Surgical Procedures

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We understand, it can be a lot to sort through. If your pet is in need of emergency care, don't wait! Give us a call and discuss your pet's situation with our well trained staff so that we can make certain that your pet receives the care it may need.

Surgeries Performed

Dr. Stubbs is a board certified surgeon and performs both orthopedic procedures and soft tissue procedures. He speaks to veterinarians both in the Denver area, and across the country. If you've been told your animal needs a procedure that is not listed, please call us and Dr. Stubbs has likely done it before!

$Xray of a fracture$

Fracture Repair

While bone is one of the hardest substances in the body, it is not unbreakable. Sadly, many of our patients find this out sometimmes from just sustaining a short fall. The site of teh fracture, age of the animal, bones broken and type of break all factor into the decision of what kind of repair should be attempted. Dr. Stubbs has a great deal of experience with bone plates, screws, external fixation devices and some of the other latest techniques.

Disc herniation repair

Some dogs will unfortuantely experience a rupture of the material inside their intervertebral discs. This is a painful condition which some breeds, such as dachunds, are sadly prone to getting due to genetics. Often times, an episode will begin with a short fall or trauma and then progress to total or near paralysis of the hind end. While some dogs will respond to medical management for mild cases, if there is a sufficient amount of inflammation and disc material, this is a surgical condition that can almost always be completely corrected if acted upon in a timely fashion. Using specialized equipment, the bone is removed from the side of the spinal cord and the offending material is carefully removed. This allows blood supply to return to the spinal cord and ultimately, after a recovery period of a few months, allows our patients to walk again!

Emergency Surgery

Some diseases may require urgent surgical intervention. Some examples may include ruptured gall bladders, intestinal obstructions, bleeding abdominal masses, bloat, difficulties in the birthing process, neurological back problems and many other conditions.

At the AHSC, we have a dedicated team of 24/7 on-call specialists, surgical technicians, radiologists and anesthetists to ensure that any patient requiring emergency surgery receives immediate care with the 1-on-1 monitoring.

Cranial Cruciate Repair

One of the most common orthopedic issues facing dogs is a rupture of the cranial cruciate ligament, the same ligament as the ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) in people. This painful condition leads to limping, sometimes on and off over a period of time, and effects the overall quality of your pet's life. Both anatommy and genetics may play a part in the common nature of this disease, and while we are beginning to better understand why this occurs, we do know how to very successfully treat this condition.

Our surgery team meets with every surgery canidate and will discuss with the the procs and cons of each procedure that has been developed to repair this condition. Some invlove chaning the geometry and physics of the knee itself, while others attempt stabilize the knee with synthetic structures. Which surgery your dog is the best canidate for can depend on several factors such as age, degree of activity, the geometry of the knee itself and how large your dog is. Dr. Stubbs has been performing many of these procedures for many years, and he was actually involved in the development of one.