PetSmart Charities Expands Access to Vet Care with $100 Million Investment

50 million pets across the U.S. lack access to the veterinary care they need. In 2023, PetSmart Charities® responded with a commitment of more than $100 million over five years to help dismantle the barriers standing between pets and the care they deserve. Today, PetSmart Charities is reporting meaningful progress on that commitment, celebrating the impact to date and calling on stakeholders across the veterinary space to help carry it forward.

PetSmart Charities Advances National Effort to Expand Access to Veterinary Care, Building Momentum on $100 Million Commitment

Over the last three years, PetSmart Charities has deployed $61 million to support a national portfolio of solutions across three interconnected pillars: expanding affordable care delivery, driving affordability research and innovation, and elevating education and training for the next generation of veterinarians. This work is designed as a coordinated effort to strengthen the veterinary care system.

Expanding Affordable Care: The Accelerator Grant Program Spotlight

To expand access to affordable care, PetSmart Charities' Accelerator Grant program represents a key investment in expanding access to veterinary care at the community level.

Through Accelerator Grants, PetSmart Charities has supported 51 low-cost, nonprofit veterinary clinics, providing multi-year resources to expand services, increase capacity and reach more pets and families. These clinics are one example of how the organization is investing in scalable, community-based solutions that can be studied, refined, and replicated across the country. The program focuses on helping clinics sustain access over time, not just increasing the short-term capacity.

Since January 2023, local animal welfare partners have received $31.9 million in grant funding to expand clinics, making care more affordable and improving access to locations and appointments. More than 819,000 pets have been served at significantly reduced costs compared to traditional veterinary settings.

"The experience of being a PetSmart Charities Accelerator grantee has been a huge game changer for my organization," said Lauren Brinkman, executive director at Underdog Pet Rescue and Vet Services. "It's helped us learn tried and true methods to grow the most effectively so we can help more people and pets. The funding is amazing, but honestly, the best part has been the strategy and support from both fellow grantees and the team at PetSmart Charities. We're beyond grateful."

Together with other grantmaking efforts across the portfolio, these investments are helping to build a more accessible and resilient veterinary care system.

Driving Affordability Research & Innovation 

To understand the depth of the access-to-care crisis and to inform strategies and recommendations on how to solve key issues revealed, PetSmart Charities partnered with Gallup on the State of Pet Care Study: Veterinarian Perspectives on American Veterinary Care, the second phase of a multi-year national research initiative. The findings underscore both the urgency of the problem and the opportunity for change.

"Our research found that 94% of veterinarians say clients' financial constraints sometimes or often limit their ability to provide recommended care," said Dr. Robyn Jaynes, PetSmart Charities director of veterinary affairs. "Cost is cited as the reason pet parents decline treatment more than twice as often as any other factor. These numbers reflect real families making painful decisions every day, and they reinforce why this work matters."

These insights led PetSmart Charities to fund a payment plan pilot aimed at reducing financial barriers at the point of care, exploring the potential of flexible payment options to benefit not only pet families but veterinary practices, too.

Equipping the Next Generation Through Education & Training

Expanding access to care requires not only more clinics, but more veterinarians that are trained and committed to working in them. This spring, PetSmart Charities is launching the PetSmart Charities Community Medicine Fellowship Program, a first-of-its-kind initiative in partnership with five leading veterinary universities.

The fellowship aims to directly address a gap identified in the State of Pet Care Study: nearly half of veterinarians (48%) say their education did not prepare them at all to discuss financial barriers with clients, and another 32% say they received only minimal preparation. The fellowship embeds financial communication and community-care training into veterinary education from the start.

A Call to Action for the Veterinary Ecosystem

"The scale of the veterinary access gap demands a collective response," said Aimee Gilbreath, president of PetSmart Charities. "No single organization can tackle this pressing issue alone. At PetSmart Charities, we are calling on businesses, philanthropic and animal welfare organizations, and veterinary leaders to examine what is working, and invest in scalable solutions. Together, we can help build a future in which access to veterinary care is not a privilege but a baseline for every pet and every family."

To learn more, donate to support this work or explore partnership opportunities, visit PetSmartCharities.org.