like watching paint dry or grass grow. If you want excitement, take $800 and go to Las Vegas. Buffett and Munger understand.
Over its 49 years, Buffett’s and Munger’s company Berkshire Hathaway trailed the S&P 500 only ten times. Buffett and Munger repeatedly predicted that this stellar performance would slow down as the company grew and increasingly took on the characteristics of an index fund that mirrors the market as a whole. And indeed, ending in 2013, the company underperformed the S&P 500 for five years in a row, for the first time.
At the annual Berkshire Hathaway meetings, Buffett and Munger emphatically state that they do not make stock recommendations. Further, both affirm in their speeches and writings that they cannot time markets. There is only one absolute certainty about markets at any time and that is, they will fluctuate, to quote J.P. Morgan. In Monday Morning Mil-lionaire, Chapter 5, The System, shows how to take advantage of that.
What they are doing is neither timing the market nor stock picking even though it can look that way. There are three reasons for that.
The first is that Buffett and Munger are great businessmen. Many (but not all) of the more than 70 great companies that they have bought or bought into are listed on major stock exchanges giving publicity-enjoying Buffett the look of a successful stock picker.
The second is that Berkshire Hathaway pays no dividends. All other things being equal, the value of any company drops by the amount of a dividend payout at each payout date. Another mathematical certainty.
For example, assume a modest two per cent annual dividend that a company does not pay out each year even though it could. The value of a $50.00 per-share stock growing at nine per cent annually (roughly the U.S. market average) over a period of 40 years and not paying that two per cent dividend comes to $1,907.22 per share.
If the company did pay out that modest two per cent annual dividend, the value of the stock would be only $1,570.62 after 40 years. All other things being equal, not paying out dividends will have a significant positive impact on a com-pany’s share value over the course of time. It helps beat the market averages!
And third, Buffett and Munger maintain a significant per-centage of Berkshire holdings in cash, allowing them bargain-basement stock purchases when the inevitable market drops occur. That, too, helps beat the market averages even when cash and near-cash assets earn very little. Now, how difficult is that for any investor to do? Monday Morning Millionaire rec-ommends exactly that; see Chapter 5, The System, point 2.
Both Buffett and Munger are credible and enthusiastic sup-porters of the index-fund method of investing. (Buffett did need some time to accept this approach.) That squarely puts them in the same group with other investment luminaries such as Burton Malkiel, Peter Lynch, and of course the father of the index fund, John Bogle. Eugene Fama, the originator
of the efficient market theory, won the 2013 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for that type of thinking. If pressed ever so slightly, Paul Volcker would certainly add the low-cost index fund to the ATM as a truly useful financial innovation.
If you are not psychologically suited to manage your money, and that is no shame, hire a money manager and be prepared to pay. Two per cent of your assets annually is common. However, let us take a look at that two per cent appropriately. Since managers have nothing to do with the size of the assets that you hand over for management but can only influence positive or negative growth of these assets, they should be paid as a percentage of that growth and not as a percentage of assets under management. Pay for performance is a time-test-ed, open and honest method of paying professionals for their services. Now, let us say that your portfolio growth averages out to ten per cent annually over the course of your retire-ment years. That is both a historically realistic approximation and a nice round figure to use for purposes of demonstra-tion. A two per cent fee on that ten per cent growth in your portfolio works out to 20 per cent! That is the fee for services investors pay–a level unheard of in any other field! Viewed in that light, it is easy to see that do-it-yourself investing pays well. Become a do-it-yourself investor; keep that 20 per cent.
However, regardless of how confident you are as an investor, do get a second opinion from time to time from a fee-only adviser, and avoid those who charge ongoing management fees. Most investors can benefit from paying a few hundred dollars to ask an objective professional a few questions. The money so spent could be a great investment.
Most people do poorly in the markets but the Bottom Line below plus the recommendations in the final chapters of this book show how and why you could do well.
Bottom Line:
1. Constantly quoted prices, low transaction costs, accurate records and absolute liquidity make stock market investing attractive.
2. No one can pick stocks or time markets effectively in the short run.
3. Being the highest level of performance achievable over the long run, the stock market average is also the Mount Everest of stock market investing.
4. Most (but not all) people are cut out to look after their own investments.
LONG TERM HEALTH CARE
Long Term Care Planning: What IsIt And Why Should I Care?
We all take delight in planning for vacations and
holiday celebrations but when it comes to plan-
ning for old age, we literally run the other way.
Aging and death only happen to other people, and
therefore we don’t need to talk about it—at least
not yet. Why is this?
• Canadians have an attitude of entitlement; I am a taxpayer and therefore the government is responsible for caring for me in my old age.
• It won’t happen to me.
• My spouse will look after me.
• The kids will look after me.
• I won’t run out of money.
The reasons we should care about aging are obvious*:
• 1000+ Canadians turn 65 every day and will do so for the next 20 years.
