History
In the nineteenth century, veterinary dentistry and oral surgery was limited to the care of teeth of horses. Only relatively recently were veterinary dentistry and oral surgery recognized as a specialty in both small and large animals. Penn was the first veterinary school in North America to offer an organized program in veterinary dentistry and oral surgery in the 1970s.
A full-time veterinary dentistry and oral surgery residency training program—the first in the world—was established at Penn in 1989. This program has trained more board-certified veterinary dentists and oral surgeons than any other program.
The members of the Dentistry and Oral Surgery Service at the Ryan Veterinary Hospital are considered world leaders in their discipline in terms of teaching, research and clinical work. Read additional interesting information regarding this specialty (PDF).