Veterinary Image Sharing: Stop Burning CDs

It is 2026, and veterinary clinics are still burning CDs. Not because anyone likes it, but because the imaging system never gave them a better default. Image sharing is one of the easiest wins in a practice, and one of the most overlooked.

Why clinics still burn CDs

Usually it is inertia plus a system that makes nothing else easy. The modality can burn a disc, so that becomes the habit. The trouble is that discs are slow to make, easy to lose, and increasingly impossible to open, since fewer machines even have a drive. By the time a referral partner calls to say the disc will not load, you have already lost the time twice.

What it actually costs

• Staff time: minutes per disc, every time, adding up across a week.
• Delays: a study that cannot be opened holds up a referral or a sale.
• Goodwill: every partner who struggles with your files remembers it.
• Lost data: email compression often strips the DICOM tools a reviewer needs.

The better default

Link-based sharing flips the workflow. Instead of producing a copy and handing it over, you grant access to the study where it already lives. The recipient clicks a link and the full study opens in their browser, with the same tools you have, on whatever device they are using. With Keystone, an emailed share link opens in the web viewer with identical tools, and the recipient can download as DICOM or JPEG if they need a copy. No disc, no install, no compression.

What to look for

• Secure share links that open the full study in a browser
• Identical viewing tools for the recipient, no install
• Download as DICOM or JPEG when needed
• Permissions and an access record

For the foundation, see what a veterinary PACS is.