October 29, 2026
BY GREG TONER
In the summer of 2023, I wrote that running a practice is a lot like cooking a turkey. Three years and several more turkeys later, I stand by it. Your practice is still a turkey.
The turkey diary is still going. It has a few new entries: a bird that came out of the fridge later than planned, an oven that ran hotter than I expected, and one year where I cooked 2 turkeys in the same oven. Every one of those surprises was easier to handle because I had notes from the years before.
Here's what has changed: the kitchen is busier, and the oven runs hotter than it did in 2023.
Costs have climbed, good people are harder to find and keep, and the conversation about what veterinary care should cost has gone public. That makes the basics from my first article more important, not less. As you start 2027, you need a plan for what's coming in and what's going out before the bird goes in the oven.
The Oven Is Running Hotter
A few things have shifted since my first article, and each one makes guessing more expensive.
Costs keep climbing. Wages, supplies, rent, insurance, and software subscriptions have all crept up. Small increases across many lines add up to a real hit on your margin if you're not watching.
People are the scarcest ingredient. Staffing across all roles remains a challenge in many cities across Canada. Every unfilled shift or resignation changes how much your team can do, and how much revenue your practice can generate.
Pricing is now a public conversation. There have been several high-profile articles in Canada on the cost of veterinary care, and with non-vet pharmacy options in most of Canada, the share of pet owners’ wallets is being split among more parties than ever.
None of this means your practice is in trouble. It means the margin for error is thinner, and flying blind costs more than it used to.
The Same Five Ingredients
In 2023, I said a great turkey needs five things. They still apply, but each one deserves a fresh look.
Data on your current turkey. Your client base, team, and facility have probably changed since 2023. Did you lose a vet, add space, or change hours? Update your practice journal so it describes the practice you have today, not the one you had three years ago.
Data on past turkeys. You now have several years of financials and practice management data. That history is gold. Look at how your revenue and costs moved from 2023 to 2026, and which months were reliably strong or weak.
A target to aim for. 165°F hasn't changed, but your practice targets might have. Decide what 2027 should look like: your profit, your hours in the building, and the size and shape of your team.
Feedback. Your staff, your clients, your family, and your bank account are still telling you things. Ask your team what slowed them down this year. Listen to the fee questions your front desk is fielding.
Data along the way. This is the one most practices skip, and the one that matters most when conditions change quickly. A plan you only look at in January isn't a plan. It's a wish.
Plan Your Revenues
Your 2027 revenue plan should be built from the ground up, not by adding a percentage to this year's total. Revenue is the product of a few things you can actually manage, so plan each one.
Fees. When did you last review your fee schedule line by line? Compare it to the OVMA Fee Guide and to what your costs have done since your last increase. Plan when your next increase will happen, how much it will be, and how your team will explain it to clients. A fee increase your team can't explain confidently will be discounted at the front desk.
Capacity. Revenue is limited by the hours your doctors and technicians are available to see patients. Start with the team you'll realistically have in 2027, not the team you hope to hire. How many appointment slots and surgery days does that support? If a vacancy is likely, plan for it.
Volume and mix. Look at your appointments and transactions by type. Wellness, sick visits, dentals, surgery, and diagnostics all carry different margins. If you want to grow, decide where that growth comes from. If you're at capacity, the answer may be a better mix of services rather than more volume.
Seasonality. Your past turkeys will show you which months are busy and which are quiet. Build your plan month by month so a slow February doesn't send you into a panic, and a strong spring doesn't lull you into overspending.
Clarity on pricing. Even without any rule requiring it, think about how you'd answer a client who asks what a dental or a spay costs. Clear estimates and consistent pricing build trust, and they make your revenue more predictable.
Plan Your Expenses
In 2023, I suggested starting with your three biggest expenses. That's still the right place to start, and for most practices, those three are the same: people, drugs and supplies, and the space you work in.
Wages and benefits. This is your largest line and your most important investment. Plan for annual raises, any market adjustments needed to keep your team, relief vet coverage for vacancies and vacations, and continuing education. Underpaying to protect the budget usually costs more in turnover.
Drugs and supplies. Review your supplier pricing and your markups together. If your costs went up and your prices didn't follow, your margin quietly shrank. Check your inventory levels too, since cash sitting on a shelf isn't working for you.
Occupancy. Know when your lease renews and what your landlord is likely to ask for. If you own your building, plan for the repairs you've been putting off.
Equipment and technology. List what is likely to need replacing in the next two years, what it will cost, and how you'll pay for it. Add up your software subscriptions while you're at it. They multiply quietly.
A contingency. Build a cushion into your plan for the things you can't predict. Know how many months of expenses you could cover if revenue dipped, and make sure your line of credit is in place before you need it.
Keep a Thermometer in the Bird
Nobody puts a turkey in the oven and walks away for five hours. You check it, baste it, and adjust. Your 2027 plan needs the same attention.
Each month, once your bookkeeper delivers your financials, sit down with your budget and your scorecard. Compare actual results to your plan for revenue, your three biggest expenses, profit, and cash. Add your operating numbers at the top: appointments per day, surgeries per day, missed appointments, and your own hours in the building.
Decide in advance what will make you act. For example: revenue below plan for two months in a row, wages climbing faster than revenue, or cash dropping below a set number of weeks of expenses. When one of those triggers trips, you'll already know it's time to adjust, rather than finding out at year-end.
Then do what I suggested in 2023: reflect, write it in your journal, talk to your team, and make the change. The scorecard tells you what happened. Your team helps you figure out why.
Get the Bird in Early
The worst turkey I ever cooked was the one I forgot to take out of the fridge in time. Everything after that was a scramble.
The same is true for 2027. The best time to build your plan is now, while you still have a few weeks left in 2026 to see how the year is finishing. Before January:
Update your practice journal with where you are today.
Pull your financials and practice data for the last three years.
Set your targets for 2027.
Build a month-by-month budget for income and expenses.
Pick the numbers for your scorecard and the triggers that will make you act.
You won't get it perfect, and that's fine. My turkey diary didn't make me a perfect cook in year one. It made me a better one every year after. Your practice works the same way. Your practice is still a turkey, and with a plan in hand, 2027 can be your best one yet.
Greg Toner, CPA, CA, TEP, CLU, is principal at VetCPA.
