I will admit that I’m happy to be looking at 2009 in the rear view mirror. I think most would agree it was a challenging year on many fronts, but overall the animal health industry held up quite well. This coming year is shaping up to be a very interesting one as well, and it’s my hope that we will see some positive momentum building that will propel the economy and the animal health industry forward.

No doubt, we’ll have a choppy year ahead. The economy will see ups and downs, but many experts believe it will be better than last year. Given the cyclical nature of the economy, I tend to agree. We simply won’t stay down forever. And the political winds seem to be shifting again, which will hopefully create a situation where we have less government interference in key segments of the economy. If correct, it could be a huge boost to the economy and its recovery, as well as to the animal health business.

And certainly the effects of the recent mergers and acquisitions are starting to reveal themselves as we move into 2010. Be sure to read our take on it which begins on page 24. At press time, many different things were still up in the air, and I’m sure many distributors and manufacturers are anxiously watching to see how things will shake out. Expect more coverage of these activities and how they affect you in the upcoming electronic issue of Vet-Advantage in February. One thing for sure, the activity level at NAVC should be incredibly high this year, as will the travel schedules of many industry major players in early January.

And the last thing I would like to mention as we kick off 2010 is what we’ll be up to in terms of serving you, our readers. We will continue to live by our tagline of promoting excellence in animal health sales. We will listen to you to find out more about your needs, and do our best to line up our content to provide insights and expertise in those areas, be it sales, product or trend related. So don’t be afraid to pick up the phone or drop us an email to let us know what’s going on in your world. We will also strive to bring you interviews and articles from some of the brightest people in the business, with insights you can put to work in your own business. Opportunities abound! Grab them in 2010!