Introduction

The document that follows is a recommendation report for Cleveland Amory Black Beauty
Ranch. The purpose of this document is to compare two options and provide the best
recommendation for the company. Black Beauty Ranch is debating on buying the Abaxis VS2
Chemistry Analyzer and the Abaxis HM5 Hematology Analyzer or the Idexx Chemistry and
Blood Analyzer. The intended audience is the Black Beauty Veterinary Staff, headed up by D.
Owen. These machines are needed to make diagnosing and treating the animals on site much
easier and faster. Each brand will be compared using the five criteria listed below. Each criteria
will be evaluated and then compared, finally reaching a conclusion of which machine will
benefit the organization best.

Background
Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch is an animal sanctuary located in Murchison, Texas. They
are home to 1,200 different types of animals, ranging from primates, to tigers, to camels.
Deciding between these two brands of machinery is a major decision for the organization. These
machines do general chemistry and electrolyte analysis for pre-anesthetic, general health, ill
patient, geriatric and wellness testing, test accurate blood cell counts, and test for levels of certain
enzymes in blood or urine. Having one of these machines on site will mean that they will no
longer have to send off the blood samples, then wait days for the results. With these machines,
they can do all the testing there, and have the results in minutes, making it easier to treat their
animals. About a dozen horses and donkeys would have benefitted from having immediate
bloodwork results from in house equipment. (D. Owen, personal communication, 6 November
2014) One donkey, in particular, was suffering from liver disease, and D. Owen and her team
had to wait for the results to determine how significant his disease was. After waiting for results,
it was determined that because of the severity of his condition, the donkey had to be euthanized.
Because they had to wait for results, they could not catch the disease when it was at a treatable
stage, and the donkey had to suffer for a period of time. Situations like these have been the main
influence on the decision to purchase an in-house diagnostic machine.

Criteria
Financial Feasibility
Investment in these machines has been limited to a $30,000 budget and should not be
exceeded unless absolutely necessary.

Multi-species evaluation
Each machine must perform evaluation on a number of different species. The machine that
evaluates more species, will be the one that satisfies the criterion more efficiently.

Amount of time required for testing

The least amount of time is essential when it comes to the health of the animals. The faster
the animals can be diagnosed, the faster they can be treated.

 Cost of reagents
A reagent is defined as a substance that is used to test for the presence of another substance
by causing a chemical reaction with it. Reagents are an ongoing expense, so the lowest cost is
desired.

Amount of blood required for testing

The amount of blood required for testing is the least essential criteria. The least amount of
blood required for testing is wanted, to make gathering the samples easier.

Comparisons
Price
The first criterion that each machine must meet is the financial feasibility. Black Beauty Ranch
has set a maximum budget of $30,000. Black Beauty Ranch was quoted $30,000 for the Abaxis
HM5 and VS2 machines. Upon talking to an Idexx service representative, I was quoted $5,000
for the Idexx Chemistry Analyzer. Although the Idexx model has a lower price than the Abaxis,
both brands meet the financial feasibility requirement.
Brand
Abaxis
Idexx

Name
HM5 and VS2
Chemistry Analyzer

Price
$30,000
$5,000

Meets requirements? Yes/No

Yes
Yes

Multi-species evaluation
Multi-species evaluation is very important, because of the many different species this
organization houses and cares for. The more animals that can be treated on site, the healthier
their population will be. Both the Abaxis and Idexx models perform multi-species evaluation.
The Abaxis model evaluates 15 species, canine, feline, equine, cow, alpaca, llama, mouse, rabbit,
rat, ferret, pig, goat, monkey, sheep and guinea pig. The Idexx model evaluates 18 species which
are canine, feline, equine, bovine, avian, ferret, goat, lizard, llama, monkey, mouse, pig, rabbit,
rat, sea turtle, sheep, snake and tortoise. Since the Black Beauty Ranch houses up to 1,200
different types of species, evaluation of the most species is preferred. The Idexx model satisfies
this requirement more effectively than the Abaxis models.
Brand

Name

Multi-species
evaluation? Yes/No

Number of
Species?