• The chances that a 65-year-old will require long term care at some point are 49 per cent for men and 65 per cent for women.
by Karen Henderson
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Dr. Milan Somboracpractices dentistry in Collingwood, Ontario and is the author of Your Mouth, Your Health . He also serves as the editorial consultant for this magazine. He can be reached toll-free at 1.866.445.0551 or by email at [email protected].
Long Term Care Planner (Step 8)
6 7
• By 2038 over 1,250,000 Canadians will have Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia unless a cure is found before then. Almost 25 per cent of Canadians now have someone with Alzheimer’s disease in their family.
We all need to plan for old age—and not just financially. We need to understand the health care system where we live, decide where we wish to age and live out our lives, and com-municate our wishes to family members.
The Bottom Line: Long term care planning needs to be a part of every financial and/or retirement plan written today.
Here’s how to create your own long term care plan:
Step One: Understand and accept the need to plan. Getting old will happen to you—if you’re lucky.
Step Two: Research and understand the health care system, care costs and settings/services where you plan to live as you age.
Step Three: Monitor/care for your own health. Be aware of what diseases run in your family, particularly Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia.
Step Four: Be prepared for a medical emergency at any time; if you have to go to hospital, who could advocate for you?
Step Five: Talk with your family about what you want as you age; hold a family meeting and make sure all family members are aware of your plans. Know who you can count on for care and support, both from your family and from health care professionals.
Step Six: Ensure you have a retirement/financial plan that includes financial provision for long term care.
Step Seven: Establish clear legal directions. Complete a Will, Powers of Attorney and make copies available to those who need them.
Step Eight: Gather all critical personal, health, legal and financial information and record/store it in one place for easy access.
Step Nine: Make sure you ask yourself the ‘what ifs’— what if I become a caregiver for a parent or spouse? What if I become too ill to work?
Step Ten: Ensure your home remains a good fit as you age; explore the role of home modifications and assistive devices.
Creating a care plan will take time and effort, but once it is completed, you will have accomplished two very important goals:
1. You will have added the missing piece to your financial/retirement plan.
2. You will have removed a huge burden from your family; over time you all will be thankful that you took the initia-tive to plan ahead.
As the saying goes: Just do it!
*Sources
• Sun Life Global Investments
• MoneySense magazine
• Alzheimer Society of Canada
Karen Henderson Karen Henderson, a dementia caregiver for 14 years, is the Founder/CEO of the Long Term Care Planning Network, Canada’s national resource centre for aging and long term care planning, education and insurance. She is a well-known family consultant, speaker, writer, media commentator, publisher and educator who has been published in lead-ing geriatric journals in Canada. She is the author of several unique resources to guide Canadians through long term care planning. You can reach Karen through her email [email protected] or by visiting www.ltcplanningnetwork.com
FEATURE INTERVIEW
Feature Interview: Rick MaresWith Editor
Editor’s Notes
Readers may recall an interview printed in the
Spring 2014 issue of Profitable Practice with Rick
Mares. Rick was diagnosed with Retinitis Pig-
mentosa (RP), the most common of a group of
hereditary progressive retinal degenerations or dys-
trophies. He is sight-impaired but can distinguish
between light and dark and has some peripheral
vision. There are many variations of RP and about
75,000 Americans have this sight-impairment. Rick
qualified to receive a Leader Dog to assist him.
Leader Dog Programs are offered at the Rochester
Hills, Michigan Campus to people who are blind,
visually impaired or deaf-blind. The programs
are free of charge and include travel and lodging
expenses for the North American recipients of
these programs. The programs are funded by the
generous donations of individuals, foundations,
community service clubs such as Lions Clubs and
corporate support.
For more information go to: [email protected] or call 888.777.5332.
Has there been any change in your vision since we spoke a year ago?
I had cataract surgery to remove pressure on my left eye but my vision has not changed. It is likely to get worse in next four to five years.
How is Gizmo doing since a year ago?
He is 10½ years old now and in very good health. It is normal for a Leader Dog to be with an owner for seven to nine years or 3000 days. We’ve already passed that stage.
He has the same allergies that were diagnosed through blood tests much earlier. They include seven kinds of grasses, rice, corn, chicken, barley, oats, beef and peanut butter.
He eats a dry dog food of venison and sweet potato and gets his share of dog biscuits. I give him predni-sone for his allergies, watch his diet and exercise him
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regularly. We walk everyday, often with my friend Jim Olsen who carved maple walking sticks for the two of us. The one he carved for me has a very realistic false eye embedded in the wood—kind of a ‘seeing eye cane’!
I hope Gizmo and I have a few more years together.
How would you describe Gizmo?
He is very loyal and trustworthy. He knows that I have a sight-impairment and he is there to assist me. Sometimes he gets a little too much under my foot, but I would be lost without him.
He is very excited to meet people just like any other pet. Once he is in his working harness his training kicks in and he is very focused and knows he has work to do.
How has your relationship with Gizmo changed over the years?
It has improved. I like to use voice commands the most and he responds very well. I do not like to use leash corrections and of course there is no hitting or any form of physical cor-rection. Gizmo often listens to Marci, my wife, better than he does to me.
