Picture this: It’s Monday morning, the phones are ringing nonstop, and a longtime client squeezes in a quick tech appointment between school drop-off and a meeting. Their dog seems happy and healthy, but when your team reviews the record, you notice a missed heartworm refill, flea and tick coverage that ended months ago, and a booster that was due last quarter. The client looks genuinely surprised. “I thought they were covered,” they say. “We’ve just been so busy.”

This scenario is all too familiar. Most pet owners care deeply about their pets, but prevention often falls victim to busy schedules. It’s easy to agree to a care plan in the exam room, but once life takes over, due dates are forgotten, and gaps in care add up.

The consequences of these lapses are twofold. From a patient care perspective, missed vaccines and preventives increase the risk of avoidable illness. For the practice, these lapses mean fewer wellness visits, weaker continuity of care, and lost pharmacy revenue—not because clients don’t want the care, but because reminders don’t reach them in time, or they buy elsewhere.

The good news? This problem is solvable. Let’s explore who is compliant, why care gaps happen, and how email programs can help practices keep pet parents engaged and pets protected—all without adding to your team’s workload.

Who is and who is not compliant?

If you ask clients whether they “keep up with prevention,” most will say yes and genuinely believe it. Survey data from the Dog Aging Project that 94.7 percent of dog owners reported their dog was vaccinated against diseases as recommended by their veterinarian.

But intent doesn’t always align with action. Clients may assume their pet was vaccinated “recently” or believe that “every few years” applies to all vaccines. Life gets busy, and what feels like a small delay can turn into a significant lapse. In reality, the same survey showed 22.4 percent of dogs were vaccinated annually against rabies and 50.2 percent were vaccinated annually against Distemper virus. Their pet feels healthy, there are no symptoms to trigger action, and booster dates quietly pass.

Preventives show an even wider gap. A study of more than 7,000 U.S. veterinary practices found that fewer than 29 percent of dogs left the clinic with any flea or tick preventive. Of those that did, only about 20 percent received enough doses for 12 months of protection, with the average purchase covering just over six months.

Heartworm prevention follows a similar pattern. The same study found that clients purchased about eight months of heartworm preventive per year on average, far below the 12-month recommendation.

Four common causes of missed compliance

Most clients aren’t “noncompliant.” They’re busy people who lose traction between visits. When a pet falls behind on vaccines or preventives, it’s rarely because the client doesn’t care. Instead, a few common barriers come into play:

1. Risk perception: “My pet stays indoors” or “We don’t have that here.” Some clients deprioritize prevention, especially when they believe their pet’s risk is low. Indoor-only pets or local factors like cooler climates can lead owners to assume prevention isn’t necessary.
2. Regional habits: Local norms shape behavior. Regional differences also play a role. For example, heartworm prevention is less common in northern areas, where perceived environmental risks are lower.
3. Forgetfulness: Prevention requires ongoing action. Monthly preventives ask clients to act repeatedly, on time, for years. Even the most well-meaning owners can forget.
4. Confusion: The message didn’t stick. Even when veterinarians provide clear recommendations, misunderstandings still happen. In one survey, 99 percent of dog owners said their veterinarian had discussed heartworm prevention, yet 15.7 percent answered incorrectly when asked how often it should be given. 

A powerful tool for connecting

Email remains one of the most effective ways to reach pet owners. According to a BlueResearch survey, ninety-eight percent of pet owners want to receive information from their veterinarian via email, and ninety-four percent have or would open an email from their vet.

Email communication aligns with the digital preferences of today’s pet owners. Practices can deliver detailed content—such as vaccine schedules, refill reminders, and educational materials—directly to pet owners in an accessible format. Audiences can be segmented based on species, pet age, or health needs, ensuring that pet parents receive tailored messages. New puppy and kitten owners get resources on vaccinations and nutrition, while senior pet owners get reminders about wellness visits and early detection tests.

Automated email reminders for vaccines, monthly preventives, and refills reduce the risk of forgetfulness and help pet owners stay on track. Such proactive communication improves compliance and keeps pets healthier.

How to simplify email marketing

The Synergy Partner Program makes email marketing effortless for veterinary practices. Sponsored by trusted manufacturer partners, this program creates and sends targeted email campaigns at no cost to practices. These campaigns are designed to increase compliance with vaccines, parasiticides, and annual visits, while saving staff time and effort.

Synergy integrates with practice management systems to ensure the right messages reach the right pet owners at the right time. Each email is personalized with practice details, logos, and online pharmacy information, which strengthens the bond between the practice and its clients.

4 plug-and-play email campaigns from Synergy

1. Win back: Targets pet owners who have not purchased flea, tick, or heartworm prevention in over twelve months.
2. Compliance: Sends reminders to refill prescriptions and comply with core vaccines.
3. New pet parents: Establishes preventive care reminders for new pets by automatically detecting and reaching new pet owners.
4. Practice recommendations: Ensures all pet owners are aware of your practice’s preventive care recommendations.

These campaigns are designed to engage a broad audience of pet owners while delivering relevant, actionable content that improves health outcomes for pets.

Benefits for veterinary practices

Email marketing is not just about improving compliance—it’s also about unlocking revenue potential and strengthening client relationships. Practices that use Synergy have seen significant results, including:

• 20 percent increase in overall practice revenue
• 12 percent rise in vaccine revenue
• 19 percent boost in vaccine compliance for previously lapsed pets
• 15 percent increase in parasiticide doses dispensed per pet

Automating communication through Synergy allows practices to win back lapsed pet owners, increase visits, and grow revenue—all without adding to staff workloads. These campaigns use technology to create consistent touchpoints with pet owners, ensuring your practice remains top of mind. 

Using automated campaigns from Synergy saves staff valuable time. When they don’t need to write and deliver email reminders, they devote more energy to patient care tasks. Compliance reminder emails convince pet parents to schedule those critical vaccine appointments. And that saves your team from scrambling to add unplanned vaccines to existing visits.

Beyond financial gains, email marketing helps build trust and loyalty. When pet owners receive timely reminders, educational content, and personalized messages from their veterinarian, it shows your practice cares about their pets’ health. This strengthens the bond between pet owners and your practice, encouraging long-term relationships and positive word-of-mouth referrals.

Start building a preventive care culture

Preventive care is the cornerstone of pet health, but it requires consistent communication to ensure compliance. By leveraging the power of email marketing through the Synergy Partner Program, your practice can deliver timely, personalized messages that keep pets healthy, improve client relationships, and grow your revenue—all without burdening your staff.

Now is the time to take action. Don’t let your clients’ busy schedules lead to missed opportunities for care. With Synergy, you can simplify communication, strengthen trust, and unlock the full potential of your practice.