Posts by Author: Melani Seymour
Is Your DSO Offer a Good One? How to Evaluate It in 2026
The email usually arrives on a Tuesday. Somebody has attached a one-page summary with a big number near the top, and the dentist reading it has no idea whether to be thrilled or insulted. I got a call from an owner in exactly that position who opened with the only sentence that matters: “It’s more…
Read MoreHiring a New-Grad Veterinarian in 2026: What Owners Should Know
Key takeaways The new-doctor discount has mostly disappeared: companion-animal starters averaged $140,000. Established veterinarians earned 93% more than new graduates in 2001, versus 19% more in 2024. Debt belongs in the management conversation, not the diagnosis: indebted members of the class of 2025 averaged $212,499 in DVM debt, while the class-wide debt-to-income ratio was 1.4:1.…
Read MoreYou Got an Unsolicited DSO Offer. The First Five Things to Do
An owner forwarded me an email chain last year. Three messages long, top to bottom. The first was the approach. Friendly, complimentary, signed by someone in “partnerships.” The second was his reply. Somewhere in the middle of a perfectly polite paragraph he had written a number. Everything that happened over the next four months happened…
Read MoreThe Documents You Need to Sell Your Veterinary Practice in 2026
Key takeaways Build one master inventory. Every record needs a file name, date, source, owner, reconciliation target, open exception, version, and access tier. Collect, verify, then share. A record belongs in the internal register before any approved version enters a buyer-facing folder. Missing is a status, not a secret. Expired, unsigned, disputed, or inconsistent records…
Read MoreWhat Happens to Your Dental Practice if You Die or Become Disabled?
Nobody wants to read this one. I understand that, and I will keep it practical. A dental practice is probably one of the two largest assets you own. It is also the most fragile one you own, in a way that a rental property or a share portfolio is not, because its value depends on…
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