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Let's look at the modern cat owner. We know that the percentage of single people living alone has risen dramatically in recent years and that keeping a cat is a far easier proposition, for many people, than keeping a dog. For all these people, the cat is both a companion and a source of stability in their lives. Cat owners have a different relationship with their pets from many dog owners and the style of interaction is different too as having a cat gives them the freedom to come and go without the ties that dog ownership demands.

Quantitative data cannot easily demonstrate this but there is new qualitative data which clearly shows how cat owners are seeking to interact with their vet practice. In a recent survey of >1000 cat owners, the results showed that there were significant patterns in behaviour with 24 per cent of cat owners preferring to choose a practice which has an up-to-date website and a whopping 21per cent wanting a practice that offers on-line booking for appointments.1

There are so many ways in which instant and shared communication has become an everyday part of our lives and it is surprising that so few veterinary practices adopt this technology to keep in touch with and build relationships with their clients. International Cat Care/ISFM has launched the Cat Friendly Clinic programme to demonstrate how well cat owners are likely to respond to communication from your practice.2

In the Bayer pet owner study, the results showed that more than 15per cent of cat owners wanted their vets to consider their lifestyle when offering advice about their cats. I'm not sure that we should be surprised by that statistic as it completely concurs with modern day consumers wanting to be treated as individuals and for the agencies with whom they interact being sufficiently interested in them to know and record these details. Of course, there are issues of confidentiality and data protection but within limits, the careful use of information, where given freely, can enhance the relationship and bind the pet owner to the practice.

Not surprisingly, more than 20per cent of those surveyed said that it was important to them that their vet showed an interest in their pet's personality and character and then took that into account when making healthcare recommendations. You might be surprised to know how few cat owners were able to get the prescribed medications into their cats. In reality, this left them feeling guilty that they had failed their pet cat at a time when veterinary help was really needed, embarrassed that they had failed to do what was expected of them and angry that they now had an empty wallet, a drawer full of tablets and a cat that was still sick. No prizes for guessing whom the consumer blames in this situation!

This leads to another, really interesting finding from the research in which 18per cent wanted their vet to be more than just a paid advisor. What this group said they really wanted was for the vet to be a healthcare partner in the management of their cats' lives and to be fully involved in decisions made about their cats. It would have been interesting to learn how many of this group found that their vet was willing to participate in this way – perhaps Bayer might extend the research to investigate this further?

Should we be surprised that almost 70 per cent were seeking information on-line whilst sharing experiences with and seeking information from other cat owners? It is clear that the profession is missing an opportunity when 16per cent of this group readily admit to first turning to the Web to find out what is wrong with their cat.

Today's cat owner really is different; different from the ways in which cat owners used to operate and different from dog owners in many ways. Cat owners readily admit that they can be a bit obsessive. Almost 30per cent really enjoy watching funny cat videos on YouTube and 5per cent regularly participate in on-line forums or groups related to cats and 8per cent admit their cat regularly appears in their social media updates.

We really are missing a trick if we fail to pick up on this so let me leave you with two connected facts: fewer than 27per cent of cat owners worm their cats even as frequently as every three months but 43per cent of cat owners would prefer to source their cat's worming treatment from their vet, given the opportunity. Here is a real business opportunity to develop a strong and lasting relationship with a group of people who are waiting for us to do so. How open do you think they will be to you making contact with them on-line and offering something they already want?
A fifth of them have already posted pictures of their cats on-line so they won't be hard to find!
  1. Survey of 1000 UK cat owners, conducted by OnePoll in March 2014 on behalf of Bayer Animal Health
  2. www.catfriendlyclinic.org
Ross Tiffin, strategy and business development adviser for International Cat Care