The University of Florida’s Pet Emergency Treatment Services (PETS) clinic in Ocala has been certified as a Level 3 veterinary emergency and critical care facility by the Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society. UF College of Veterinary Medicine made the announcement in early June. “The UF PETS facility in Ocala serves Marion County veterinarians and pet owners in that area by providing the expertise we have available at our main Gainesville facility but on a smaller scale,” said Carsten Bandt, DrMedVet, chief of the hospital’s emergency and critical care service. “We received this certification because of our capabilities and high standards of emergency and critical care.” According to the society’s website, the Level 3 emergency and critical care facility is an acute care facility with the medical staff, personnel and training necessary to provide emergency and critical patient care. Facilities receiving the Level 3 designation are open to receive small animal emergency patients on nights, weekends, and holidays 365 days a year. UF PETS, which opened in July 2012, treated more than 4,200 small animal patients in 2014, according to Dana Zimmel, DVM, associate dean for clinical services at the UF College of Veterinary Medicine.
