Our Practice

Veterinary Services was the first veterinary hospital in Aiken, South Carolina, established in 1950 by Dr. Grady McElmurray. Dr. Holly Woltz (Doc Holly) bought the practice in 1987 and through the years has gradually added staff (now totaling approximately 20 supporting staff and two veterinarians). In 1995, Veterinary Services moved and expanded into a larger facility.

American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) Certified

We have been an AAHA certified hospital for 32 years. We are recognized as a three year AAHA hospital. Only 17% of the veterinary hospitals in the United States are AAHA approved and only 2% of these are three year approved. We are very proud of this distinction! Every three years we must pass a rigorous inspection by an individual from AAHA who is certified in Practice Management and licensed in Veterinary Medicine. We must complete a 900+ question document on every aspect of the hospital’s services and facilities. Our patient records, housekeeping standards, diagnostic services, nursing care, pharmacy, OSHA standards and more are scrutinized (even plans for emergency evacuation of the facility). It is an exhausting three months of preparation and one week inspection. To be certified as a member of AAHA says that we are the best that a veterinary hospital can be.
 

Cat Friendly Practice

Veterinary Services of Aiken has been approved by the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) as a Cat Friendly Practice – Gold Status!

According to the AAFP, even though there are millions more pet cats than there are pet dogs in the United States, cats visit the veterinarian much less frequently. This is largely because of the stress that comes with vet visits for cats and their owners.

At the Veterinary Services of Aiken, we strive to make your visit to the doctor with your feline companion as stress-free as possible. We offer a full range of preventive care services and care tips  – as well as a feline-only waiting area and a feline-exclusive exam room!
 

Fear Free Vet

Making Veterinary Visits Less Stressful for Pets
We are committed to providing you and your pet(s) with the best veterinary experience possible. We have adapted our policies and procedures to make sure that we are considerate and work to avoid any triggers that cause your pet to be anxious or fearful during their visit. We follow the program for Fear Free Veterinary Visits, created by Dr. Marty Becker, world-renowned veterinarian and pet advocate.

If your pet has exhibited fearful or anxious behaviors at their previous visit, please call and speak to us ahead of your next visit to see if medication for anxiety prior to the visit would be a good choice for your pet.

Our Fear Free Certified Team Members Can Help!
Many of our staff members have completed their individual certification to be fear free veterinary professionals. With this program, we will continually learn new ways to make your pet’s health care easy and stress free.

During a typical Fear Free veterinary visit, you will see our practice team using some of these techniques:

• Offering tasty treats from home to distract your pet and make them happy (and if you forget your treats we have some yummy options to share).
• Providing comfortable, non-slip surfaces for your pet to stand on thus improving balance and reducing discomfort.
• Encouraging pets with a happy voice, smile, and treats - we never handle them roughly to get them on a table or into a cage.
• We will work on the floor with your pet if that is where they prefer to be during their exam.
• We use special music that has been shown to be calming, and relaxing to your pet in each exam room- this also helps with reducing outside noises that may worry your pet.
• Creating a calming environment with pheromone diffusers and sprays.
• Prescribing anti-anxiety and calming medications to give prior to their visit.
• If your pet is showing excessive signs of fear, anxiety, or stress, the team may postpone the exam/procedure until a time when the pet is more relaxed - often sending home medication to give prior to the next visit.
• Recommending sedation if the patient needs a procedure that is scary or painful.

The main benefit of a kind and considerate approach to our patients is that they are happy to come visit us!
 

Our Mission

The Mission of Veterinary Services of Aiken is to care for your pet as if they were our own. We want to ensure that our patients live long, wonderful, healthy and dignified lives by:

• providing the highest quality and progressive health care following the standards of the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA), and
• offering our services in a professional facility with the best medical equipment, compassionate care and a "home away from home" atmosphere that allows our patients to be comfortable, stimulated and clean.

The Vision of Veterinary Services is to provide advanced medicine and excellent customer service by a responsive, professional staff with emphasis on individual attention and commitment to community service. We are the best veterinary hospital in our community for small animal physical and emotional well-being.

Please call or text (803) 648-5489 to make an appointment or request an appointment online. We welcome you to drop by anytime to visit us!