EARNINGS PER SHARE (Details) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) $ / shares	Sep. 30, 2017 USD ($) $ / shares	Jun. 30, 2017 USD ($) $ / shares	Mar. 31, 2017 USD ($) $ / shares	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($) $ / shares	Sep. 30, 2016 USD ($) $ / shares	Jun. 30, 2016 USD ($) $ / shares	Mar. 31, 2016 USD ($) $ / shares	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) $ / shares shares	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($) $ / shares shares	Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($) $ / shares shares
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Reverse stock split conversion ratio	0.10									10
Net income attributable to Heska Corporation | $		$ (1,069)	$ 3,083	$ 3,333	$ 4,606	$ 3,453	$ 3,347	$ 2,522	$ 1,186	$ 9,953	$ 10,508	$ 5,239
Basic weighted-average common shares outstanding (In shares)										7,026	6,783	6,509
Assumed exercise of dilutive stock options and restricted stock units (in shares)										616	578	565
Diluted weighted-average common shares outstanding (in shares)										7,642	7,361	7,074
Basic earnings per share (in dollars per share) | $ / shares		$ (0.15)	$ 0.43	$ 0.47	$ 0.67	$ 0.50	$ 0.49	$ 0.38	$ 0.18	$ 1.42	$ 1.55	$ 0.80
Diluted earnings per share (in dollars per share) | $ / shares		$ (0.14)	$ 0.40	$ 0.44	$ 0.60	$ 0.46	$ 0.45	$ 0.35	$ 0.17	$ 1.30	$ 1.43	$ 0.74
Stock options
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Stock options and restricted units excluded from computation of earnings per share										123	234	144