Condensed, Consolidated Statements of Income (Unaudited) - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands		3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
		Jun. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2016
Income Statement [Abstract]
Revenue		$ 743,132	$ 653,489	$ 1,421,383	$ 1,216,928
Direct costs		558,039	489,541	1,081,822	916,200
Gross profit		185,093	163,948	339,561	300,728
Selling, general and administrative expense		59,776	48,190	118,177	98,318
Net loss (gain) on sale or disposal of assets		230	(271)	480	292
Operating income (loss)		125,087	116,029	220,904	202,118
Interest expense, net		10,169	7,867	19,196	14,962
Debt retirement costs		0	1,600	0	1,600
Other income		(280)	(600)	(582)	(864)
Income before provision for income taxes		115,198	107,162	202,290	186,420
Provision for income taxes		44,774	40,736	79,413	72,272
Net income	[1]	70,424	66,426	122,877	114,148
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests		2,712	2,376	4,072	3,871
Net income attributable to VCA Inc.		$ 67,712	$ 64,050	$ 118,805	$ 110,277
Basic earnings per share (in dollars per share)		$ 0.83	$ 0.79	$ 1.46	$ 1.36
Diluted earnings per share (in dollars per share)		$ 0.82	$ 0.78	$ 1.45	$ 1.35
Weighted-average shares outstanding for basic earnings per share (in shares)		81,267	80,835	81,256	80,806
Weighted-average shares outstanding for diluted earnings per share (in shares)		82,228	81,729	82,204	81,630

[1] Includes approximately $1.8 million and $2.1 million of net income related to redeemable and mandatorily redeemable noncontrolling interests for the six months ended June 30, 2017 and 2016, respectively.