Cornell Small Animal Community Practice

Welcome to Cornell's Small Animal Community Practice. We offer three main types of medical care to our patients. Health maintenance: We provide annual or biannual examinations, parasite prevention, vaccinations and routine laboratory testing including fecal parasite exams, heartworm testing, tick-born disease testing, viral testing in cats and other blood work depending on the animal's age and health status. Primary care: We are the primary caregivers for sick and injured dogs and cats on our service. We routinely screen animals, provide treatment and develop plans for future care. We refer seriously ill animals to the appropriate specialty service for advanced treatment, and coordinate their cases. We also collaborate with the dental service to identify animals that are in need of routine dental cleanings. The medical conditions we most commonly treat include: Lyme disease, Parasitic disease, Dental disease, Skin disease. Elective surgery: We provide elective, outpatient surgical services to patients including spay and neuter surgery, removing minor lumps and bumps, and suturing minor wounds

The Community Practice Service had its beginning within the Cornell University Hospital for Animals (CUHA) in the mid-1980s. Professor Robert F. Playter, who was Director of the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital (VMTH) at the time (1985-1990), supported the proposal of the Internal Medicine faculty to create an independent primary care service. This would free up appointments on the medicine service for a growing caseload of referrals and cases requiring secondary or tertiary care. The proposal was championed by internist Dr. Sharon A. Center with the support of Drs. John F. Randolph (Cornell '77), W. Jay Gould (Cornell '76), James F. Zimmer (Cornell '68), and William E. Hornbuckle. With this input, Dr. Playter approved the establishment of a primary care service in the Small Animal Clinic. It would eventually be called the Community Practice Service (CPS) when it became a formal rotation for veterinary students in 1987. Formal student rotations on CPS began September 1987; Dr. Patricia Tamke was the first of two highly regarded Clinical Instructors who were service chiefs on CPS. In 1990, Dr. William E. Hornbuckle, a faculty member of the Internal Medicine staff since 1977, assumed full responsibility of the Section of Community Practice Service (CPS) for two decades before retiring in the summer of 2013. Dr. Collins was a primary care practitioner of 10 years before he joined the Section in April 2011; he would become a diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (ABVP) shortly after he succeeded Dr. Hornbuckle as Section Chief of CPS. Dr. Collins was joined by Dr. Leni K. Kaplan in July 2014 and Dr. Patrick C. Carney (Cornell '06) in February 2017. The Community Practice Service resided within the old hospital in 1987. During the construction of a new hospital in 1990-1991, the service was moved to a small building next to the farrier shop and shared occupancy with the Dermatology Service. When construction was completed in 1994-1995, CPS relocated for a second time and received cases within the existing hospital (CUHA). It wasn't until 2017-2018 that the Cornell Small Animal Community Practice facility was built at 930 Campus Road. CPS made its third move and occupied this facility with Shelter Medicine on June 4, 2018. Professor Dwight D. Bowman and Dr. Hornbuckle established the Healthy Pet Clinic at the Southside Community Center in Ithaca; the first of monthly clinics was held in 1996