Surgery
What is a board-certified veterinary surgeon?
If your pet develops a problem or injury requiring advanced care and procedures, your primary veterinarian or emergency room veterinarian may refer you to a veterinary surgeon.
Our board-certified veterinary surgeons at SFAMC have undergone extensive additional training after veterinary school to become a specialist. Per the ACVS, this training consists of a minimum of a 1-year internship followed by a 3-year residency program that meets guidelines established by the American College of Veterinary Surgeons (ACVS).
If your pet develops a problem or injury requiring advanced care and procedures, your primary veterinarian or emergency room veterinarian may refer you to a veterinary surgeon.
At SFAMC we have the latest in technology, equipment, state-of-the-art facility, round the clock care, and skilled staff all under one roof to care for your pet.
How we collaborate with primary care and other specialists
We act as your primary care veterinarian's partners in providing the highest quality medical and surgical care to your pet. You can expect a high level of communication with you and your primary care veterinarian to ensure the continuity of care.
How we collaborate with your primary care veterinarian:
- We will obtain the pertinent medical records, laboratory test results and x-rays from your primary care veterinarian in preparation for your surgery consultation.
- After your surgery consultation, we will email a visit summary to your primary care veterinarian which will include the physical exam findings, test results, diagnosis and recommendations as well as home care instructions. If a surgery is performed, this will also include a detailed description of the surgical procedure.
- We will continue to provide emailed visit summaries to your primary care veterinarian with each progress check visit as well as with diagnostic test results as they become available.
- We are available to your primary care veterinarian by email or telephone to discuss any aspects of your pet’s care with the San Francisco Animal Medical Center.
Our Procedures
- Soft Tissue Surgeries
- Orthopedic Surgeries
- TPLO (tibial plateau leveling osteotomy) and extracapsular lateral suture surgery to treat cranial cruciate ligament rupture
- Patella luxation repair
- Fracture repair
- Intestinal surgery to remove intestinal obstructions or tumors
- Gastopexy to prevent or treat GDV (gastric dilatation and volvulus or ‘bloat”)
- Skin tumor removal and advanced skin grafts or flaps to treat various skin tumors including: mast cell tumors, soft tissue sarcomas and other benign or malignant skin masses
- Splenectomy for splenic tumors, diseases of the spleen or splenic trauma
- Urogenital surgeries including bladder stone removal, perineal urethrostomy in cats and scrotal urethrostomy in dogs
- Airway surgery for brachycephalic dog breeds (soft palate resection) and laryngeal tie-back surgery for laryngeal paralysis
- Thoracic surgeries for conditions such as lung tumors, thoracic cancers and thoracic trauma
- Liver and gallbladder surgeries for conditions such as liver tumors and gallbladder disease, obstruction or biliary tumors.
Call us to learn more about our surgical procedures.
Equipment we use
Advanced tools used in these procedures include:
- Digital radiography (x-rays)
- Locking bone plate technology for fracture repair and TPLO surgery
- Surgical stapling equipment and vessel sealing technology for use in soft tissue surgery
- Advanced anesthesia monitoring equipment and pain management techniques
Our surgeons are trained in both advanced orthopedic and soft tissue surgeries and with specialized stapling and vessel sealing equipment have the ability to perform many different types of surgeries.
Please schedule a consultation to further have your pet assessed by one of our surgeons to find out how we can help your pet.
