Whether your dog or cat might have cancer, or you want another opinion about a complex orthopedic issue, a veterinary teaching hospital is an excellent next step toward getting a clear diagnosis and treatment plan at an affordable price.
Why Vet School Hospitals Are Awesome
Being a patient in an educational environment means that your dog or cat (or horse, cow, etc!) will be cared for by some of the brightest veterinarians and enthusiastic, open-minded vet students who have access to cutting-edge technology that’s out of reach for most private practice clinics.
Veterinary teaching hospitals also have their own on-site pathology labs; test results are returned in hours instead of days, which means you don’t waste valuable time worrying and waiting for a diagnosis.
In addition, many schools have community practice clinics that offer general care at greatly reduced prices.
As a plus, the prices charged at veterinary teaching hospitals for everything from medications to surgery are generally lower than those found in private practice settings because these public institutions are motivated by research instead of profit.
About the only disadvantage to taking your animal to a veterinary teaching hospital is they sometimes lack the kind of personalized attention that you would get at a private practice. Vet schools are busy places, with rotating students and interns working on your case at all times. Still, we’ve found that it’s a small sacrifice compared to all of the benefits.
Do your homework to find the best veterinary teaching hospital for your needs. Like anything, some are better than others depending on what level of care your animal needs and what area of specialty the school invests in. Here’s a directory of veterinary colleges around the world, some with on-site hospitals and some that have affiliations with nearby clinics. Good luck!
Veterinary Colleges and Teaching Hospitals Accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)
List courtesy of the AVMA
ALABAMA
Auburn University
College of Veterinary Medicine
104 J. E. Greene Hall
Auburn University, AL 36849-5517
334-844-4546
http://www.vetmed.auburn.edu
Tuskegee University
School of Veterinary Medicine
Tuskegee, AL 36088
334-727-8174
http://tuskegee.edu
CALIFORNIA
University of California
School of Veterinary Medicine
Davis, CA 95616-8734
530-752-1360
http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu
Western University of Health Sciences
College of Veterinary Medicine
309 E Second Street – College Plaza
Pomona, CA, 91766-1854
909-469-5628
http://www.westernu.edu/xp/edu/veterinary/about.xml
COLORADO
Colorado State University
College of Veterinary Medicine
and Biomedical Sciences
Fort Collins, CO 80523-1601
970-491-7051
http://www.cvmbs.colostate.edu
FLORIDA
University of Florida
College of Veterinary Medicine
PO Box 100125
Gainesville, FL 32610-0125
352-392-2213
http://www.vetmed.ufl.edu
GEORGIA
University of Georgia
College of Veterinary Medicine
Athens, GA 30602
706-542-3461
http://www.vet.uga.edu
ILLINOIS
University of Illinois
College of Veterinary Medicine
2001 South Lincoln Avenue
Urbana, IL 61802
217-333-2760
http://www.cvm.uiuc.edu
INDIANA
Purdue University
School of Veterinary Medicine,
1240 Lynn Hall
West Lafayette, IN 47907-1240
765- 494-7607
http://www.vet.purdue.edu
IOWA
Iowa State University
College of Veterinary Medicine
Ames, IA 50011
515-294-1242
http://www.vetmed.iastate.edu
KANSAS
Kansas State University
College of Veterinary Medicine
Manhattan, KS 66506
785-532-5660
http://www.vet.ksu.edu
LOUISIANA
Louisiana State University
School of Veterinary Medicine
Baton Rouge, LA 70803-8402
225-578-9900
http://www.vetmed.lsu.edu
MASSACHUSETTS
Tufts University
School of Veterinary Medicine
200 Westboro Road
North Grafton, MA 01536
508-839-5302
http://www.tufts.edu/vet
MICHIGAN
Michigan State University
College of Veterinary Medicine
G-100 Veterinary Medical Center
East Lansing, MI 48824-1314
517-355-6509
http://cvm.msu.edu
MINNESOTA
The University of Minnesota
College of Veterinary Medicine
1365 Gortner Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55108
612-624-9227
http://www.cvm.umn.edu
MISSISSIPPI
Mississippi State University
College of Veterinary Medicine
Mississippi State, MS 39762
662-325-3432
http://www.cvm.msstate.edu
MISSOURI
University of Missouri-Columbia
College of Veterinary Medicine
Columbia, MO 65211
573-882-3877
http://www.cvm.missouri.edu
NEW YORK
Cornell University
College of Veterinary Medicine
Ithaca, NY 14853-6401
607-253-3700
http://www.vet.cornell.edu
NORTH CAROLINA
North Carolina State University
College of Veterinary Medicine
4700 Hillsborough Street
Raleigh, NC 27606
919-513-6210
http://www.cvm.ncsu.edu/
OHIO
The Ohio State University
College of Veterinary Medicine
1900 Coffey Road
Columbus, OH 43210-1092
614-292-1171
http://www.vet.ohio-state.edu
OKLAHOMA
Oklahoma State University
College of Veterinary Medicine
Stillwater, OK 74078
405-744-6595
http://www.cvm.okstate.edu
OREGON
Oregon State University
College of Veterinary Medicine
Corvallis, OR 97331
541-737-2098
http://vetmed.oregonstate.edu/
PENNSYLVANIA
University of Pennsylvania
School of Veterinary Medicine
3800 Spruce Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6044
215-898-5438
http://www.vet.upenn.edu
