There's a new hospital opening in Gainesville with all the latest high tech treatment options. But the state of the art $57 million facility is just for pets!
The University of Florida's Small Animal Hospital is 100,000 square feet of the latest in pet health care.
Over 600 people visited the hospital today during an open house.
The facility is the largest of its kind in the country, with 22 examination rooms, 12 surgical suites and advanced treatment options like the linear accelerator to treat cancer and a hemodialysis suite.
Interim Chief of Staff Dr. Dana Zimmel said, "We have 17 services that provide unique opportunities for people to seek out advanced care in areas of oncology, cardiology, orthopedic surgery, ophthalmology, cardiology...so we have all of these specialists here that can help support your regular veterinarian when they need expertise of advanced diagnostic tools.
Dr. Glen Hoffsis, Dean of the UF College of Veterinary Medicine said, "There are more specialists, more veterinary specialists under one roof in this facility than anywhere else in Florida and in most other places in the country."
The hospital has been open since 1978, but has functioned in a smaller facility until now. It provides UF veterinary students with hands on training in the treatment of as many as 16,000 dogs, cats and exotic pets each year.
Another important feature is the 24 hour pet emergency service. Any pets are welcome at the hospital with or without a referral from a primary veterinarian.
The Small Animal Hospital will start accepting pet patients on November 1st.