Dr. Edwards graduated from the Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1992. He completed a one-year internship in small animal medicine and surgery at Alameda East Veterinary Hospital in Denver, Colorado prior to returning to Colorado State University for a three-year residency in small animal surgery. During this residency program Dr. Edwards received specialized training in orthopedic, soft tissue, oncologic and neurosurgery. He conducted research on total hip replacements in dogs as well as the construction and use of pins made from cortical bone, used for fracture repair. The completion of these projects earned him the Master of Science degree. Following completion of this training in 1996, Dr. Edwards returned to Alaska and established his practice, Veterinary Specialists of Alaska, P.C. He attained Diplomate status in the American College of Veterinary Surgeons by successful completion of the specialty board examination in 1999. His main clinical interest is orthopedic surgery, more specifically knee and hip surgery. He is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Veterinary Orthopedic Society, the Veterinary Endoscopy Society, and the Alaska Veterinary Medical Association.

Dr. Linda Chang graduated from the Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1993.  Following graduation she completed a one year internship in critical care and emergency medicine at CSU.  Dr. Chang continued to work in the critical care unit for the next 2 years.  She moved to Anchorage in 1996 and worked in general practice with a special interest in ultrasound and animal rehabilitation.  Dr. Chang completed the University of Tennessee rehabilitation program and opened the animal rehabilitation unit at Veterinary Specialists of Alaska in 2003.  She is the only veterinarian in the state of Alaska who offers physical rehabilitation, and has worked in this field successfully with several hundreds of patients. She also has continued to study diagnostic ultrasound attending numerous continuing education programs and performs the ultrasound exams for the clinic and on referral basis.

Dr. Nelson Priddy received his DVM from the Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in 1992.  He moved to San Antonio, Texas where he spent the next five years in general and emergency small-animal practices. Dr. Priddy was then accepted to an internship program at the University of Missouri-Columbia College of Veterinary Medicine Small Animal Hospital.  Following the year of internship, Dr. Priddy was offered to stay on for a four-year small-animal surgery residency that was completed in June of 2002. He passed the certifying examination and became Board Certified by the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2003. Dr. Priddy has been a surgeon at Veterinary Specialists of Alaska, P.C. since August of 2002. Dr. Priddy’s professional interests include knee surgery, arthroscopic surgery, fracture repair, neurosurgery, cardiothoracic surgery, hepatic surgery, airway surgery, and pain management. In 2008 and 2009 he served as president of the Alaska State Veterinary Medical Association.  He is a member of the Society of Veterinary Soft Tissue Surgery, the American Veterinary Medical Association and the Alaska State Veterinary Medical Association.

Dr. Dirsko J.F. von Pfeil earned his veterinary degree from the University of Berlin in 2001. After completion of a small animal internship at Kansas State University, he was accepted for a residency and fellowship in small animal surgery at Michigan State University. While at MSU, he finished his dissertation in biomechanics of orthopedic implants, and obtained the American DVM. He returned to KSU as assistant professor in small animal surgery, teaching orthopedic, soft tissue, oncologic, and neurological surgery. Since he joined Veterinary Specialists of Alaska, P.C. in 2008, Dr. von Pfeil led multiple challenging surgical procedures, among others a thoracoscopic lung lobectomy and a cardiac pacemaker implantation (view TV report). He has been the driving force to bring minimally invasive surgery to our practice (arthroscopy, laparoscopy, thoracoscopy). Further clinical interests of Dr. von Pfeil include sports medicine and joint replacements. Dr. von Pfeil is a board certified surgeon and Diplomate of both, the American and the European College of Veterinary Surgeons and serves as adjunct professor in small animal surgery for MSU. He is a member of multiple American and European Veterinary Medical Associations, among others the International Sled Dog Veterinary Medical Association. His interest in sled dogs brought him first to Alaska in 2007 when he volunteered for several weeks at the Iditarod. Since then he has been involved as trail or head veterinarian in multiple sled dog races and has contributed to continuing education for trail veterinarians and mushers in various ways. He is currently investigating congenital laryngeal paralysis (“Wheezer-Disease”),of the Alaskan Husky  and initiated other clinical studies at VSOAK.