Family-owned veterinary care built on decades of trust in Oakland Park, FL.
There is a particular kind of trust that takes decades to earn. It is the trust of a family who first walked through the door with a wide-eyed puppy in 1990, and who now bring in their fifth dog from that same lineage, expecting the same warmth, the same familiar faces, and the same unhurried attention they have always received. That kind of trust cannot be manufactured by a corporate chain or a rotating cast of unfamiliar doctors.
At Oakland Park Animal Hospital, that trust has been building since 1987. We are a family-owned, doctor-operated practice serving Oakland Park, Wilton Manors, and the surrounding Fort Lauderdale community, led by Dr. Spencer Ratnoff, whose four decades of veterinary experience shape every visit that happens under our roof. We believe that your pet is our pet, and we treat every appointment, every phone call, and every worry with the same care we would want for our own animals.
Routine wellness exams and vaccination protocols for every life stage.
Dental care to catch oral disease before it becomes painful.
Diagnostics to identify what is going on when your pet is not acting like themselves.
Surgical services, including spays and neuters, lumpectomies and tumor removals, soft tissue surgeries, and wound repair.
Specialized exotic pet care for birds, reptiles, and small mammals.
Preventive care sits at the center of everything we do, and the data backs up why that matters. According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, value and affordability, not convenience, are the top reasons pet owners skip veterinary visits, which is exactly why we focus on making routine care predictable and worthwhile rather than something to put off.
Our clients often tell us they have never had a veterinarian they could actually reach, one who remembers the name of their cat without checking a chart, or who recalls that their dog gets anxious during nail trims and adjusts accordingly. That familiarity is not an accident. Because we are independently owned rather than part of a corporate rollup, our team has the freedom to build long-term relationships instead of managing patients like line items on a quarterly report.
We work with families who have been bringing pets to our practice across multiple generations of animals, sometimes the same family returning with their third, fourth, or fifth dog over the years. Whether you are a young family who just adopted your first puppy or a longtime Oakland Park resident who has trusted us for years, we aim to make your pet’s care feel personal rather than transactional.
Dr. Spencer Ratnoff has led Oakland Park Animal Hospital as owner and Medical Director since 1987, and his approach to general veterinary care has always centered on knowing his patients and their families well enough to remember their history without needing to check a chart. That continuity is what allows long-time clients to bring in their fifth generation of family pets and know they will receive the same unhurried, attentive care their first pet did decades earlier.
Our team takes the time to walk you through what we find during an exam and why it matters, rather than rushing you out the door with a bill and a prescription. If your household includes an unconventional companion, that same philosophy applies, since our hospital proudly offers exotic pet care as a reflection of Dr. Ratnoff’s own experience with birds, reptiles, and small mammals.
Just as people’s healthcare needs shift with age, so do a pet’s. Puppies and kittens need a structured vaccination series and guidance on nutrition and behavior as they grow. Adult pets benefit from consistent preventive screenings that catch subtle changes before they become emergencies.
Senior pets, generally considered seniors around age seven, often need more frequent monitoring, tailored pain management, and a veterinarian who understands the nuance of aging bodies. Our senior pet care program is built specifically around that shift, with semi-annual exams and individualized plans rather than a generic checklist. And for pet parents heading out of town, our boarding services offer the reassurance of a stay supervised by a team that already knows your pet’s history.
We also know that consistent veterinary care can feel like a financial balancing act, especially for families juggling multiple pets or unexpected visits. That is part of why we offer the Stay Well Pet Plan, an annual wellness membership designed to bundle routine vaccinations, discounted exam fees, and savings on services like lab testing, parasite prevention, and grooming into one predictable annual cost.
Ultimately, what sets Oakland Park Animal Hospital apart is not a single service or a piece of equipment. It is the fact that we have stayed independently, personally invested in this community for almost forty years, through changing ownership trends in veterinary medicine that have pushed many practices toward corporate consolidation. We have chosen a different path, and our clients feel the difference at every visit.
If you are looking for a veterinary team that will know your pet’s name and history for years to come, we would love to meet you. Contact our office today to schedule a visit and see what genuinely personal veterinary care feels like.
Schedule a visit with our compassionate team and let’s partner in your pet’s lifelong well-being.
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