State report

State of Vet Care in Arkansas

As of July 2026, Arkansas has 345 veterinary practices tracked; 14.2% are corporately owned , led by CareVet with 9 in-state locations . 85.8% of practices remain independently owned , and 7.2% are actively hiring .

Key takeaways

  • 345 veterinary practices tracked in Arkansas, of which 14.2% are corporately owned.
  • 13.0% of practices in Arkansas are private-equity-backed.
  • CareVet (owned by Compass Group Equity Partners) leads all consolidators operating in the state with 9 locations.
  • General practices make up 88.7% of the state's practice mix.

Consolidation by city

At a glance

345
Practices tracked
85.8%
Independent
14.2%
Corporately owned
13.0%
PE-backed

7.2% of practices in Arkansas are actively hiring.

Ownership breakdown in Arkansas

Ownership type Practices Share
Independent 296 85.8%
PE-backed 45 13.0%
Corporate group 4 1.2%
National ownership-type breakdown, stacked by share Independent: 85.8% (296 practices) PE-backed: 13.0% (45 practices) Corporate group: 1.2% (4 practices) 86%13% Independent (85.8%) PE-backed (13.0%) Corporate group (1.2%)

Top consolidators operating in Arkansas

Ranked by in-state locations. See the full national leaderboard on ownership & consolidation statistics.

# Group Ultimate owner In-state locations Share of corporate practices
1 CareVet Compass Group Equity Partners (Private Equity) 9 18.4%
2 Alliance Animal Health LightBay & L Catterton 8 16.3%
3 Thrive Pet Healthcare TSG Consumer Partners (Strategic) 6 12.2%
4 Western Veterinary Partners Tyree & D'Angelo Partners 5 10.2%
5 Heartland Veterinary Partners Gryphon Investors 5 10.2%
6 PetVet Care Centers KKR (Strategic) 4 8.2%
7 Vetco (Petco) Petco (Public) 3 6.1%
8 Innovetive Pet Care Metalmark Capital 2 4.1%
9 National Veterinary Associates JAB Holding Company (Strategic) 2 4.1%
10 CodaPet CodaPet (Independent) 1 2.0%

Practice-type mix

Type Practices Share
General 306 88.7%
Mobile 10 2.9%
Mixed 9 2.6%
Urgent Care 8 2.3%
Emergency 7 2.0%
Specialty Referral 5 1.4%

Species mix

Segment Practices Share
Small Animal 249 72.2%
Mixed 87 25.2%
Equine 6 1.7%
Exotic 3 0.9%

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Frequently asked questions

How many veterinary practices are in Arkansas?

As of July 2026, VetPulse tracks 345 veterinary practices in Arkansas.

What percentage of veterinary practices in Arkansas are corporately owned?

14.2% of veterinary practices in Arkansas are corporately owned — part of a consolidator, private-equity-backed group, or public company — while 85.8% remain independent.

Who is the largest veterinary consolidator in Arkansas?

CareVet (owned by Compass Group Equity Partners) is the largest veterinary consolidator operating in Arkansas, with 9 in-state locations.

What share of veterinary practices in Arkansas are hiring?

7.2% of veterinary practices in Arkansas are actively hiring, based on live job-signal data.

Every figure above is queried live from our practice-level dataset — see the methodology for how ownership is triangulated from multiple independent sources. Compare Arkansas against every other state on the ownership & consolidation statistics page, or browse the rankings.