The Small Animal Hospital in Mumbai is changing India’s veterinary healthcare landscape, spanning an impressive 9,846 sq m with a capacity to accommodate over 200 patients. Built at a cost of `800 million, the hospital focuses primarily on small companion animals such as dogs and cats and is India’s largest single-site multispecialty animal healthcare centre.

“The facility is the first of its kind in the country and there were no benchmarks to meet or establish the key drivers of what should be part of this hospital,” says Ravi Sarangan, Co-Founder and Director, Edifice. “Multiple options were developed and presented to Mr. [Ratan] Tata personally, and his involvement and input in the projects were of great value. The design brief mandated that the facility was not to be a high-rise and efforts were taken to restrict the patient areas as close to the ground as possible for ease of evacuation in case of emergencies. Keen thought was given to every small detail, ranging from the planning of outpatient waiting areas to planning the location of the smallest enclosure for the patients.”