Hospital for Veterinary Dentistry and Oral Surgery

oh my gosh!!! GO HERE!!! if you have dental/oral surgery needs, this is the place you want to take your pet. I saw Dr. Steffes and one of her associates for a oral cancer surgery consult and they are experts with outstanding client care. They sat on the floor with Rock and I ... showed us photos of what the procedure would look like... and they answered all of my questions. There are larger surgery centers, but if your surgery is oral. I strongly suggest going here. They are specialized and they are able to take care of you as a pet owner. They have tons of testimonies. Due to Rockies sensitive teeth (he was a stray) we will likely be back for additional care. Thank you for loving us, informing us and working with us in a really tough situation.

Dr. Steffes and team are outstanding! My kitty’s lower mandible was fractured during a routine dental cleaning with a General Practice Vet. The GP Vet extracted his lower canines without notifying me or informing me of any risks (this procedure is extremely technical and challenging to perform due to the fragile nature of a cat’s mandible). My kitty’s jaw looked disfigured when I brought him home and within a few days he was exhibiting an extreme pain reaction. He also developed a foul odor in his mouth. I increasingly grew concerned and brought him back to the GP Vet to seek additional medical attention. I showed her his disfigured jaw, his lip was splayed out and his baby incisors collapsed inside his mouth. She dismissed my cat’s situation and stated that if his jaw was fractured it would heal on its own. She also did not address his raging oral infection. She told me to manage my expectations and that he can never eat dry food again because his jaw will be sore. She told me to schedule a follow visit in 2 weeks. As I left there feeling demoralized and scared for my kitty’s wellbeing, I reached out to Dr. Steffes and her incredible team of highly skilled, properly trained, and qualified dental and oral vet experts. Karen in customer service answered my first call and within hours she connected me to Sara, dental vet tech specialist and liaison to the practice. Sara quickly called me to discuss my case and consulted me on my kitty’s likely fractured jaw. She sent pertinent information to Dr. Steffes for her to review my case. Within 1 day, Sara called me back and scheduled me to bring my kitty to VDOS for emergency surgery (suspected jaw fracture). I took my kitty to VDOS the next morning and we met with Shelby, dental specialist vet tech. She was thorough and kind and walked me through how things would unfold throughout the day. I felt confident leaving my kitty in their hands. That afternoon, I received the call from Dr. Steffes. She had examined my kitty and informed me that he had a bad infection in his jaw and that his mandible was irreparably damaged from the GP Vet lower canine extractions. She confirmed her findings with a CT scan and walked me through her recommendation - a mandibulectomy. Dr. Steffes assured me that this type of procedure was her forte and that my kitty would do well, be pain free, comfortable and able resume a normal QOL. We proceeded. I arrived late in the afternoon to pick up my kitty and Dr. Steffes and Shelby sat with me for an hour reviewing their findings. Our discussion underscored how important it is to seek out qualified, highly trained veterinary specialists when considering care options for companion pets. I’m inspired by the humanity and compassionate care Dr. Steffes and team extended to me and my beloved kitty. Dr. Steffes is an excellent oral surgeon. Dr. Steffes and her team saved my kitty’s life and I will forever be grateful. I’ve included three photos for reference. The first photo shows what my kitty looked like before his broken jaw. Second photo of my kitty with broken jaw from GP vet lower canine extractions jaw - he was in a lot of pain in this photo. The third photo shows my angel resting peacefully with his newly resected jaw - his tongue will now hang out from time to time.

If you need dental work for your dog- go here! I was referred to them by my primary for a root canal due to a dead canine tooth. They were able to get me in quickly, and were able to do my consult and procedure same day. They took care to go over everything before the procedure, and I received contestant text messages during his care to keep me updated- never did I have to call ONCE, I always knew what was going on (and that is so, so appreciated). They also took great care not to shave my poodles coat for IV, which to me was above and beyond. Over all, 10/10 experience, if my animals ever need dental work again I will absolutely come here. Friendly staff, wonderful doctors and nurses, and a really nice facility.

I have taken both my kitties here for dental procedures and I am always so pleased with their care and comfort throughout the process. I would like to specifically call out Sara who helped me through a particularly tough weekend up to the procedure, and provided a regimen and advice that allowed my kitty to get to the procedure date and not be so sick from his tooth pain. Very grateful for all the doctors and their teams for treating my boys with such care and kindness whenever we visit - it makes the procedure days so much easier knowing they care about them as much as I do!

I'm extremely happy with my experience here; my cat needed extensive dental care and everyone from the doctors to the techs to the receptionist were amazing every step of the way. I was able to get everything scheduled quickly, and they were great about keeping me updated, even during surgery. It's clear that they care about their patients, and I'm very thankful for their hard work.

I would not wish my experience here with my dog's oral surgery on anyone. We had a consultation around 6 months ago with the surgeon, and that would be the last time I ever spoke with her, despite many calls and emails requesting a call back. The dental repair performed in July 2024 has already failed, and my calls to the office have gone unreturned. My dog now requires another surgery (at another practice) less than 6 months after the intial surgery here. We discussed during the consult that my dog would have the first surgery of the day and a recovery room. When we arrived that morning for surgery, I was informed that the surgery had been moved back. Once my dog was already under anesthesia and in surgery, the front desk texted me that he would no longer have a recovery room. I had confirmed the room 3 times prior to the surgery. The surgeon never came to speak with me before or after surgery, the tech was impatient after surgery, would only say that it went "good". She complained about my dog being nervous and anxious when he was coming out of anesthesia and still confused. When we got home and I reviewed the discharge paperwork, his weight was misreported, 11 lbs less than the weight he had consistently been for 4 years. I was told by the office that "this cannot be explained" and I strongly suspect that this had something to do with his challenging recovery that took almost an entire week, when I was told he would be recovered in less than a day. Recovery was difficult, but whenever I called the office with my concerns, I was told that "labs are whiny" (my dog is a mutt, only about 10% lab) and I never got a call back from the surgeon. I reached out to share my experience about the day of surgery, still no call back. Our regular vet checked in, and I was told that she also had requested that the surgeon call. The care my dog received and our treatment by the staff was abysmal. I would recommend anyone who cares about their pet seek treatment with a different oral surgery practice.

I was seeking a place to get my dog teeth cleaned. I called here only to be placed on hold for 5 minutes (which I didn't mind). Yet when the lady came back to the phone she had no time for my questions, no time to seek simple answers (like the price); instead all of her answers started with usually or hypothetically. I love my dog too much to take him somewhere that seemed to be short staffed or a staff with short patience