Fair Value Measurements

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2014

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The FASB accounting guidance requires disclosure of fair value information about financial instruments, whether or not they are recognized in the accompanying condensed, consolidated balance sheets. Fair value as defined by the guidance is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The fair value estimates of financial instruments are not necessarily indicative of the amounts we might pay or receive in actual market transactions. The use of different market assumptions and/or estimation methodologies may have a material effect on the estimated fair value amounts.

Cash and Cash Equivalents. These balances include cash and cash equivalents with maturities of less than three months. The carrying amount approximates fair value due to the short-term maturities of these instruments.

Receivables, Less Allowance for Doubtful Accounts, Accounts Payable and Certain Other Accrued Liabilities. Due to their short-term nature, fair value approximates carrying value.

Long-Term Debt. The fair value of debt at September 30, 2014 and December 31, 2013 is based upon the ask price quoted from an external source, which is considered a Level 2 input.

The following table reflects the carrying value and fair value of our variable-rate long-term debt (in thousands):



	As of September 30, 2014				As of December 31, 2013
	Carrying Value		Fair Value		Carrying Value		Fair Value
Variable-rate long-term debt	$	600,000	$	600,000	$	556,914	$	556,914

Non-Recurring Assets

Non-financial assets such as property, plant and equipment, land, goodwill and intangible assets are also subject to non-recurring fair value measurements if they are deemed to be impaired. The impairment models used for nonfinancial assets depend on the type of asset and are accounted for in accordance with FASB’s guidance on fair value measurement.

During the quarter ended September 30, 2014, the entire balance of $9.2 million of our Vetstreet goodwill was written off in an impairment charge which was included in earnings in the period. Additionally, during the quarter ended September 30, 2014, our Vetstreet long-lived assets were written down to their estimated fair value resulting in an impairment charge of $17.8 million, which was included in earnings in the period. Our Vetstreet long-lived assets balance as of September 30, 2014 was $5.0 million. Both the implied fair value of goodwill and the estimated fair value of long-lived assets were calculated using Level 3 inputs which are described in Note 3.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

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