Please describe the relationship you and Gizmo have with a veterinarian in your hometown.
Gizmo and I have a great relationship with Dr. Bill Patterson of the Patterson Veterinary Clinic at home in Clinton Twp, Michigan. He has treated all three of my Leader Dogs since 1989. I can call him at any time both at his office or at home.
Recently, Gizmo developed a hematoma on his left earflap and is presently receiving laser treatments from another very caring veterinarian, Dr. Lee Ann McGill, at the Magnolia By The Gulf clinic.
Please elaborate on the volunteer work you do with Leader Dogs and the sight-impaired.
Here in Alabama, I am involved in the Dinner in the Dark program to raise money for Leader Dogs for the sight-impaired and regularly speak to snowbirds where we stay in Gulf Shores and to Lions Club members in the area. At home, I promote and inform people about the Leader Dog Program from which I graduated in1989. Also I speak to students in the local schools, whenever I am invited. The purpose of all this is to educate people about sight-impair-ment and to raise money and awareness for the Leader Dog Program.
Any final thoughts for our readers about sight-impaired people or Leader Dogs like Gizmo.
I feel that there is nothing I am not able to do or at least try to do. I have worked as a teacher, a salesman and as men-tioned I now do volunteer work. With the help of my wife Marci and my friends like Jim Olsen and of course, Gizmo, I have mobility and I am able to accomplish things. I am a senior citizen and I am still willing and able to work. Younger people with RP are able to commute and work with the help of modified computers, mobile GPS devices and work place strategies that allow them to be very productive.
Gizmo gives me independence, freedom and empowerment. He allows me to continue to do what I want to do everyday and hopefully, for a long to come.
Bottom Line: This interview features a sight-impaired man who works diligently to inform the public about the nature and lifestyle of the sight-impaired and the close working relationship he has with his Leader Dog.
Seeing eye cane
Gizmo with ball out of harnessSign on Gizmo’s harness
Rick’s wife, Marci at Gulf Shores, Alabama
Rick with Gizmo in harness and his friend Jim Olsen
Rick MaresRick Mares is a retired schoolteacher and salesman. His volunteer work allows him to educate the sighted and the sight-im-paired alike. He can be reached at [email protected] or at 586.465.6365.
Guide DogTrainingSince 1939, Leader Dog has been providing highly-trained, friendly, qualified guide dogs to adults who are legally blind, in reasonable health, have basic orientation and ability skills, are at least 16 years old and are able to use and care for a dog in the intended manner. Every effort is made to accommo-date individuals with health restrictions or additional impairments.
The application process, which normally takes 30 to 60 days, consists of a writ-ten application with sections for personal references and medical information. A short video demonstrating the applicant’s independent travel skills within their home area is also required. An in-home visit from a Leader Dog field representative may be needed. Assignment to a class will typically be within three months of acceptance into the program.
Upon arrival at Leader Dog, clients imme-diately begin learning how to work with a guide dog including commands, making corrections, proper praise and physically car-ing for their dog. On day two, clients are matched with a trained dog with consider-ation given to living environment, physical size and stamina, travel pace and life style.
Source: Leader Dog: Public Information Document
1110
PHILOSOPHY AND THE ANIMAL KINGDOM
dictionary—a clowder is a bunch of cats.) Just thinking about this impossible job makes us laugh. And yet sheep, cows, horses and ducks—to name only a few—are quite content to be driven and often led astray. Cats live in our homes as if they were the landlords and we are the ten-ants. Not only will they not be herded, they seldom come when called. They don’t do chores around the house unless you count catching mice as a job—and they don’t even do that unless they want to. They use your best furniture as a scratching post and will often only display affection when it’s time for their lunch. In short, since they began living with Egyptians 4,000 years ago, we have never been able to teach a cat who is boss! Why is that?
Dogs are another matter altogether. In a bunch they are called a kennel and if you have made them your friends you don’t have to herd them because they will follow you anywhere. And they aren’t only friendly at meal time. They know how to herd other animals, they can be taught to lead blind people, and “court dogs” can settle your nerves in a meeting with a judge. In the north they pull sleighs and no matter where they live, they stay awake all night to guard your house against thieves and villains. Dogs have been known to follow their masters to their graves and to stay there until they are taken away with broken hearts. Yet some people like cats more than dogs! Why is that?
While reptiles are not everyone’s cup of tea they are best friends to a lot of folks. Although one wrong move can put the owner in the hospital or mortuary, snakes, alligators, scorpions and other poisonous pets are housed in comfort and fed exotic diets. For the most part they are sedentary and the real excitement comes at feeding time when the chances of getting stung, bitten, squeezed or swallowed are greatest. I think pride of ownership would increase if these guests performed chores around the house but I’ve never heard of a domesticated alligator trained to fetch it’s owner’s slippers, or a snake that has been taught to lick stamps. Why is that?
