Nearly 100 million Americans will embark on a family vacation this summer. And for the 68% of households that own a pet, part of their planning will include deciding if their dogs and cats get to accompany them on the trip or will require other accommodations.

Whether it’s a vacation, business trip or just long days in the office, many pet owners turn to veterinarians, boarding and pet care facilities to manage their pets while they are away. And, as the demand for these services increase, so does the need for pet boarding infection control processes to ensure a safe, healthy environment that pet owners will want to utilize in the future.

Are hospital mergers part of a national trend driven by Medicare and an evolving insurance market that impacts reimbursement? Or, as Lawton Robert Burns, Professor of the Health Care Management Department at The Wharton School suggested, a reaction to the unknown, i.e., “we’re not sure how to compete better but, if we get bigger, maybe we’ll survive.”