Clearwater International advises Varde Dyrehospital on its sale to AniCura, backed by private equity groups

Clearwater International has advised the owners of Varde Dyrehospital, a leading animal hospital in the Southern and Western part of Denmark, on its sale to AniCura, a family of animal hospitals and clinics specialised in veterinary care for companion animals.

Varde Dyrehospital is the result of a successful merger between Varde Dyrlæger and Helle Dyrlægerne in 2015. Varde Dyrehospital is the largest animal hospital in the region, with the highest volume of veterinarians solely dedicated to surgery and care of small animals. The animal hospital has a broad service offering with several specialist competencies such as heart scans and spinal surgery. Varde Dyrehospital is equally owned and led by four highly-experienced veterinarians and has 19 employees.

The acquirer, AniCura, was established through the first merger of companion animal hospitals in the Nordic region in 2011. Today, AniCura provides modern, high-quality veterinary care at 150 European locations. The company’s 3,000 veterinary professionals tend to more than one million animals each year, offering a range of high-quality medical services covering preventive and basic health care, advanced diagnostics, internal medicine, intensive care, surgery and orthopaedics. AniCura also provides rehabilitation, physiotherapy and dietary advice and offers selected pet food and care products.

AniCura is owned by the Animal Hospital Foundation in Greater Stockholm and two private equity groups, Fidelio Capital and Nordic Capital.