The "national average" does not reflect well, as it's a diverse field. It's like posting the national average for doctors... it encompasses your rural tiny-town doc all the way to your Hollywood Plastic Surgeons.

The biggest impact on salary is not owning or not, but what specific field you join. Practice Owners of a small local practice may actually make less than their associates. If they are contracted to pay X amount, but their business does poorly...it's not their associates that take the hit! However, a booming business will have a wealthy practice owner (depending on how they allocate their business income, of course). I don't have the specific information in front of me or readily accessible atm.

Luckily for me, after 5 years, Equine-Exclusive veterinarians (what I"m planning to do) average the highest income. But that will probably require working at a referral or other large hospital, which means an internship and potentially residencies/boarding in a speciality, which means money spent on more education and lower salaries until then. SO it depends..

It's also going to depend on your geographical location and demographics, of course.

Suffice it to say that your average strip-mall veterinarian spends a LONG LONG TIME paying off their loans...