Animal Dental Care & Oral Surgery

We’ve had many positive experiences here, and I truly appreciate the exceptional care provided by the entire team. Bringing in both my dogs and my two young children at the same time could have been overwhelming, but the staff handled everything with patience and kindness. Madison and Devon at the front desk are always incredibly organized and communicative, keeping me informed every step of the way. The vet techs made sure I knew when my dogs were being prepped for surgery and kept me updated throughout the process. Dr. Baldwin has cared for two of my dogs, and we couldn’t be more grateful. She is not only highly skilled but also incredibly compassionate and thorough. She takes the time to explain everything clearly and genuinely cares about her patients. I truly feel she has gone above and beyond for us, and we are so thankful for her dedication.

Our girl has epilepsy and we were extremely nervous about getting her dental work done. She had a broken tooth that needed to be removed and 2 that needed bonding sealant. We chose to go with Animal Dental Care & Oral Surgery because unlike our regular vet office, they have an anesthesiologist monitoring your pet the whole time during the procedure. And that made us feel more comfortable opting for them vs or regular vet. It was a little bit more pricey, but worth it for the level of care we received and peace of mind. I couldn't be happier with our choice and we are so grateful for such an amazing experience of compassion and professionalism. Would 10/10 recommend!

Dr. Emily Baldwin at Animal Dental Care & Oral Surgery provided exceptional care for our 6-month-old puppy who needed a tooth extraction and gum procedure. She was incredibly professional and took the time to thoroughly explain our puppy's dental issues, the procedure details, and post-surgery care instructions. Her knowledge and compassionate approach made a stressful situation much easier to handle. The procedure went smoothly, and our puppy recovered quickly thanks to her skilled work. The entire staff was wonderful, but Dr. Baldwin truly stands out for her expertise and genuine care. Highly recommend her to anyone seeking specialized dental care for their pet in Colorado Springs!

Disclaimer: This poor review would not be necessary if the clinic and doctor had just done the right thing and agreed to add preventative measures to ensure that future pets won’t be tragically harmed or die, like ours did. The doctor most likely does a good job with his actual surgery. But, I’m compelled to warn you that, if something goes wrong, they will take NO responsibility and hide behind their corporate insurance company. So, for your pet’s sake, you should be aware of my story to protect your pet from this clinic and from any other vet who may neglect to take simple preventative measures that would have saved my pets and could save yours. We entrusted this clinic with our two cats for full mouth extractions, at an estimated cost of around $8,000, believing they would be in good hands. Unfortunately, our trust was tragically misplaced. Just three days after the surgery, our cat died from collapsed lungs. The emergency vet was shocked that the oral surgeon didn’t require a pre-anesthesia chest x-ray, especially given our cat’s elderly age and weight. Such an x-ray could have revealed underlying lung issues, preventing his untimely death. Instead, he suffered, suffocated, and was rushed into a heartbreaking euthanasia. Their lack of thorough pre-op screening was negligent, in our opinion, and cost us dearly. Despite asking repeatedly for them to acknowledge their misjudgment or oversight and to change their policy—particularly to always perform pre-anesthesia x-rays on elderly and/or at-risk pets—they instead continued to “ask for our patience” and passed us to their corporate insurance provider who drug on their “investigation” for months. The insurer denied any responsibility. This stance is unacceptable and shows a blatant disregard for pet safety. The second cat, who also underwent the same procedure, was not given antibiotics afterward, even though he entered with foul breath and gum disease caused by bacteria. Just five days later, he developed a painful, oral abscess that swelled up the side of his face and even caused pus to ooze from his eye! The infection needed sedation and treatment at his local vet, costing over $600. This could have been prevented with a simple, inexpensive and preventative antibiotic shot after his surgery. Yet their insurance company, even when presented with clear medical records, again responded with errors, outright lies and misinformation in their response (proving they didn’t bother to carefully investigate the case). They ultimately refused to admit any responsibility or offer any reimbursement, dismissing infections as “an unavoidable risk” of the surgery! Admitting that an infection is a known risk of surgery, and then saying that the doctor isn’t responsible for using antibiotics, which is a standard preventive measure for the surgery being performing, is frankly negligent, imo! It’s clear this clinic has traded cautious care for your pet, for profit, knowing they are protected from any responsibility. They didn’t even bother to send a sympathy card. I reported them to the state, but the damage is done. I strongly urge pet owners to be cautious. Don’t assume that expensive specialists mean better care. Always ask about pre-anesthesia chest x-rays, especially for elderly or at-risk pets, and insist on preventative antibiotics like Convenia. Both can save your pet from unnecessary suffering and combined should cost less than $200. I feel this clinic’s priorities are misplaced, and their corporate shield allows them to continue risking pets’ lives without consequence. I hate having to write a poor review. I always prefer praise. I hope you have a good experience. However, our experience is heartbreaking and could have been avoided. I hope sharing it helps others avoid the same tragedy.

