About Us

The UGA Veterinary Teaching Hospital handles more than 34,000 animal visits each year and offers a wide range of specialty services. Our board-certified clinicians bring years of experience to each case, and we have a vast and highly specialized knowledge base from which to draw answers. This, combined with our state-of-the-art equipment, allows us to offer advanced treatment options unavailable elsewhere in the state. As part of the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine, providing exceptional animal care while training the next generation of veterinarians is the hallmark of our program.

Our hospital is part of the college’s Veterinary Medical Center, which is located at 2200 College Station Road in Athens, Ga. It includes the Cora Nunnally Miller Small Animal Hospital, which serves cats, dogs, and exotic animals, as well as a large animal hospital, which serves horses, cattle, goats, and other farm animals. The campus also has a Veterinary Education Center, which is used for student training as well as for continuing education events.

Our hospital operates similarly to a human specialty referral hospital. What this means is that for the majority of our services, especially on the small animal side of our hospital, you must be referred to us from another veterinary practice before you can make an appointment.

As a teaching hospital, we take a team approach to each case. This helps ensure that your pet receives the highest-quality care possible. However, it also means that your appointment will take longer than it would at a traditional veterinary clinic. Additionally, it may be determined that more diagnostic information is necessary to determine the best course of action for your animal. This can take anywhere from a few hours to a full day to complete, so please plan accordingly.

We are passionate about what we do, and that shows in the excellent veterinary care that we provide. Each patient at our facility is cared for by a talented and diverse team that includes board-certified clinicians, interns and residents, veterinary nurses, senior veterinary students, and hospital staff members.

Board-certified Clinicians
These are our faculty members who oversee the care of every animal that comes into our hospital. They work very closely with our students, technicians, interns and residents to ensure your animal is receiving the best care possible. A lot of their work is done behind-the-scenes, but they are always available to answer any questions.

Interns and residents
An intern is a licensed veterinarian that recently graduated from veterinary school and is working at our hospital for a year under the supervision and guidance of our residents and faculty members. Similar to students, interns rotate between the different service areas of the hospital. A resident is a licensed veterinarian that has already completed a one-year internship and is working in our hospital for three years to further specialize in a specific area of veterinary medicine. They can then become a board-certified specialist.

Veterinary Nurses
Our veterinary nurses consist of licensed veterinary technicians (RVTs) as well as veterinary assistants. Our RVTs are educated in the latest medical technologies and work alongside our clinicians to give your pet the best care possible, much like a registered nurse in a human hospital. Many of our RVTs have also earned their VTS (veterinary technician specialty), which symbolizes that they have demonstrated advanced knowledge and skills in a specific discipline. If you aren’t sure who on your patient care team is a veterinary nurse, they are usually in red and black scrubs.

Veterinary Students
Our senior veterinary students will typically serve as your main point of contact during your visit. They have completed four years of undergraduate work, three years of graduate work, and are in the final, one-year, clinical rotation portion of their degree program. To help them gain a variety of experience throughout the hospital, every three weeks they rotate to a different service.

While we are part of the college of veterinary medicine, our hospital is a self-sustaining unit that utilizes state-of-the-art technology, offers advanced treatment options, and has full-time clinicians and staff members. To offset these costs, our services are competitively priced with other specialty care providers.

Estimate of cost
Either at the time of your referral or when you call in to make an appointment, we will give you a rough estimate of what it will cost to treat your pet. At the actual time of your appointment, our veterinarians will work with you to develop a specific treatment plan for your animal and will give you an updated cost estimate at that time. If anything changes during the treatment that effects the estimate, you will be notified.

Paying for services
Please be aware that payment for all services is expected in full at the time of discharge. The University of Georgia does not offer payment plans. However, we do accept all major credit cards as well as Care Credit. If your animal is hospitalized, please be prepared to pay half of the high end of the estimate for care as a deposit. You will be notified if any revisions in your pet’s treatment plan will change the original estimate.

Using insurance plans
If you have an insurance plan on your animal, please note that we cannot bill them directly. You will still be responsible for paying for your animal’s medical care and will then need to be reimbursed by your insurance company.