Our End of Year Message – and Video – to You

December 20, 2024U.S. Healthtek

“What a year, huh?”

Depending on the inflection, that line could have several meanings. One thing for sure, it has been a year. Some businesses and industries have struggled – I heard the line “Survive until ’25” more than once. Others have thrived (grateful to be in the latter category). National and international goings-on have caused some anxiety – and some elation. Then there are the garden variety personal ups and downs that we tend to assess as another year closes.

But through it all, there’s one thing we can count on: our pets! We have seen plenty of stories about how pets improve our lives, lower our blood pressure, and improve mental health. During the pandemic, a time of isolation for many, it was often reported they were especially vital to our well-being. For those of us who have pets, we don’t need to read about the benefits, as we’re living them.

(And view our holiday video here!)

Labs Helping Animals

You might not be aware, but the many labs we serve include those who move among us on paws. Our clients provide diagnostic testing that is for not only dogs and cats, but also birds, goldfish, reptiles, and pretty much all of the Ark passengers. You won’t be surprised to know that we work just as hard and are just as proud of how we contribute to their efficacies and ability to provide quality service to their patients as any other lab we’re fortunate enough to partner with.

It’s been interesting for me to learn the similarity to labs serving the general population. Their core diagnostics include hematology, chemistry, parasitology, microbiology, and clinical and anatomic pathology, serving everyone from your local vet to zoos. And they should – after all, pets are like family (although in some cases we like them more). Emergency and critical care diagnostics, which include blood, gas, and acid-base solutions, are inspiring. These labs are innovative, accurate, and cost effective, and we are proud to contribute to their success. And we look forward to doing more of this kind of work in 2025.

Our Pets

Could it be that the more pets per employee of a given company, the more successful that company is? I’m thinking “yes,” as the pets-per-employee capita at U.S. HealthTek is certainly off the charts (up a tree?). Let’s start at the top with founder Bryan Firestone and CEO Cristy Reiter, who have five dogs and three cows. Then yours truly is more than doing my fair share zoology-wise with three dogs and two birds. The vast majority who call U.S. HealthTek home have one or more such best friends, and so we decided to bring out just some of them for a holiday greeting.

From our homes to yours, here is a photo essay of our animals wishing you a happy and joyous holiday season – and also reminding you to make time for your pets, as it’ll do you both good. (And in doing some research, I was reminded that like their humans, pets can have anxieties during the holidays with all busyness and visitors coming and going – here’s an excellent article to help them through it.)

Oh – and on a personal note – about that opening “What a year, huh?” statement: When you hear it from me, the inflection is most definitely positive. I ended the year joining U.S. HealthTek, and I’ve never been so excited about the future. We have truly exciting news that we will start rolling out in January, beginning with big plans for the Executive War College at the end of April. We will thrive in ’25, and on behalf of all of us at U.S. HealthTek, we hope you do too!