VOSM: Testimonials

Dear Dr. Gallagher,

I wanted to thank you again and let you know that Denny Crane is doing wonderfully! It's been over a year since his spinal surgery and he's walking 15-30 minutes twice aday. We have to keep him from running but sometimes will let him on the leash with us. He went to the outer banks last weekend and experienced the ocean for the first time.Chased waves! He loved it!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

-Jean

Dr. Canapp,

I have been wanting to send you a note thanking you for all you did for Caper. He has recovered very well and is back to being his happy self again. We live on a lake and he has loved swimming this summer and playing with his little sister Kea. He started back in agility late summer and has shown at 3 trials. I put him in preferred, as I thought the lower jump heights would be good for him. He has finished 3 preferred titles so far and has legs on 2 others. As you can see from the picture he has been quite successful. I
appreciate all the wonderful care you have given him and love having my boy back happy and loving life again. Also here is a video of one of his most recent runs.

I cannot tell you how much I appreciate all you did for him.

Dee Crofton

Dear Dr. Lotsikas & Staff,

We want to thank you both for your awesome care of our beloved Ronan. Each person at VOSM works with excellence, efficiency, and compassion. I am so impressed with all of you and I have referred many dog-lovers to you! It is truly amazing how you have surgically "transformed" Ronan from a lame dog into a fully-functioning rambunctious normal dog! Thank you, thank you for all you and your excellent staff have done for Ronan and for us.

Claudia & Rick Powell

Dear Dr. Lotsikas & Team,

Thank you so much for everything you did for Frank. We really appreciate the love and care that went into his knee surgery and recovery-there is a lot of comfort in knowing that your doctor wants the surgery to be as successful as you do! I appreciate your willingness to answer all of our questions-big and small. Frank is doing great and everyone is looking forward to his off leash days which are approaching quickly!

Thanks again- Meghan & AJ

Dear Dr. Canapp & Team!

Thank you for the wonderful work you did with Elwood. He is thriving. We are scheduled to take his Canine Good Citizen test on Sunday, May 15th.

Best Wishes, Heather

Thank you Dr. Lotsikas and VOSM for fixing my hip so I can keep playing with my Mom!

Love, Hemi

Dear Staff at VOSM- Dr. Lotsikas, Janay, Krystal and the wonderful supporting staff,

We want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the successful surgery, the wonderful caring and outstanding physical therapy you all provided for our dear Shakespeare. He is running again, playing with his toys, fetching, eating well, gained all of his weight back and sleeping soundly.

All of you have made such a great contribution to our well being!

We love you all!

Maureen Harrington and family, including Shakespeare's brother and sister, Pearl & Geronimo, and especially Shakespeare

Dear Dr. Canapp,

Just a short note to thank you and your wonderful staff for helping Missy regain use of her hind leg. I appreciate how everyone made us feel so special and for the very clear and excellent instructions for her rehab. We are still taking it slow and letting the injured leg "catch up". She is getting long walks and treadmill workout each day.

Thanks again,

Phyllis Hutton for Missy Hutton

Dear Dr. Sherman,

Thank you sooooooooo much for fixing me up after six other doggie doctors failed.

They were dark days--or should I say eight whole months--of erroneousdiagnoses and treatment not to mention my style being cramped with my royal Cavalier King Charles Spaniel "robes" hanging in a crate. Anyway, once we found you---...thanks to Dr. Alexandra Bray of Bayside Medical in Severna Park--all was bow-wow again.

In ten minutes you gave my mistress the low-down on my case and although I concede that I didn't relish going under the knife, if it had to be I was glad I was in your hands.

Today, more than 20 months later, I walk two-and-a-half to three miles six days a week. I'm not sure my mistress is doing all this walking just for my entertainment, although she'd like me to believe that. I've seen her expression when she's stepped on the scale; to put it kindly the numbers whizzed by. (Ha, ha, just a little levity, Dr. Sherman.) In truth, she'd be packing on the pounds if I didn't take over as her personal trainer. And I couldn't have done it without you.

My mistress talks your name up all over the state, and beyond. You're her hero.

And, I'm grateful too. Just think, if I couldn't run or even walk again with that dreadful, horrors, limp, this place would be overrun with squirrels. Banish the thought!

Here are lots of licks and even more appreciation.

Hampton Helio (sun god) Boetig

Thank you to all the receptionists, rehab therapy staff, and Dr. Lotsikas for everything you've done for Guinness. From the warm smiles to the continuous encouragement, I can't thank you enough for all that you do.

Thank you giving Guinness his quality of life back. He runs and plays at the dog park just like he did before surgery.

About two weeks ago, he came and sat in front of me...put his front paws on my lap...and...raised himself up on both hind legs so that he could then put his paws on my shoulders.

His side movement in the yard is excellent...and he seems to have no aftereffects from his surgery.