But a friend of mine did train a stable of racing turtles. In a much publicized event in the town where he lived, he de-fined a huge circular track. Before a cheering crowd in May, with numbers on their shells, the “racers” were released from the starting gate. The first turtle found outside the circle by an eager neighbourhood watch was declared “Winner” but it often took the entire summer before the “Place” and “Show” entries were posted on the tote board. The commu-nity of bettors was enthusiastic but my friend’s earnings as a turtle racing mogul didn’t pay off his mortgage.
There is an e-mail clip circulating with the subject mat-ter shown as BLT. I was excited when I saw that because I thought it was a new recipe for a bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich. But it proved to be a beautiful lesson in tolerance for all of us. This clip displays photographs of a bear, a lion and a tiger that, against all our concepts of their expected violent behaviour, are the best of pals. They have been in an enclosure in complete harmony for 13 years and they show signs of real distress when they are separated. They play together and show no possessive aggression at meal time. It is a touching and moving friendship story.
I have one last question. If three ‘dumb animals’ from dif-ferent species, all known to be wild and dangerous to each other, can live in perfect harmony, why can’t we humans learn that marvellous lesson in civility? Although man has visited the moon and landed a machine on a meteorite trav-elling at the speed of light, politicians representing us as the “master race” can’t resolve the serious issues that trouble us because of their toxic political partisanship. Why is that?
Bottom Line: This interesting and nostalgic vignette about the animal kingdom poses a question for everyone, not just veterinarians, to consider.
I Know A Little About A Lot Of Things...
In 1946, the then famous singer Peggy Lee wrote
an enduring song that was recently re-recorded by
Diana Krall. The lyrics - “I know a little bit about
a lot of things, but I don’t know enough about
you!” could be adopted as a motto by veterinari-
ans around the world. I say this because in spite of
the continuing innovations in surgical techniques
and the great advances in the treatment and care
of our friends in the animal kingdom, the medical
profession “will never know enough” about what
the world’s mysterious creatures comprehend, and
what we can learn from them.
Many years ago I had a friend who would ask long rambling questions that I never could answer. Then, he would end these queries by asking— “Why is that?” In the hope that someone can clarify a little bit about a lot of things I don’t know, I’m going to ask that same question in the notes below.
Can someone explain why we haven’t discovered how to herd a clowder of cats? (You can look it up in the
by Dick Moody
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Dick Moody Dick Moody is a retired Senior Vice Presi-dent of Standard Broadcasting Corpora-tion and President of Standard Broadcast Sales. He regularly contributes to Profitable Practice and can be reached through the editor of this magazine.
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FEATURE INTERVIEW
course in veterinary school was to concentrate on the creepy crawleys, the animals others did not want.
Tell us about The Links and what makes you special/different.
The practice was founded by my partner’s father, Dr. Dean Axelson in 1973. He was considered one of the pioneers of avian and exotic animal medicine in Canada since his graduation from the Ontario Veterinary College in 1960. He wrote extensively on veterinary subjects, authored a chapter in a veterinary textbook on Avian Dermatology and was the author of “So You Want A Pet Bird” (1981). He received the OVMA Golden Life Membership Award 2004, which recog-nizes individuals who have served the veterinary profession in an extraordinary manner. He retired from full time veterinary practice in 1997. As a result of his many years in practice, plus the years his colleagues have contributed, our practice has close to 100 years of experience with exotics.
What is categorized as an exotic?
Anything that is not a dog or cat, or farm production animal.
What is the most common problem you run into?
Nutritional issues. When you are talking dogs and cats, obesity is usually the problem. When you are talking exotics, it’s usually malnutrition. That is because some owners don’t understand the needs of the pet they choose. People think, “This pet looks cool”, but they buy it without educating themselves about its needs. Reptiles are particularly vulner-able, since it’s not only food but also the environment that is so critical. Generally, snakes are the exception to this as they eat a well-balanced meal in the form of a whole rodent, thus minimizing the needs for special supplementation and lighting.
Personally I have a great fear of snakes; what type of person chooses a snake as a pet?
In my opinion, people who own reptiles are a little exotic themselves, a little bit different. I can say that honestly be-cause I have about 14 reptiles myself, so I include myself as being a little bit weird. I think there are two groups of people who go for exotics: Those who think the animals are cool but know nothing about them, and those who are really into exotics and very knowledgeable about their needs.
What is the most interesting aspect of your work?
I think it’s just the variety… you never quite know what’s going to come through the door. For example, today I had a hawk, a parrot, a rabbit, a lizard and an iguana. In addition, we have the chance to interact with a lot of current and future colleagues as we get a lot of students; this week we have had a student from Melbourne, Australia. Lastly, veterinary medi-cine has really progressed in the last few years. Dogs and cats have been pretty well mapped, but with exotics, particularly with reptiles, things are still in the early stages. Things are get-ter better but there is still a lot more problem solving in this area. There is as a result a lot of frustration, but also a lot of reward when you find the answer.