TENNESSEE
University of Tennessee
College of Veterinary Medicine
2407 River Drive
Knoxville, TN 37996
865-974-7262
http://www.vet.utk.edu
TEXAS
Texas A&M University
College of Veterinary Medicine &
Biomedical Sciences
College Station, TX 77843-4461
979-845-5051
http://www.cvm.tamu.edu
VIRGINIA
Virginia Tech
Virginia-Maryland Regional,
College of Veterinary Medicine
Blacksburg, VA 24061-0442
540-231-7666
http://www.vetmed.vt.edu
WASHINGTON
Washington State University
College of Veterinary Medicine
Pullman, WA 99164-7010
509-335-9515
http://www.vetmed.wsu.edu
WISCONSIN
University of Wisconsin-Madison
School of Veterinary Medicine
2015 Linden Drive West
Madison, WI 53706-1102
608-263-6716
http://www.vetmed.wisc.edu
CANADA
ALBERTA
University of Calgary
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
Calgary, AB
CANADA
403-210-3961
http://www.vet.ucalgary.ca
ONTARIO
University of Guelph
Ontario Veterinary College
Guelph, ON N1G 2W1
CANADA
519-824-4120
http://www.ovcnet.uoguelph.ca
PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND
University of Prince Edward Island
Atlantic Veterinary College
550 University Avenue
Charlottetown, PE C1A 4P3
CANADA
902-566-0882
http://www.upei.ca/~avc/
QUEBEC
Université de Montréal
Faculté de médecine vétérinaire
C.P. 5000
Saint Hyacinthe, PQ J2S 7C6
CANADA
450-773-8521
http://www.medvet.umontreal.ca
SASKATCHEWAN
University of Saskatchewan
Western College of Veterinary Medicine
52 Campus Drive
Saskatoon, SK S7N 5B4
CANADA
306-966-7447
http://www.usask.ca/wcvm
AUSTRALIA
Murdoch University
Division of Veterinary &
Biomedical Sciences
Murdoch, Western Australia
61-8-9360-2566
http://ww.murdoch.edu.au
The University of Sydney
Faculty of Veterinary Science
NSW
AUSTRALIA
61-2-9351-6936
http://www.vetsci.usyd.edu.au
University of Melbourne
Faculty of Veterinary Science
Werribee, VIC
AUSTRALIA
61- 3- 9731-2261
http://ww.vet.unimelb.edu.au
University of Queensland
School of Veterinary Science
Gatton, QLD
AUSTRALIA
61 7 5460 1111
http://www.uq.edu.au
ENGLAND
University of London
The Royal Veterinary College
Royal College Street
London NW1 OTU
ENGLAND
44 020 7468-5000
http://ww.rvc.ac.uk
FRANCE
VetAgro Sup
l’École Nationale des Services Vétérinaires à Lyon
F-69280 Marcy l”Etoile
FRANCE
33 4 78 87 25 02
http://www.vetagro-sup.fr
IRELAND
University College, Dublin
School of Agriculture, Food Science,
and Veterinary Medicine
Belfield, Dublin 4
IRELAND
353 1 716-6100
http://www.ucd.ie/agfoodvet
MEXICO
Universidad Nacional Autonoma de México
Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia
C.P. 04510 Coyoacan
MEXICO, D.F.
52 (55) 5622 5855
http://www.fmvz.unam.mx/
THE NETHERLANDS
State University of Utrecht
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
PO Box 80.163
3508 TD Utrecht,
THE NETHERLANDS
31-30-253-4851
http://www.uu.nl/faculty/veterinarymedicine/en/pages/default.aspx
NEW ZEALAND
Massey University College of Sciences
Institute of Veterinary, Animal, and
Biomedical Sciences
Palmerston North
NEW ZEALAND
64 6 350-5714
http://ivabs.massey.ac.nz/
SCOTLAND
University of Glasgow
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
Bearsden Road
Glasgow G61 1QH
SCOTLAND
44-0141-330-5700
http://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/vet/
The University of Edinburgh
Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies
Summerhall
Edinburgh EH9 1QH
SCOTLAND
44 131 650-1000
http://www.vet.ed.ac.uk
WEST INDIES
Ross University
School of Veterinary Medicine
Basseterre, St. Kitts
West Indies
869-465-1080
http://www.rossu.edu/veterinary-school/
St. George’s University
School of Veterinary Medicine
Grenada
West Indies
800-899-6337
http://www.sgu.edu/school-of-veterinary-medicine/index.html
So wrong. The vet school at Texas A&M is not cheaper, in fact, it is higher. They also do more tests, thereby raising the cost even more. The care is excellent, but be prepared for a large bill.
Hi Marian. Well, the article was written in 2014 so costs have gone up everywhere accordingly. As for diagnostics, in our experience the amount of workup really depends on the condition the vets are trying to diagnose. Either way, yes, we can definitely agree that the Aggies are fabulous!
My dog needs neck surgery. Where can I get it done for 1000.00 or less?? The vet surgeon wants 4000.00 i just do not have that much. Any idea where to go??
Shannan, we recommend getting multiple opinions and being clear on your financial situation with your vet. Vet teaching hospitals are another resource and they often have special assistance funds set up to help financially distressed pet parents. We hope you find help soon, we know this is a tough situation.
Thank you for putting together that extensive list for us.
So true! While you might not always get personal attention from a veterinarian directly, a lot of people find they get very personal attention from the veterinary students working on their case. If I have owners who can’t afford prices for specialists near us in Washington DC I love sending them down to Virginia Tech.
Thanks for the great feedback. There are definitely plusses and minuses to both types of care, I can say that having a long-term relationship with an excellent vet like yourself is my preferred way of caring for our fur kids!