We all wanted to thank you for taking such good care of Ellie. Her leg really seems "as good as new," and you guys were terrific doctors and care-givers along the way. We appreciate everything you did for us!

It has been almost a year since you repaired Zeek's left elbow. We started upland bird hunting in late September and finished March 12th. It was a very productive season for both of us and it was Zeek's most comfortable and fun filled season so far. We both thank you very much and are looking forward to more fun hunts to come.

We just wanted to give you a quick update. I am the very active, young rottweiler from PA that you did a TPLO on in September. I just graduated from the water treadmill therapy and tonight I had my first 5 minutes off leash in my back yard. I am soooooooooooo very happy now and am loving having my toys back to shake and play with. I am also thrilled to be allowed in the kitchen with my mom and dad now. Thank-you so much for taking such awesome care of me and for fixing my leg. My mom tells everyone about this journey we have gone through and how fantastic your team is. Thanks again!!!!!!!! Love, Csonka Stafford

Just wanted to let you know that Morgan did make it to AKC Agility Nationals. She remained feisty and sound throughout the weekend. In fact, she placed 7th (out of approximately 100 dogs) in one of her jumpers runs. Not bad for a 10 year old corgi, just 15 weeks out of TPLO surgery.

I want to thank Dr. Canapp, Dr. Zink, Courtney Molino, and the rest of the staff for all that you did to make this possible. It truly was a team effort.

I am most appreciative of the fact that your goal is to get performance dogs back to the “games” they love.

I believe Toro is going to be your star student/patient. He is of course extremely happy to be home. He is amazingly enough walking with little problem. He is even lifting his leg to pee and not losing his balance. He is peeing and pooping with no problems. We have mastered the sling to get up and down the front stairs, but other than that on flat surfaces he is walking on his own.

His appetite is great, he is doing well on all the medicines. He isn't drinking much at all, but he eats Eukenuba Senior formula and I put water over that so he is getting water. We have been icing down his back and doing the exercises Holly told us to do, with no problems. Knock on wood, he has left the incision alone, no scratching or biting. He isn't really even paying attention to it.

I think the biggest obstacle is going to be keeping him from doing too much too soon. He is already getting ancy and not loving so much time in his crate. He is an amazing dog!!

He is not just a dog though, he is a member of my family and I can't thank you and your staff enough. Lisa, Susan, Melissa, Stephanie, Mindy, Joe, Amanda, Tanya, Holly,Courtney, the entire front desk crew, and the others who's names I don't know, they are all wonderful! Extremely professtional and yet still caring and personal. I thank you all again for helping Toro. We begin therapy next Monday so maybe we will see you then.

I recently took my 1-1/2 year-old Bouvier, Marley, back to VOSM for a re-check and wanted to let you know what a wonderful experience we both had.

First of all let me compliment you by saying that your new facility is gorgeous and very comfortable for both humans and pets. Second, your staff was extremely friendly and accommodating. Even the refreshments were great!

I want to mention in particular two people from the front desk that were particularly helpful, Shannon and Andrea. These two young ladies were not only courteous and friendly but also professional.

In addition, Colleen, the veterinary technician that worked with us, was extremely competent and again, friendly and professional.

Last but certainly not least, Dr. Peter Lotsikas was a pleasure to work with. He was (not to sound monotonous) very professional, yet friendly, not to mention extremely knowledgeable! He took the time to explain my dog's condition and answered all of my questions patiently in spite of the silly questions I asked.

Over all, mine and Marley's experience was a pleasure. I will highly recommend VOSM to anyone considering Orthopedic specialists.

I imagine everyone at VOSM is happy to be in the new hospital. I'll bet it is a really top of the line facility! My wife and I still have Rocky (we don't want to let him go) and he is doing great. He loves to play with our dogs and he has no trouble at all keeping up with them. If he overdoes it, he might limp a little for a day or so, but Dr. Noto gave us some medicine for that.

Rocky is never going to win any beauty or agility contests, but he is an absolutely wonderful dog, always happy and sweet and grateful. I really cannot find strong enough words to express how happy we are that he can just be a regular dog after all he went through. We will always be deeply thankful to Dr. Canapp and VOSM!!

Today is Keller's 10 month birthday. Thanks to you and the support of your great staff, I have a precocious active blind boy! I tried to down load a very short video to show you (Keller) running around the backyard chasing his 2 year old "uncle". Unfortunately, I am more computer challenged than I realized! Though he doesn't do it with the utmost grace, he can stop and change direction without missing a beat. Given that 3 months ago, his leg was close to perpendicular to the ground when he walked, I consider this quite a feat. The last snow storm dumped 7", which forced Keller to really pick up his hind leg. We spent many days taking progressively longer walks through the woods with the deep snow and the need to step over fallen branches. Last weekend, we "hiked (I call it walking with my other guys but Keller is different) 2 miles on the roads around our home. With all this extra activity, his muscle has started to return. We have a long way to go if it is every going to equal his right thigh muscle, but at least you can see a little definition. With his determination, however, I have no doubt the majority of the muscle will return.