Feature Interview: Dr. Evan Mavromatis
The Links Road Animal & Bird Clinic in Toronto
offers care for all pets; their special interest and
expertise is focused on birds and exotic animals,
which represent approximately 90 per cent of their
caseload. They also volunteer their expertise and
surgical services for The Owl Foundation. Their
list of exotic patients includes parrots and caged
birds, rabbits, ferrets, chinchillas, reptiles including
snakes, lizards, turtles, tortoises, amphibians, rodents
including hamsters, gerbils, rats, degus, mice, pocket
pets, hedgehogs and sugar gliders.
We spoke with Dr. Evan Mavromatis, an exotic animal veterinarian.
Where did you go to school?
I attended the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph and graduated in 1999. While in university, I worked for the Toronto Zoo for five years during the summers. I learned early on how to read animals, to understand what they are trying to tell you.
What are your professional affiliations?
I am a member of the Ontario Veterinary Medical As-sociation, Association of Avian Veterinarians, Association of Exotic Mammal Veterinarians, Association of Reptil-ian and Amphibian Veterinarians, Association of Sugar Glider Veterinarians and the College of Veterinarians of Ontario.
Are you a herpetologist?
No. A herpetologist is a person who is a scientist and has studied in the field of reptiles and amphibians. I am a veterinarian who works with reptiles and amphibians. I don’t have a master’s degree in herpetology.
What drew you to your specialty?
Exotics have always been something I have been interested in. I am for the underdog, anything that others may not like, I love. My dad was a hunter, so I got exposed to a lot of different kinds of animals. On the other hand, my mother was petrified of animals, so growing up we never had any dogs or cats; anything I ever had was in a cage or an aquarium. So the logical
with Managing Associate Editor
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Ball python morph
Corn snake
Dr. Mavromatis with one of his pet snakes
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by Jackie Joachim
The Process Of Selling A Practice
PRACTICE MANAGEMENTHave you ever worked with venomous species?
Occasionally. These animals are not legal in Toronto without proper documentation, so those who do own them are usu-ally knowledgeable and very keen owners. There are certain precautions we put in place when such an animal comes into the clinic, but I am not opposed to seeing these animals.
I am curious; how do snakes poop?
Pretty much the same way as everybody else! They have a vent, as opposed to an anus; they pass a mix of fecal/uric matter about once a week or depending on how often they are fed.
How do you think the perception of snakes and other exotics has changed with the public over the past few years?
Other than snakes, the general attitude is positive, but snakes have always had a pretty bad rap, dating back to historic refer-ences, such as those in the Bible. Common perception is that snakes are slimy, evil, vindictive and nasty. But they are not these things. To be honest, they are not smart enough to be anything more than they are. They are just instinctive animals; they do things that need to be done and that’s it.
Do you think the interest in exotics is growing or will grow?
Yes, I think so, especially in big cities.
An exotic pet can be smaller, and depending on the species and if researched properly, potentially easier to look after. Allergies play a role as well. Exotics are not for everyone. If there is one thing I stress over and over, do your research ahead of time. See if a particular animal fits into your life. They need to play by their rules, not yours.
What has changed the most for you over your career?
I think the field has changed a lot. The recent economic cli-mate has changed how people spend their money and what they spend their money on. Our clients are very well edu-cated and compliant, but we do see people who are holding on to their money and not spending on preventive medicine. It’s also hard to be a master of all trades. I may be not up on the latest with dogs and cats, but when it comes to exotics, I see these problems every day.
Let’s turn it over to you; please tell us a bit about yourself.
As you indicated earlier, I have always been interested in animals, strangely enough because of my dad.
Your job is to heal and save animals; did you have a problem with your dad being a hunter?
No I do not. I am not a hunter myself, but I understand the role of hunting in the greater scheme of things. Hunting is not necessarily a bad thing if it’s done correctly. I feel the Canadian government is very good at regulating hunting; it’s not a poaching situation but rather an animal control situation.
Clearly you love your exotics; what about other hobbies or interests?
I love all outdoor activities; I love sports… I play hockey and other physical sports. I love to cook and I love to eat, coming from a southern European background!
What advice do you have for those just starting out who may wish to specialize in exotics?
Before you make a decision, get some hands on experience, whether it’s volunteering or through a school. This specialty is not for everyone; my experience tells me that there are vet-erinarians who can create things as they go along, and others who need more structure. There is a lot of improvisation that goes along with exotics because we are dealing with size re-strictions, medication restrictions and equipment restrictions. For example, you have a budgie that comes in with a broken leg. They don’t make pins that are small enough for this situ-ation, so you have to be creative and flexible enough to find your own solution.
How much do you use Google for research?
I do use Google, especially for reptile issues. You need to be critical and know exactly what you want… it’s easy to find information but it’s a matter of: Are you hearing the same things from different sources?
Is there anything else you would like to add to our chat?
Once again I wish to stress that people do the appropriate research before purchasing/adopting an exotic. Too often things do not work out well because new animal owners are not well enough prepared.
Finally, when you look at your practice from a holistic prospective, do you see more well cared for exotics or more poorly cared for exotics?
