Mayo Veterinary Services

Okay, let me start by saying I love my pets more than anything in the world so I was sick to my stomach for about a week after finding out that our pit bull, Layla, had torn BOTH ACL’s and needed surgery. It didn’t help when we found out how much it was going to cost and how long of a recovery it would take. My boyfriend took her to one clinic who wouldn’t be able to perform the surgery for like 2 weeks out. Layla could barely walk, as you could imagine having two torn knees. I couldn’t bear the thought of her being in pain for two more weeks, so we went to another place that was recommended by someone I was randomly talking to at the bank who’s dog also had to have that surgery. The doctor I had originally been referred to was actually busy doing an emergency surgery at the time, so we were sent to Dr. Mayo. He travels from clinic to clinic– I think he said he works out of like 12 or something. Let me be honest, my first impression of the guy was that he was a total weirdo. He seemed extremely beyond unprofessional and went off topic about a million different things. BUT, he took one look at Layla and knew she had severely torn both ACL’s (the other clinic thought she’d only torn one) and he was able to squeeze her in for surgery at a different clinic in 2 days. I went home and worried and worried and worried. First of all, I thought it was weird that the first place had missed the fact that she tore both ACL’s, and after doing research, I thought it was weird that he wanted to repair both ACL’s in the same surgery. Everything I read said that you should only do one, and let it heal and then get the other knee repaired. However, Layla had severely torn both and couldn’t really walk on either, so he explained that if we only do one, her other knee would be shot and she’d be in a lot of pain because she wouldn’t really be able to walk on either. So he suggested we do both at once, and we knew it would be a hard and long recovery, but since she is technically my boyfriend’s dog, I let him make the decision and he wanted to do what Dr. Mayo recommended.
Dr. Mayo performed TTA surgery on both Layla’s knees the first week of June and also did stem cell work on her (he pulled stem cells from her belly and put them in her knees). She stayed at one of the clinics he works out of (Emerald City Emergency Hospital) for 3 nights, which was actually awesome because it is a 24 hour care facility so she had around the clock support. They were awesome there too — by the way — she got her own room and they gave us lots of updates and we could go see her anytime we wanted.
Anyways, it’s now been just over 2 full months and Layla is doing GREAT! I couldn’t be more surprised and relieved by how fast she recovered. She isn’t totally recovered yet, but for having two ACL’s repaired she is doing great. She walks around just fine and is back to jumping up on the couch and being her crazy self. We haven’t done any extensive exercise with her, just up to 30 minute walks and up hills to build the muscle back. Even in the very beginning, she used the support harness we got her great and ate well and everything! The only issue we ran into was that she started picking at her stitches so we had to keep a cone on her when we weren’t around. At one point she actually tore the stitches completely out, but Dr Mayo had done such a great job that the wounds didn’t even come apart. This was in like the first or beginning of the second week! Her stitches had already healed up!
I’m not sure if it was the stem cell work or what, but Layla recovered unbelievably well and unbelievably fast. She was ahead of schedule for recovery for dogs that have had just ONE ACL repaired, and she had BOTH!
Long story short, Dr. Mayo has an interesting personality and may not SEEM the most professional, but this guy really knows exactly what he’s doing. Take my word for it, if this ever happened again (God forbid it does) I would definitely use Dr. Mayo again.
Another note– I had posted about Layla needing surgery on Facebook to see if any of my friends had any recommendations of where to go/​etc. A girl I know messaged me saying her dog had to have TPLO surgery and that she wanted to give me some advice. To my surprise, she used Dr. Mayo as well! She went on and on and on about how great of a job he did on her dog and how she would HIGHLY recommend him. This made me feel a million times better about my decision as well :)
Ps– I’m happy to talk to anyone going through similar situations if anyone has questions! I was so stressed out trying to research all of this when it happened, knowing absolutely nothing about any of it. Message me if interested in more details!

I found Dr. Jeff Mayo on Google while researching TPLO surgery as my Chocolate Lab had a lame rear leg and the local vet said he would need to have TPLO. My local vet told me I would have to wait 3 weeks to get surgery done. That is a whole different conversation and review. I came upon Dr, Mayo’s site while looking for a surgeon that could get my dog in immediately. Dr. Mayo not only answered my email at 10pm on a Saturday night, but he was able to get me in for surgery the following Tuesday. He was totally booked up but made sure he made time to get my lab taken care of. I also decided to go with the TTA surgery rather than the TPLO based on Dr. Mayo’s recommendation. He explained the procedure to me thoroughly and also explained the TPLO to me and gave me pros and cons of each. He did not push me one way or the other. Based on the positive things I found about the TTA and the confidence that Dr. Mayo not only performed the procedure, but he also taught the procedure to other surgeons, I went with the TTA procedure.
The morning of the surgery, I met with Dr. Mayo at the Emerald City Emergency Clinic (see my review on them) and he gave my dog an exam to confirm the injury and also found that his other tendon was at the very least ruptured, if not torn. This is when I received the bad news that poor Thumper would need two surgeries. My local vet completely missed this and even tried to dispute the fact when I informed them.
Fast forward 6 weeks and Thumper has now had both of his TTA surgeries and is doing fantastic! He recovered quickly, as Dr. Mayo said he would from the first TTA. Thumper is recovering from surgery #2 right now, but already doing better than expected.
I can’t recommend Dr. Mayo enough. He was always responsive to my questions, even at odd times of day, and even with his busy schedule. He is a strait shooter and will give you his actual opinion with no fluff.
I am in hopes our paths will never have to cross again, but in the event one of my dogs needs a surgical procedure, Dr. Mayo will be my first and only call.
Thanks Dr. Mayo for everything! Thumper is doing wonderful!

