Essential Skills in Emergency & Critical Care for Vet Nurses – Sydney Recap

Small Breed TPLO Wet-lab – Sydney Recap

Our Small Breed TPLO Wet-lab in Sydney brought together veterinary practitioners and residents with TPLO experience in larger dogs, all keen to refine their skills and confidence with toy and small breed patients. The course was led by Dr Brian Beale DVM, DACVS, ACVS Founding Fellow – Minimally Invasive Orthopaedic Surgery.

The day opened with a look at decision-making: when TPLO is the better choice for a small breed dog, and when extracapsular repair may be more appropriate. From there, the focus moved to careful planning and surgical technique tailored to smaller patients. Attendees also explored the OrthoSta extracapsular CCL repair system, both as a stand-alone option for small breed dogs and as an adjunct to TPLO in dogs with excessive internal rotation.

The practical sessions, on plastic bones and in the wet-lab, included:

  • TPLO planning for toy breed dogs using vPOP
  • TPLO in small breed dogs
  • Small breed TPLO with an isometric extracapsular suture to control internal rotation
  • Modified TPLO (TPLOm) for concurrent CCL rupture and medial patellar luxation

Throughout the day, short interactive lectures and in-depth case discussions helped attendees connect each technique to the cases they see in practice.

Attendees left with the skills and confidence to perform TPLO in toy and small breed dogs, including cases complicated by patellar luxation or excessive internal rotation.

Thank you to Dr Beale for his generous teaching and clinical insight, and to all the attendees for their engagement and great case discussions.

Speaker Biography

Dr. Brian Beale

DVM, Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Surgery, ACVS Founding Fellow, Minimally-Invasive Orthopedic Surgery, Board Certified Veterinary Surgeon

Brian Beale attended the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine. He also completed a 3-year residency in small animal surgery and was as an assistant professor from 1990–1992. Brian became board-certified by the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 1991 and joined Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialists in 1992. Brian has a special interest in arthroscopy, minimally-invasive surgery, fracture repair, joint replacement, treatment of arthritis, and pain management. Brian has many publications, including textbooks, textbook chapters and scientific articles. Brian is a passionate teacher and frequently lectures and teaches technique labs around the world. He is a past-president of the Veterinary Orthopedic Society, past-president of the Gulf Coast Veterinary Foundation and active in the American College of Veterinary Surgeons. He was a board member for American Humane from 2017-2020. Brian was awarded the Specialty Veterinarian of the Year Award by the Texas Veterinary Medical Association in 2010. Brian became an ACVS Founding Fellow of Minimally-Invasive Orthopedic Surgery in 2018.  Brian currently is the CEO of Beale’s Best LLC. Beale’s Best has elite continuing education centers (nexus.vet) connected to state-of-the-art veterinary specialty hospitals in Park City, UT and Baltimore, MD. Dr Beale performs surgery at H-Town Veterinary Specialists (Houston, TX), Nexus Veterinary Specialists (Victoria, TX) and Bark City Veterinary Specialists (Park City, UT).

When not practicing veterinary medicine, Dr. Beale enjoys spending time with his family, tennis, golf and all outdoor sports. He loves to travel and meet new people around the world.

Small Breed TPLO Wet-lab AU (October 2026)