Believe it or not, this pup who started out at 6 oz, 10 months ago, now has become the alpha dog in this pack of 5. The only one who doesn't cower to Keller's head high in the air and his commanding bark is his 6.5 year old "Grandmother". She can still put the little whippersnapper in his place. Thank you so much for giving me back my puppy. I used to tell folks I had a blind, nearly crippled puppy. Not so any longer!

TOO WELL!!! She thinks she’s ready for the next DC marathon - I may need to be the next “patient” from trying to keep her in line! only…50 days.…3 hours…12 minutes …to go … at least for this

Everyone at VOSM has been wonderful - and Lisa…what can I say? She’s great! …and Holly…and Courtney and Courtney and Katelin…and….of course YOU and Debra!

PS: FYI – Molly is an entirely different dog – wish we had done those elbows years ago – only problem now is that she is taking great pride in “bullying” Melo at every opportunity! Pretty funny to watch! Thanks again from all of us.

In the summer of 2007 my son’s chocolate lab (Rocky) was diagnosed with luxating patellas. We live in northeastern Pennsylvania, and the corrective surgery was performed locally. Everything went wrong, and both of Rocky’s patella tendons tore. He could not put weight on his hind legs, and another local veterinary surgeon attempted to reconnect the tendons. He told us it was a long shot, and indeed it was, as both repairs failed. At this point we began to realize that Rocky might never walk again, and we were totally devastated. Then some web surfing told us about Dr. Canapp and VOSM. We made an appointment, and Dr. Canapp told us about a tendon graft procedure that would enable Rocky to walk and play again. After a preliminary surgery to clean out the metal and wires in Rocky’s hind legs, Dr. Canapp performed the graft procedure on Rocky’s right leg on January 2, 2008. The plan was to do the left leg once the right became strong enough, but miraculously Rocky’s left leg began to heal on its own. Within a few months Rocky was able to resume his life as a very happy and playful – and occasionally goofy – lab. This was made possible by the extraordinary skill and care of Dr. Canapp and his wonderful staff at VOSM! We could not be happier at how everything turned out for Rocky.

Just wanted to share my Christmas pictures with all of you and thank you again for fixing my ACL. Dad and Mom won't let me do anything fun though and I really don't like that PT stuff either but Dad says it will help me so I guess I'll have to keep doing it.

I wanted to drop you a note to let you know what Tasha has been up to since we finished our therapy last April. She spent the summer swimming in our pool and re-training in agility, two things she absolutely loves to do. While I’ll never let her retrieve her Frisbee or ball on land, she can play agility within reason and can retrieve in the water to her heart’s content.

Our biggest brag is that Tasha WON her division at the NADAC Championships in September of this year. She accomplished this with 6 out of 6 First Place runs, beating the competition by a wide margin. People are amazed at the speed she has given her age of 10 and considering what she went through last year after her fractured shoulder and severe medial shoulder instability. But Tasha is all heart and never one to let anything stop her from enjoying life. She gives everything she does 110% and her joie de vivre is unmatched. One of my students says the thing she loves best about watching Tasha run agility is that she runs it with an air of authority. She just knows she’s in charge out there; it’s so true.

I’ve attached a copy of Tasha’s Championship photograph and am sending along a hard copy for your bulletin board. We are both so happy to be playing agility together thanks to the terrific care and support you gave us. From lame to champion within a year, what a terrific success story.

I wanted to give you an update on Caila’s progress since her surgery. She runs like the wind, plays very hard, and is extremely happy without even a head bob!! I would surmise that the surgery you preformed was a complete success!

Please feel free to use the stifle braces as long as you wish. We are very pleased to know that Rocky's situation and treatment will benefit veterinarians and dogs throughout the country. At this point last year, we thought Rocky would never walk again and we were absolutely devastated. Then, most fortunately, we discovered VOSM and that was the first step towards Rocky's remarkable recovery.

Sherman wanted to send you and everyone at VOSM a thank you for the adorable card! He thought that the card looked very familiar, see attached (picture of Sherman)!!

I was at the lab specialty last week and got to perform my first jump in the ring! Wow, less than a year ago I cried whenever I jumped. My elbows had a problem and you Uncle Sherman fixed them. Aunt Debbie, you helped me with therapy.

I just want you to know that your work made it possible for me to do what I enjoy. Oh, by the way, I won a blue rosette! Yep, first in my class! Check out the picture attached of me jumping. Mom didn't want to jump over so she ran by the jump.

