The veterinary specialty sector has long carried an uncomfortable imbalance. Surgical technology has advanced at a rapid pace, fracture repair, tumor removal, and trauma reconstruction have all benefited from decades of innovation. Yet the period that follows an operation, the weeks and months during which an animal actually regains strength, mobility, and comfort, has rarely received the same level of investment.

Across much of the industry, a clinic performs the procedure, discharges the patient, and leaves recovery largely to chance. Pain management, rehabilitation, and long-term mobility planning are frequently treated as optional extras rather than essential components of care.

For pet owners, this gap is felt acutely. A dog that survives surgery but never fully regains its stride, or a cat that continues to suffer chronic discomfort long after a wound has closed, represents a failure that statistics rarely capture. Families are left navigating a fragmented system: one provider for the operation, another for physical therapy, and yet another for pain control, with little coordination between them. The result is inconsistent outcomes, prolonged suffering, and mounting frustration for the people who simply want their companion animals to move and live comfortably again.

It is precisely this structural gap, between surgical intervention and genuine recovery, that Resurge Veterinary Surgical Specialists and Rehabilitation was built to close.

 

Building a Different Kind of Practice

Founded in 2021 and headquartered in Covington, Louisiana, Resurge operates on a premise that runs counter to conventional specialty veterinary medicine: surgery marks the beginning of treatment, not its conclusion. At the helm of the practice is Dr. Dena Lodato, Owner, Medical Director, and Veterinary Surgical Specialist, whose career has been defined by an unwillingness to accept the industry's fragmented status quo.

Dr. Lodato treats a broad spectrum of conditions, ranging from complex orthopedic injuries and trauma cases to neurological disorders, chronic mobility impairments, and long-term pain management. What distinguishes her practice is not the range of conditions treated, but the architecture surrounding each treatment.

Surgical intervention at Resurge is paired with an integrated set of recovery-focused therapies, including hyperbaric oxygen treatment, acupuncture, platelet-rich plasma injections, shockwave and Class IV laser therapy, and structured physical rehabilitation programs tailored to each patient. Rather than referring clients elsewhere for these services, Resurge consolidates them under a single roof, ensuring continuity of care from the initial consultation through full recovery.

 

A Founder's Decision to Walk Away and Build Something New

The origins of Resurge trace back to late 2019, a period Dr. Lodato describes as one of the most difficult stretches of her professional life. She had reached a point where the environment she worked within no longer allowed her to practice medicine at the standard she believed her patients deserved. Morale within that workplace had deteriorated, and she felt increasingly constrained in her ability to deliver the level of care she considered necessary.

Encouraged by her fiancé, Mike Richard, she began to consider an alternative that had previously felt out of reach: building her own clinic from scratch. The decision required her to draft a business plan, secure financing, and locate a suitable facility, all while the COVID-19 pandemic introduced significant delays and financial uncertainty into an already demanding process.

Supported by a close circle of friends who believed in her vision, she pressed forward. By October 2020, approvals were finalized, leaving her practice team with roughly two months to renovate the building, outfit two operating rooms, and prepare the facility for its first patients. In the days before opening, supporters gathered to help assemble treatment areas and equipment. When Resurge opened its doors the following morning, its schedule was already full.

 

The Case That Defined a Philosophy

Among the many patients Dr. Lodato has treated, one case illustrates the depth of the practice's commitment. A dog named Sadie arrived at Resurge a week after surviving a house fire, having sustained burns across more than seventy percent of her body. Her condition on arrival was critical.

Dr. Lodato initiated treatment with hyperbaric oxygen therapy to preserve as much viable tissue as possible, followed by two rounds of surgical debridement to remove damaged tissue and limit infection risk. As awareness of Sadie's case spread, AVITA Medical contributed a ReCell spray-on skin kit, a technology more commonly associated with human burn treatment, and Dr. Nicole Kopari, a human burn surgeon, volunteered to collaborate directly with Dr. Lodato, bringing supplies and clinical guidance drawn from human medicine. Sadie ultimately achieved a full recovery.

The case stands as evidence of what cross-disciplinary collaboration and sustained clinical persistence can accomplish, even in circumstances that might otherwise be deemed unrecoverable.

 

A Method Rooted in Precision, Not Routine

When addressing severe wounds and complex fractures, Dr. Lodato avoids standardized solutions in favor of a structured, case-by-case methodology. Her process begins with a comprehensive evaluation of bone damage, soft tissue condition, and overall patient health.

From there, she analyzes the mechanical forces at play, weight bearing, joint movement, and daily activity levels, to ensure that any surgical repair can withstand normal use without compromising long-term stability. Surgical planning is customized rather than templated, with fixation methods selected according to the specific nature of each injury.

Throughout, she anticipates potential complications such as implant failure or delayed healing, building safeguards into her approach from the outset. Each completed case informs the next, creating a continuous cycle of refinement grounded in accumulated clinical experience.

This same rigor extends to her ongoing research into canine arthritis, where her focus centers on preserving joint structure, reducing inflammation, slowing disease progression, and combining regenerative therapies with rehabilitation strategies to extend mobility in aging and recovering dogs.

 

Governing Principle: Treat Every Patient as Your Own

Underpinning all of Dr. Lodato's clinical decisions is a single operating standard: she recommends only what she would choose for her own animal. If a procedure or therapy would not meet that bar, it does not enter into a client's treatment plan.

This principle shapes not only medical judgment but also client communication. Dr. Lodato places significant emphasis on transparency, providing families with direct, thorough explanations of treatment options, since families arriving at a surgical specialty practice are already managing considerable stress and uncertainty regarding their pet's health.

 

Expansion Through Partnership

Over the past five years, Resurge has grown deliberately rather than rapidly, adding a neurology department and broadening its rehabilitation offerings into a comprehensive integrative medicine program.

Dr. Lodato continues to pursue relationships with referring veterinarians and plans to bring additional specialists into the practice, provided their approach to patient care aligns with the standards she has established.

 

Recognition and Reach

Resurge was voted Best of Saint Tammany for veterinarians in 2025, and Sadie's recovery drew national television coverage that highlighted cross-specialty collaboration in veterinary medicine. Dr. Lodato's individual recognition has extended well beyond the veterinary field: she was inducted into Marquis Who's Who and named a Top Doctor in 2023, with her work featured in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Self, Vogue, USA Today, and Fortune.

In 2024, the International Association of Top Professionals named her Veterinary Surgical Specialist of the Year and Empowered Woman of the Year, and she contributed to the international best-selling book Top 50 Fearless Leaders. The following year brought the Veterinary Surgeon of the Decade award, the Executive Choice Award, and induction into Bombshell Boss Babes, while 2026 has already brought a nomination for the Presidential Award and a place among the Top 25 Global Impact Leaders.

 

A Message to the Next Generation

Dr. Lodato's counsel to aspiring veterinarians and surgical leaders centers on persistence over perfection. She encourages newcomers to pursue their calling with clarity, acknowledging that the path will demand patience and resilience, and that setbacks are simply part of professional growth.

What matters most, in her view, is showing up each day with integrity and consistent effort, allowing outcomes to follow from strong character rather than from the pursuit of flawless results.