Abaxis
Idexx

HM5 and VS2

Chemistry Analyzer

Yes
Yes

15
18

Amount of time required for testing

The shortest amount of time is a very important factor in choosing which machine is best. The
shorter the testing time, the faster the veterinary technicians can diagnose and treat the animals
on their property. The Abaxis VS2 takes a total of 12 minutes to finish testing, and the Abaxis
HM5 has been found to take 3 to 4 minutes to test the sample. The Idexx machine takes up to 6
minutes. The Abaxis models satisfy this criterion because of its shorter testing time.
Brand

Name

Abaxis
Idexx

HM5 and VS2

Chemistry Analyzer

Amount of time required for

testing?
3-12 minutes
6 minutes

Cost of reagents
Reagents are purchased as individual test cartridges that run in the machines. The price is relative
to how many you buy, and as you use them, you must buy more, therefore the price is an
ongoing expense. The Abaxis HM5 has a total cost of $7.70 for reagents, and the VS2 has a total
cost of $66.05 for reagents. The Idexx sells the same test cartridges for a total of $97.25. Because
the organization will be buying these reagents multiple times, the lowest cost is preferred. The
Abaxis model has the lowest cost for ongoing reagents, therefore satisfying the criterion.
Brand
Abaxis
Idexx

Name
HM5 and VS2
Chemistry Analyzer

Cost of reagents?
$7.70 + $66.05 = $73.75
$97.25

Amount of blood required to test

The amount of blood needed to test is not a detrimental criteria. The smallest amount is wanted
to so that it is easier on the veterinary technicians when trying to collect the samples from any of
the animals. The Abaxis HM5 used 25 microliters (0.5 drops) to test, and the Abaxis VS2 needs
50 microliters (1 drop) to test. The Idexx Chemistry Analyzer needs 40 microliters (.8 drops) to
complete testing. Since the blood required to test ranges from 25-50 for Abaxis, this satisfies the
criterion as the least amount of blood needed.
Brand

Name

Abaxis
Idexx

HM5 and VS2

Chemistry Analyzer

Amount of blood needed to

test?
25-50 microliters = 0.5-1 drop
40 microliters = .8 drop

Recommendation
I conclude that the best choice of machinery for Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch, is the
Abaxis HM5 Hematology Analyzer and the VS2 Chemistry Analyzer. This brand meets 4 of the
5 criteria. Based on the comparisons, Abaxis beats Idexx on 3 of the 5 criteria: the amount of
time required for testing is 3-12 minutes, overall cost of reagents is only $73.75, and the amount
of blood needed to test is 25-50 microliters. On the criterion of price, both brands meet the
requirements. Due to the Abaxis brand meeting 4 of the 5 requirements and besting Idexx at 3 of
them, the major price difference between the two should not matter. Abaxis is the best choice for
this organization.

Final Conclusions
Requirements
Price
Multi-species evaluation
Amount of time required for testing
Overall cost of reagents
Amount of blood needed to test

Brand that best meets requirements

Both
Idexx
Abaxis
Abaxis
Abaxis

Information Sources
1. "VetScan HM5Hematology System." VetScan HM5. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2014.
http://www.abaxis.com/veterinary/products/hm5.html.
2. "VetScan VS2 Profiles." Abaxis. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2014.
http://www.abaxis.com/veterinary/products/chemistry-profiles.html.
3. "VetTest Chemistry Analyzer." VetTest Chemistry Analyzer. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov.
2014. https://www.idexx.com/equine/in-house-diagnostics/in-house-analyzers/vettestchemistry.html#Test-Menu
4. "About the Cleveland Amory Black Beauty Ranch." Cleveland Amory Black Beauty
Ranch. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2014.
http://www.blackbeautyranch.org/about/?credit=web_id75931451