Karla (our gentle female rotweiller, our black marshmallow who has been called an embarrassment to her breed because of her temperament) had two TPLOs with you, the left on January 18, 2007 and the right on June 20, 2006. We wanted to let you know that the outcome of the surgeries has exceeded all our expectations. She is now just over six years old and is acting more like a puppy than when she was younger. She is very frisky in movement, loves to run and play and gets so excited for her 3-4 mile runs 4-5 tims a week (she is very strong and leaps over downed trees with some speed). She's just a happy, healthy girl. Before the operations, we thought she may also be having hip problems and some stiffness, but that's all disappeared since her surgeries . Thank you again.

I've been thinking a great deal about how, at this time last year, Ebony was in constant pain and steadily but slowly getting worse. And then, in December last year, she suddenly plummeted and I truly thought she was a goner. When I brought her to you, I had serious doubts if she would even make it through the surgery.

Her recovery was slow, probably due to the length of her illness and her age, but she did, in fact recover. She will never be the bounding puppy she used to be, but she sure is happy and enjoying life. She has become something of a celebrity in our neighborhood and even complete strangers will stop to talk to her and ask questions. Believe me; she is eating that attention up, too!

Thank you and your staff for having the courage to try something different in amputating her leg where you did, instead of at the shoulder. And thanks for your corroboration with Derrick Campana. The two of you worked what appears to be a miracle.

I have been planning to write you and Morgan once Willow reach the 6 month post-op point. Well, that came and went a couple weeks ago. Finally I am getting around to emailing you.

Willow runs around the house and our small yard playing like a pup. She is back to walking 30 minutes or so with us and uses the stairs unassisted. (Not as frequently as before yet. She is fine on the stairs...we are just trying to break her of sleeping on OUR bed and the guest bed!!!) The only thing we have not done yet is ball chasing in a large area or frisbee...don't know if we will ever do frisbee again, but if we do it will be low to the ground. At my parent's home last weekend (out in the country in WV) she was having a great time running around like a wild dog.

With all that said, it is probably obvious that she is doing GREAT!!! We do notice her stretching pretty good now and then and maybe seems a bit stiff once in awhile, but if it was anyone else besides us or a vet was watching her, they would not notice anything was ever wrong. We are SO pleased with the success of the surgery and the therapy! THANK YOU for all you did for Willow and for us!

I really appreciate your caring for our rescue, Molly, and for the patience you had with her foster family. The rescue discount was awesome! Please extend my sincere thanks to your staff. Lisa and Melissa were wonderful.

Dear Drs. Canapp,

[We] just wanted to say how appreciative I am to you for taking time you reallly didn't have to see me and my boy, Ferrell. Getting him on the road to recovery is hugely important to me and I now have a comfort level that we are on that path. That kind of service is what separates you from the ordinary folks. Ferrell seems a bit brighter today and maybe a tad more steady on his feet... I'm counting the hours until his MRI. Anyway, thanks again.

Thank you for giving Bailey a new life. Bailey is enjoying her new found leg, and is getting stronger every day. Her left hind leg is stronger and almost normal now. She is standing tall and jumping to all places like a normal naughty puppy. We are so grateful for the successful operations and care that she has received from VOSM. Bailey can finally have a full life. Thanks again to everyone!

A sincere note of THANKS for everything you have done and are doing for Quincy and Mom and I. Quincy has been in your expert and loving care for a year now. This year has brought about countless blessings for Quincy and us too.

Our little boy is now the happiest, healthiest and most carefree that he has been in several years. Your advice, care and skills have saved his life and given him a sweet little life to enjoy again.

We notice how much you do for us ~ huge savings in treatments. Huge! We notice and are amazed and so thankful for your kind and generous heart. You have made it possible for us to see you and give Quincy what he needs through your financial generosity. We are in awe of you and your husband ~ your talent and commitment.

I just found out that you have a new practice from a friend of mine who's dog just had TPLO surgery. I was thrilled when I found your website. Being an active retriever field trialer, it's good to know someone in veterinary sports medicine - especially someone who I trust. Do you remember Solo? She was my 5 week old black lab pup that got a terrible bite in the face. Below is a link to my website. When you get a chance, please visit and click on "Our Dogs", then click on Twin Pine's Let's Go Solo for pictures of her and a brief story of what happen to her. Maybe we can come visit you sometime.

Thanks for saving our little pup, who has grown into a very wild, but wonderful girl.

Dr. Canapp,

Yesterday I brought in our golden, Nugget, to see you. I greatly appreciate your approach to Nugget and his aging body. P.T. makes a world of sense. You should know that over Nugget's life we have taken him to at least 10 of the "top" guys in the DC area and none of them have done the measurement, range of motion, checking of muscles at you did. I believe that we will wait to persue P.T. and acupuncture until you open your shop. When will you begin taking appointments? Finally, I have another dog, Chessie, who I will be bringing to you.

Again, thank you so much. I just feel so much better about Nugget's future.