As time goes on, I see more well cared for exotics but it certainly depends on the species. For example, we work with a lot of the larger pet stores sell birds; the birds are getting better because the breeders are better and the birds are being fed more appropriately. Pet stores are also getting better at edu-cating buyers in this area. Reptile owners are becoming more educated about diet and the balance required in a particular diet. Misinformation continues, but things are improving.
Bottom Line: This interview features a veterinarian who specializes in caring for exotic pets, especially snakes.
From my personal experience, I have seen the
amount of work required by our sales representa-
tives to bring a practice from the point of listing
to the point of the transaction closing.
In many cases, I would expect that the physical time spent on a file is about 6 months to a year and ap-proximately 100 hours. Here are the steps involved in a typical practice sale.
Listing of a practice: When a seller decides to take this step, it is not unreasonable for our sales represen-tative to spend 8-10 hours consulting on this aspect. Time is spent discussing issues such as deadlines, de-termining asking price, how much the client wants to walk away with, the type of buyer the client wants to sell to, structure of sale, general questions from the cli-ent on things like handling staff, informing clients, and anything else that is of general concern. We need to take time to understand what is important to the client, both financially and emotionally. After all of these is-sues have been settled, the next step is the creation of a practice profile. Sales representatives create an ad based on their experience with the seller, the key factors im-portant to vendor as well as knowledge of the practice. This profile has key information about the practice that is posted on a website and distributed to a network of hundreds or more doctors. Sales representatives are very cognizant of confidentiality and ensure there is nothing personal into this profile. The profile also serves as an PR
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Dr. Evan Mavromatis Dr. Evan Mavromatis attended the University of Guelph where he completed a B.Sc. prior to being admitted into the Ontario Veterinary College. Evan graduated from OVC in 1999, joining The Links Road Animal & Bird Clinic that same year. He has always had a special interest in exotic animals, having worked at the Toronto Zoo through most of his university career, as well as having owned many of the species to which he now dedicates his care. Evan has appeared in print media and on local television. He also sits on the Animal Care Committee at the Ontario Science Centre. You can reach Dr. Mavromatis through The Links web site: thelinksroadanimalclinic.com
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excellent tool when sending preliminary information to pro-spective buyers over and above the initial website description.
Preparing strategy for sale: This is time a sales representative spends determining with the client the best course of action in order to achieve a sale. The sales representative with the client determines when to show the practice, how to adver-tise, and whether an open house should be held. Dates are set for key events such as deadlines for offers, period of time for vendor to review and when successful party will be notified.
Sales process: This step usually takes a lot of work and time. Sales representatives spend long hours discussing the practice with prospective buyers. Buyers are unique and therefore need help in seeing how they will make the practice work for them. Buyers can be either owners or investors. Certain investors may want the seller to remain, others may not care. These are all conversations that must be had by the sales representative. Of these prospective buyers, the serious ones are then engaged in the offer. They will submit an offer that is always reviewed in depth by the sales representative. The sales representative will then present it to the vendor and pro-vide insight, advice and recommendations. Reviewing offers and buyers is not something that happens quickly. It is not unreasonable for a sales representative to initially spend 3+ hours with each buyer. Part of this process will also include discussions with an accountant, lawyer and other advisors. A key component of this process is for the sales representa-tive to fundamentally bring two parties together to reach an amicable solution.
Prior to coming to ROI Corporation Brokerage, I thought selling a practice was easy. We all hear about the statistics of there being more buyers than sellers. A year later, after ex-periencing these transactions first hand, I feel proud to be in the company of our 19 sales representatives who really work diligently to ensure a vendor sells with dignity and profitably. I have had the privilege of either speaking to or being copied on emails from vendors who expressed their gratitude for our support during a stressful period in their lives.
Once offer accepted: All offers are subject to a period of due diligence. Sales representatives spend a lot of time working with the buyer to help review information available that will support their original decision to place an offer. A due diligence period is typically two to four weeks and sales representatives are very available and engaged in this pe-riod, often assisting with the due diligence process itself such as a chart audit and/or equipment inspection and working with lenders to ensure that they receive the information they require and that they have an understanding of the Financials in order for the buyer to receive approval of financing. When all conditions are waived and an offer is accepted, the sales representative continues to work diligently to ensure dead-lines are met. Any information required for financing, for the landlord or advisors is provided by the sales representative. The sales representative also works with the seller to deter-mine how to handle the transition, inform staff and for the vendor to exit graciously. The sales representative will assist the purchaser with a letter to patients informing them of the change of ownership of the practice, as required.
Post sale: Closing day can sometimes be stressful with last minute requests from lawyer, banker etc. Sales representatives must handle these to ensure deadlines are met. Even when funds have been exchanged, the sales represenatives’ work is still not finished. The sales representative makes him/herself available to help the vendor wrap up lose ends with staff, help the new buyer transition into practice and is generally avail-able for questions etc. that may arise in the next 30 days.
