Condensed, Consolidated Income Statements (Unaudited) (USD $) In Thousands, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2013	Mar. 31, 2012
Revenue	$ 438,606	$ 409,465
Direct costs	341,683	316,086
Gross profit	96,923	93,379
Selling, general and administrative expense	39,846	39,051
Net (gain) loss on sale of assets	1,726	523
Operating income	55,351	53,805
Interest expense, net	4,307	4,087
Business Combination, Step Acquisition, Equity Interest in Acquiree, Remeasurement Gain	0	(5,719)
Other expense (income)	(9)	(207)
Income before provision for income taxes	51,053	55,644
Provision for income taxes	19,230	19,323
Net income	31,823	36,321
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	(1,338)	(1,076)
Net income attributable to VCA Antech, Inc.	30,485	35,245
Basic earnings per share	$ 0.34	$ 0.41
Diluted earnings per share	$ 0.34	$ 0.40
Weighted-average shares outstanding for basic earnings per share	88,400	86,984
Weighted-average shares outstanding for diluted earnings per share	89,379	88,055
Animal Hospital [Member]
Revenue	340,615	316,125
Direct costs	295,416	270,569
Gross profit	45,199	45,556
Selling, general and administrative expense	8,325	7,057
Net (gain) loss on sale of assets	1,729	505
Operating income	$ 35,145	$ 37,994