I’m not sure if you remember my big, cranky, cat Stan and I probably should have written this letter sooner. You did two Femoral Head Osteotomies for him one in April 2014 and one in December 2014. I wanted to say thank you. When Stan first injured his hip I thought I had run out of options. It was heartbreaking to know that my baby kitty was in pain and there was nothing I could do about it. When I first called to get pricing for surgery it was so far out of reach that I thought I would have no other choice but to euthanize him. Your flexibility and reasonable prices are the reason Stanley is still with me. I won’t ever find the words to eloquently express my appreciation for saving his life.
I never expected his recovery to be as good as it is. It’s hard to remember that he had major surgery on both of his hips. He is running and jumping better than he had the year before the surgery.

If you’re looking for a vet who 1) tries to fit you in between appointments as he’s preparing for surgery and does a 10 min examination (particularly for hip dysplasia), 2) who forgets to call to remind you of your surgery appointment (he’s a one-​man show — and yes, I remembered the date of the surgery but given the money I’m paying would expect a call) 3) who, after the surgery is complete, doesn’t even stick around to talk to you about how the surgery went or do any follow up calls 4) Who cheats you out of money when he said he was going to do procedures discussed (sending extra stem cells to Houston for later use) 5) who won’t return emails to find out how we can get reuse the frozen stem cells (I don’t think he even sent them to Houston to be frozen), 6) who handles his own business/​calls and can’t seem to manage his time or appointments — THEN THIS IS THE VET FOR YOU!
However, given the fact, we paid $ 3500 for the stem cell therapy procedure for our dog Mally for her hips and shoulders, we would have expected a lot more. Furthermore, I did a lot of research on stem cell therapy prior to her surgery but a month later, have seen no improvement whatsoever, (I read that 80% of dogs take to it and 20% don’t — so perhaps we’re the 20%) .
I had a prior appointment with Seattle Veterinary Associates in Kirkland, and decided to go with Mayo because he was a bit less expensive and because he could do the stem cells in one shot (same day, instead of sending them down to CA and then having to put her under again). While I don’t doubt Dr. Mayo’s expertise or skills, his veterinary customer service is something to be desired. OH — and when he gives you a «ball park» figure of $ 3000 — $ 3500 — you can expect it’s going to be on the high end.
He desperately needs a tech assistant to manage his schedule. He had one who I previously spoke with, but the day of the surgery found out his «assistant» was also his live-​in girlfriend and she left. (she was very knowledgeable though). Also on the day of the surgery, we were told to bring Mally in at 9:00am at Greenwood Animal Hospital but when I called at 3:00 to see how Mally was doing thiking I was going to pick her up in an hour or so, was shocked to hear that she had just gone into surgery At 3:00pm I guess some «walkins’» drop in, and happened to be more important than Mally’s surgery so he had to accommodate, hence we didn’t pick her up until 6:30pm that night.

We really cannot say enough good things about Dr. Jeff Mayo’s veterinary/​surgical services. He is not only an amazingly skilled and accomplished animal surgeon, and a groundbreaker in new surgical procedures, he is an extremely kind person who truly cares about giving animals a great quality of life. My 13 year old Westie’s knees were both blown out, and he used a procedure called the Modified Maquet Technique which is relatively new to this country, but is used in the U.K. with great results. He diagnosed him quickly, told us our options and did not rip us off.
His services are affordable because he is mobile and uses the facilities of outside vet hospitals so doesn’t have the overhead costs of maintaining the hospital. He is very patient and constantly accessible with the million questions you will probably have. He and his vet tech, Kendra, were absolutely wonderful. They are both dedicated, compassionate and just very real people who love what they do. They understand it’s a very difficult time for you and your dog and are great at explaining things simply and reassuringly. Our dog is now on the mend and will have the strongest little bionic legs in the neighborhood, thanks to Dr. Mayo.
We highly recommend Mayo Veterinary Services — they are affordable and you are really getting one of the best surgeons in the country. Google him, he consults and teaches all over the world and is highly respected in the field. It’s such a win/​win situation, we can’t believe our luck in finding him through Angel Pet Hospital in Edmonds. We really do not know what we would have done otherwise with the awful condition our poor dog was in.
If your dog has knee or joint problems, please do yourself a favor and check out their website and call them now! You will not get any runaround and will receive an honest assessment of the situation and a reasonable quote.
Thank you, Dr. Mayo and Kendra, for your kindness and immense talents. We appreciate you so much!