The amount of effort, strategy and support a sales representa-tive gives to the seller and to buyers is far more than many people realize. Selling a practice does look easy. But even in a hot market like Vancouver, Calgary or Toronto, there is a lot of work behind the scenes that sales representative do that people are unaware. The commission charged by ROI is very reasonable especially if we actually factor all the hours spent by our sales representatives to accomplish the ultimate goal allowing a seller to exit with dignity and pride.
Bottom Line: This article by the COO of a major practice sales brokerage with a healthcare and financial background describes the important role played by professional practice sales representatives in the selling and buying of a veterinary practice.
Jackie Joachim Jackie Joachim is the Chief Operating Officer for ROI Corporation Brokerage. Jackie has been part of the healthcare industry for the past 25 years. She has worked with hundreds of practitioners across Canada helping them realize their financial and practice goals.
by Jeremy D. Behar
The Dangers Of Missing Your Veterinary Office Lease Expiry Date
OFFICE LEASE ADVICE
Have you ever considered what happens if you
miss your veterinary office lease renewal deadline
or expiry date? Timing is crucial, and letting your
lease expire without a proper renewal plan can
lead to a significantly negative financial hit to your
occupancy costs, and to the overall value of your
veterinary practice.
Critical dates to be aware of in your veteri-nary office lease
Expiration date
The expiration date is a critical date to be aware of in your lease agreement. Being mindful of this date with the ability to negotiate your lease terms far in advance of its expiry will work to your advantage. The length of most lease terms is typically five or ten years.
“Option to extend” expiration date
The “option to extend” or “renewal” expiration date is the last day you can exercise your option to extend the office lease term. Animal health professionals benefit from negotiating options into their leases because it provides flexibility for their practices in the future.
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Jackie and her dog Zooey
1918
Landlords view “options” as the sole benefit of the tenant, and therefore often place limitations as to when they can be used with deadlines.
Why you should never miss your renewal or expiry date
Month to month tenancy
If you accidentally miss your veterinary office lease expiry date, you become a month-to-month or “overholding” ten-ant. This means that you’ve lost one of the most important protections that an office lease agreement offers any practice: long-term security in your practice location. The last thing you want is to be relocated from your current practice, be-ing forced to rebuild it elsewhere, incurring substantial costs along the way to move.
At this point, technically speaking, both you and the land-lord have the right to terminate the lease by providing only 30 days’ advanced written notice to the other party. Imagine getting notice that your landlord has terminated the lease, is kicking you out of the building, and you have only 30 days to relocate? This is a harsh reality that thousands of animal health professionals face every year.
Your monthly rent, doubled!
Allowing your lease to expire without a pre-planned renego-tiation or renewal strategy may lead to a significantly negative financial hit. Many lease agreements state that as soon as you go past your expiry date, the landlord has the right to charge you twice the normal monthly rent for each month past the expiry date. That rental hike is enough to put any doctor out of business. We advise you to check the overholding clause in your lease as soon as possible to ensure that you’re aware of what your penalty rent will be.
How to avoid these costly leasing mistakes?
Never miss an expiry or renewal date again! Review your lease and identify your expiry date and option to renew deadline. If you have 24 months or less remaining on your veterinary office lease, begin to prepare your lease negotia-tion strategy now, leveraging the remaining time you have left to structure your lease properly.
Your landlord knows very little about the business of animal health, but what they do know is that the closer they get you to the end of your term, the less time and leverage you have to negotiate a good deal with your landlord. Achieving a good lease with fair and affordable financial terms requires extensive research, preparation, and a strong negotiation strategy, so don’t wait, be proactive, and track your office lease dates!
Questions about your office lease? Contact a Cirrus team member for a complimentary consultation by calling 1.800.459.3413 or emailing [email protected].
Bottom Line: This article contains pertinent information on office leases and their expiration dates.
Jeremy D. Behar Jeremy D. Behar, President & CEO | Cirrus Consulting Group. With over 100 years of combined experience, Cirrus Consulting Group is the preeminent leader in healthcare office lease negotiations and commercial real estate in North America. Since founding Cirrus Consulting Group in 1994, Jeremy Behar has expanded the company from i ts sole focus on office lease negotiation services to a broad line, world-class healthcare consult-ing organization. [email protected] | 1.800.459.3413 | www.cirrusconsultinggroup.com
by David Rourke
Millennials, MPOs And The Veterinary Marketplace
PRACTICE MANAGEMENT
There is a battle between the generations going
on today and while each generation likes to think
that they are part of some special phenomenon,
the reality is that shifting demographics is a reality
in our society and a central part of its evolution.
Today we are dealing with the over-stimulated, unfo-cused Millennial generation that are endlessly checking their Facebook feeds or constantly texting their friends with no care for proper grammar. Indeed, they have invented a language of their own. Why call someone when you can text with just a few letters, then get right back to tweeting?
Being at the leading edge of the Millennial generation I have the benefit of being able to be critical of both my own generation and those that precede me— kind of a judgmental grey area.
