Advanced Orthopedic Surgery
for Dogs and Cats
The Advanced Veterinary Surgery Center at the UC Davis Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital offers veterinary orthopedic surgery for dogs, cats, and other companion animals. This expansion of the Orthopedic Surgery Service opened in 2024 and is a standalone center located just steps from the hospital. The center encompasses 25 rooms and 7,300 square feet of space, including three operating rooms.
Think your dog or cat may need orthopedic surgery?
Please work with your primary veterinarian to have a preliminary diagnosis. Orthopedics is a referral-only service - after preliminary diagnosis, your primary veterinarian can work with the Orthopedic Surgery Service referral coordinator to schedule an appointment.
Appointment information for referring veterinarians
Estimated wait times for an appointment with Orthopedic Surgery:
• Trauma cases are seen within just a few days
• Elective surgeries are seen within 2 weeks
• Appointments for lameness cases are generally available within 4-6 weeks
• Life threatening emergencies are always treated immediately 24/7/365
Our state-of-the-art facility is dedicated to providing life-changing surgical treatment for dogs, cats, and other beloved companion animals.
Modeled after human health inpatient/outpatient facilities, the center provides advanced surgical capabilities for animals suffering from injuries or disorders of the bones and joints. This facility is dedicated to providing life-changing surgical treatment for dogs, cats, and other beloved companion animals. The center’s surgical specialists set the bar for innovative treatments performed at very few veterinary hospitals anywhere in the world, such as total hip replacements with the ability to create custom, 3D-printed titanium implants.
The Advanced Veterinary Surgery Center is led by five world-renowned, board-certified faculty surgeons and one residency-trained surgical fellow. They are some of the nation’s foremost authorities on joint replacement surgeries and other orthopedic breakthroughs.
Beyond offering more space than the UC Davis veterinary hospital’s Orthopedic Surgery Service, the center provides orthopedic surgeons with an environment that accommodates the latest in surgical technology, surgical instrumentation, anesthesia and monitoring equipment, and imaging equipment to support sophisticated procedures in small animals and drive surgical innovation.
Surgeries Offered
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Surgeons
Po-Yen Chou, BVM, MVM, DACVS (Small Animal), ACVS Fellow (Joint Replacement Surgery)
Associate Professor
Barbro Filliquist, DVM, DACVS (Small Animal), DECVS
Associate Professor
Amy Kapatkin, DVM, MAS, DACVS (Small Animal), ACVS Founding Fellow (Joint Replacement Surgery)
Professor
Ming Lu, DVM, MVM, MS, MS, DACVS (Small Animal), ACVS Fellow (Joint Replacement Surgery)
Assistant Professor
Denis J. Marcellin-Little, DEDV, DACVS (Small Animal), DACVSMR, ACVS Founding Fellow (Joint Replacement Surgery)
Professor
Staff
Amanda Dang, RVT
Small Animal Surgery Services Manager
Jenn La Sance, RVT
Advanced Veterinary Surgery Center Supervisor
Megan Zertuche
Advanced Veterinary Surgery Center Referral Coordinator
Angel Carbajal, RVT
Kaitlyn De Los Santos, AHT
Ashley Lee, RVT
Amber Leyno, RVT
Ryan Mitchell, RVT
Nicole Tuter, RVT