Dr. Whitehair described how many veterinarians use trial and error as their business models. He also discussed several successful businesses that have become obsolete over the years because they didn't change as consumer demands changed. He told us about his practice's mission statement, and how a mission statement can help define goals. Dr. Whitehair's presentation was focused on rural veterinary practice, so next he discussed the challenges faced by mixed animal practicioners in rural areas. He said that clients in rural areas expect the highest quality care for their animals, and that makes it difficult to be a good general practictioner. As a solution, Dr. Whitehair's practice has several veterinarians, each with a different specialty. This enables them to provide high quality service without having unreasonable expectations of the veterinarians. Several clinics in the area joined together to start an emergency clinic as well. This also reduces a lot of stress for the veterinarians and provides better service to the clients. They no longer have primarily large animal doctors performing emergency services on small animals. Dr. Whitehair briefly discussed small business operations, trends in revenue, profit centers, and options for rural practices. He was great about answering questions from the students, and included many personal stories to demonstrate how he came to the understanding of business that he has today.