This is regarding lack of care at Animal Dental Care & Oral Surgery. It’s not concerning the dental care, which was good. The abridged version is that they kept my dog, Dallas Alice, for 12 hours for a teeth cleaning. The unexpurgated version follows. At 7:10 AM on 10-9-2024 I had an appointment to drop off Dallas. We arrived at 7. At 1:45 my husband called to ask about her; they said she was next in line. At 4:22 they called to say she was being seen. Since she’d been there for 9 hours I was upset. So I drove there from Manitou. Staff member Madison took me to an exam room where I voiced my complaint. Eventually Dr. Vall came and stood in the doorway of the room. As I explained what it was like for Dallas to be there for 9 hours, he interrupted me to say, “You need to focus on the good news. Dallas doesn’t need extractions.” Yes that’s good news; but my complaint is valid. Which is that I dropped her off at 7:10 AM and since by 2 o’clock I hadn’t heard a word back from them, the onus was on me to call. Evidently their policy is to only make three calls to pet owners but apprising them when they’re running late isn’t one they make. Dr. Vall explained they were short-staffed and he can’t know how long each patient will take. I get it. Each patient is unique. But they ARE aware they’re running late so the decent thing is to let pet owners know. This isn’t a vehicle that I’ve dropped off at the shop for upkeep. This is a family member. A living being. I dropped Dallas off at 7 and they didn’t start on her until after 4. So by the time she was cleared to leave, it was 7 PM. Twelve hours after I’d dropped her off. Once home and settled enough to eat a little, it’d been 28 hours since her last meal; and, consequently, 28 hours since her liver meds, which must be taken with food. That is absurd. Dallas was there for 12 hours with no food or water. I realize her life wasn’t in danger. But it’s unnecessary to keep her for that amount of time, away from family, and with nothing to eat or drink. It probably felt like a prison sentence to her. It’s uncaring on Animal Dental Care & Oral Surgery’s part. All said, my dog received good dental care there. But awareness of time when they have someone’s family member needs to be addressed. And the fact that Dr. Vall was apathetic when I spoke with him when I arrived there, upset, around 5, having driven from Manitou, is compounded by the fact that when Dallas was finally released at 7 PM, Dr. Vall didn’t have the decency to be there to speak with me and show compassion and empathy like Madison did. Madison was exceptional; professional, respectful, and caring. She listened. She HEARD me. Which was more than Dr. Vall did. He couldn’t escape the exam room the three of us were in fast enough. Moreover, when I apologized to Madison for being so upset, she stopped me and said my feelings were valid and that it must’ve felt like Dallas had disappeared and they didn’t care. Yes. That’s what it felt like. Madison also explained the aforementioned three-call policy, which I get. Policies are in place at all businesses. But they must be flexible in extreme circumstances as was the case with Dallas. What happened there was an egregious lack of respect for and callous indifference to Dallas as a living being. The twelve hours she spent there prolonged the already stressful situation of taking one’s pet in for teeth cleaning. It’s important to note the office manager reached out right away, said my complaints were valid and offered an apology. She also said they’ll be making more frequent calls to keep clients apprised of their pet’s stay. Hopefully they'll analyze what happened with Dallas and ensure that, maybe by improving scheduling, no other pet will spend 12 hours there. I won’t be bringing my dogs to Animal Dental Care and Oral Surgery again. I’d rather pay the extra money my primary vet charges for teeth cleaning because I know I’m able to pick them up at a more reasonable time.