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Dr. Jim Turpel – DVM

Dr. Jim Turpel – DVM

Dr. Jim Turpel – DVM

I have been performing orthopedic and complex soft tissue surgeries since first graduating from the Ontario Veterinary College in 1993.

My involvement in many of my “early” surgical cases was borne out of necessity since there were very limited options for owners in the Niagara Region if their pet developed a serious surgical condition. However, after performing a number of these complex surgeries with excellent success, and witnessing the relief, joy and gratitude expressed by clients and pets alike my future course as a veterinarian was forever changed. I realized surgery was my calling and have dedicated tremendous time, energy and resources into developing my surgical skills. Through these efforts our hospital has developed a reputation among clients and fellow veterinarians that has resulted in the creation of the Upper Canada Animal Hospital Surgical Referral Service. This service sees us routinely helping seriously injured pets from throughout Ontario and upstate New York return to their normal, lovable, energetic selves. With thousands of orthopedic, and far more soft tissue, surgeries under my belt I feel very comfortable dealing with a myriad of conditions that can plague our pets.

Be assured that when you enter the doors of Upper Canada Animal Hospital our primary concern is providing the absolute best care for your pet. To meet this end we follow a very simple “golden rule”. A rule that guides my entire team (in fact it is the core foundation that the hospital is built on)  ” do unto others as you would have then do unto you”. Professionally this translates into treating every client the way we would like to be treated. This means providing information and options to every client so they can feel confident that they are making educated decisions, providing an exceptional level of veterinary care to our patients and service to their owners, and treating every pet as though they were one of our own. The hospital staff are accustomed to hearing me say “if this was Blue or Penny” ( our family dogs) “or Lionheart” (our furry feline family friend) “I’d recommend…”. If I wouldn’t recommend something for my own pets I certainly wouldn’t recommend it for a client’s. This practice philosophy has worked out extremely well for our hospital. Through the years, involving thousands of clients and pets that we have had the privilege to serve, we have developed an extremely loyal extended family of clients that have demonstrated their appreciation for our dedication and commitment to providing an exceptional level of veterinary care in a very personal, caring and empathetic manner.

When you enter our hospital, I’m confident you will recognize how our team loves what we do.  My mother and father taught me to follow my dreams since “if you love what you do you’ll never have to work a day in your life”. Cheers Mom and Dad, and Thank You, for I feel like I’ve lived the life of Riley throughout my veterinary career.

Below is a list of surgeries that I am proficient in performing:

ORTHOPEDIC

  • Cranial Cruciate Ligament repairs: TTA’s and extracapsular repairs
  • Luxating Patella repairs: medial and lateral
  • Femoral Head and Neck Ostectomies (FHO): treatment of severe hip arthritis and hip fractures
  • Fracture repairs: simple to complex
  • Limb Amputations: typically due to very severe trauma preventing successful reconstruction, or cancer
  • Osteochondritis Dissecans (OCD)
  • Elbow Dysplasia
  • Corkscrew Tail Amputations

SOFT TISSUE

  • Modified Lateral Ear Resection and Total Ear Canal Ablation: treatment for severe ear disease that cannot be medically managed
  • Brachycephalic Syndrome: treatment of elongated soft palate, stenotic nares, everted laryngeal Saccules
  • Nasal fold resections
  • Perineal Urethrostomies
  • Bladder and Urethral Stone removal
  • Gastrointestinal Foreign Body Removal: including intestinal resection and anastomoses
  • Anal Gland Sacculectomies ( removal of anal glands)
  • Complicated Skin Mass Resections: frequently requiring reconstructive surgery
  • External Eye Surgery: eyelid mass resections, entropion, ectropion, third eye flaps and conjunctival flaps in the treatment of severe or persistent corneal ulceration
  • Pyometra (removal of infected uterus)
  • Caesarean Section
  • Gastric Dilatation and Volvulus (GDV) Prophylactic Tacking- performed in breeds prone to GDV at time of neutering/spaying.