Of course, the disdain that everybody’s favourite generation, the Baby-Boomers have for the Millennials is really not much different than how their parents, The Greatest Generation, felt about them when Boomers were growing out their hair and driving their Volkswagens to those wild and crazy rock concerts. PR
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Fun Snake Facts ForYour Clients
Snakes AndLyme Disease
Generational differences present an ongoing challenge to businesses and force them to constantly adapt and respond to the demographic differences and changes. As I look at the veterinarian industry today I see an interesting develop-ment that many readers of this article are well aware of and I’m sure they are wondering how to respond to—namely, the Millennial Pet Owner (MPO).
I know these people exist in great numbers because my Facebook feed is full of them. They post pictures of their pets, they tell stories about them, ask for advice on how to care for them and they create their own accounts for them. Very importantly, they ask for recommendations on which veteri-narian they should visit. At 32, I’m starting to see more and more baby pictures coming up on my phone but they are still heavily outnumbered by the never-ending pet photos.
Now that we know these owners exist, we have to ask the question: Why do we need to care about a group of 20 + something pet owners? I would strongly suggest that anyone planning to open a veterinary clinic over the next 20 years should not only care about, but also prepare for the needs of the MPO.
The first thing to understand is the motivation of the MPO. While a Boomer’s early life goals were typically to get mar-ried, buy a house, have kids and then buy a pet by their early 30s, Millennials are working on a different timeline. As evidenced by many reports, they are doing this all five to ten years later in life. This results in a void in their lives that they are overwhelmingly choosing to fill with pet ownership before they reach any other life milestone. For these own-ers their pet is not “the family pet”—it is in fact their family. As such they are treating these pets as if they were in fact their kids and are willing to spend significant dollars on both health care and non-essential services and products for their pets.
Next we will look at the spending habits of the MPO. While they have been unfairly labeled as the Entitled Generation they do have a different perspective on what expenses would be classified as non-discretionary. They are willing to spend more on products and services that they feel provide better quality, improved health or contribute to sustainability. How-ever, these purchasing decisions are rarely made impulsively. At a time when an overwhelming amount of information is available at our fingertips, Millennials are experts in research-ing all sources before opening their wallets.
Lastly we have to consider technology. I’m going to avoid the marketing aspect here and focus on how to interact with Millennials. It is no secret that we love and live on our smart-phones. We generally view phone calls as a nuisance and only use paper calendars as a statement of individuality as opposed to function. Finding ways to shift your communications with this group to email and text will not only help you do more business with them but also make it much easier.
Here is why this is important to all practice owners. For the last 30 years the focus has been on catering to the habits of the Boomers. This still works today because they are still the largest cohort of people with the most amount of spending power. However, the shift is just around the corner and once it happens, the speed at which things will change will only accelerate. We have reached the point where every year more
and more Boomers are leaving the workforce while Millen-nials are entering that same workplace and will continue to do so for the next 15 years. The gap will continue to grow and it is expected that within the next four years Millenni-als will hold more spending power as a group than Boomers. This is a powerful force, and how practice owners and all business owners react to it will impact their future success.
On the bright side we are a generation of hardworking, empathetic and socially conscious individuals when we put down our phones—we just take a few more years to grow up.
Bottom Line: A personalized analysis of the impact Millennials will have on the pet and veterinarian markeplace.
David Rourke David Rourke is a practice sales representative at ROI Corporation Brokerage and is a regular contributor to Profitable Practice . He can be reached at [email protected] or 647.519.5775.
Here are some fun snake facts veterinarians can
share with their clients especially, kids.
• Snakes are carnivores (meat eaters).
• Snakes don’t have eyelids.
• Snakes can’t bite food so have to swallow it whole.
• Snakes have flexible jaws which allow them to eat prey bigger than their head!
• Snakes are found on every continent of the world except Antarctica.
• Snakes have internal ears but not external ones.
• Snakes used in snake charming performances respond to movement, not sound.
• There are around 3000 different species of snake.
• Snakes have a unique anatomy which allows them to swallow and digest large prey.
• Snakes are covered in scales.
• Snakeskin is smooth and dry.
• Snakes shed their skin a number of times a year in a process that usually lasts a few days.
• Some species of snake, such as cobras and black mambas, use venom to hunt and kill their prey.
Read more venomous snake facts.
• Snakes smell with their tongue.
• Pythons kill their prey by tightly wrapping around it and suffocating it in a process called constriction.
• Some sea snakes can breathe partially through their skin, allowing for longer dives underwater.
• Anacondas are large, non-venomous snakes found in South America that can reach over 5 m (16 ft) in length.
• Python reticulates can grow over 8.7 m (28 ft) in length and are considered the longest snakes in the world.
Source: www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts.html
Jason Bittel’s article entitled, What are snakes good for? Fighting Lyme disease, points out that mice and other small rodents are carriers of Lyme disease. Snakes in the wild commonly eat these creatures and in doing so prevent the spread of this potentially very harmful disease. For complete article details go to:
www.huffingtonpost.com/onearth/what-are-snakes-good-
for_b_3768439.html_
