Get to know us!

A graduate of Texas A&M University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Harper completed an internship in Littleton, Colorado and surgical residency program at Auburn University in large animal surgery. After returning to the Texas Hill Country, Dr. Harper had the unique opportunity to undergo additional training for small animal surgery in South Texas under the direction of Dr. Andy Baker (small animal surgeon of 40 years), Dr. Don Hulse (Texas A&M University) and others. During this time he realized the need for specialty surgical services to be offered in-house to veterinarians and their clients. In addition to being board certified in large animal surgery, Dr. Harper began completing requirements for dual certification in small animal surgery. Due to the demand of surgical services to the practices TSVS currently serve, Dr. Harper has put the dual certification process on hold. TSVS currently performs over 800 surgeries a year at veterinary practices for their pet owners including TPLO, fracture repair, other orthopedic and soft tissue surgeries.

Dr. Michelle Franklin is originally from New Mexico. She attended veterinary school at Colorado State University from 1994-1998. She began her veterinary career working in a mixed animal practice in New Mexico. Following her time in private practice, she joined the U.S. Army Veterinary Corps in 2000 and spent 13 years in the Army serving numerous tours, including overseas. While in the Army, Dr. Franklin completed her small animal surgical residency training at Oklahoma State University in 2008. After completing her residency, she spent another five years in the Army as a veterinary surgeon. She was Chief of Surgery for the Military Working Dog Hospital, Lackland AFB. Since 2013, she has been working for Texas Specialty Veterinary Services.

Dr. Souza joined Texas Specialty Veterinary Services to expand her horizons, undergo additional training in small animal surgery with the surgeons at TSVS and to continue pursuing her passion for veterinary orthopedic surgery.

Outside of work you can find her hiking, biking, fly fishing, throwing BBQ parties for her friends, doing woodwork and diving into house renovation projects with her husband.

Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation

Dr. Kristina Kiefer is a Minnesota native, who attended veterinary school at the University of Minnesota, graduating in 2006. She completed a rotating internship at Red Bank Veterinary Hospital, in New Jersey, and a surgical specialty internship at Gulf Coast Veterinary Hospital, in Texas. She then returned to the University of Minnesota, where she completed a surgical residency and a Ph.D. in Veterinary Regenerative Medicine.

Throughout her training and career, she has also had a strong interest in working dogs and sports medicine. She has worked on the vet team of several dog sled races, providing care for the canine athletes. With this experience and her strong research background in regenerative medicine, she also went on to specialize in sports medicine and rehabilitation for small animals.

She spent several years working at the University of Minnesota as an Assistant Professor in Small Animal Surgery. She transitioned to providing relief work for surgical and sports medicine services worldwide, supporting specialty hospitals and veterinary teaching hospitals while they provide the best care they can to their patients.

Her favorite free-time activities include any excuse to be outside, time with her dogs, and reading. Huge karma points for sharing your favorite books!

After growing up in Minnesota, Dr. Dosal moved further north for his undergraduate studies and pilot training attending the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences at the University of North Dakota. While finishing his undergraduate, Dr. Dosal and his wife became heavily involved in animal rescue and spay/neuter efforts on the Red Lake Indian Reservation in northern Minnesota. This passion for animals led them back to school, where Dr. Dosal and his wife (Dr. Lauren Dosal) graduated from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine.

After graduation, Dr. Dosal spent a year in England, completing a surgical internship in orthopedic and neurosurgery under world-renowned surgeon Noel Fitzpatrick. Dr. Dosal has a keen interest in research and participated in developing multiple novel surgical techniques and implant designs that utilized cutting-edge technologies like CT reconstruction imaging and CAD software to manufacture bespoke 3D-printed titanium implants. His many hours of research efforts and manuscript writing were recently rewarded when one of the papers he collaborated on with his colleagues was published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (JAVMA).

After returning to the States in 2017, Dr. Dosal spent the next three years under surgeon Dr. Justin Harper’s supervision, honing his craft in small animal surgery. While Dr. Dosal continues to absorb mentorship from Dr. Harper, especially on unique and challenging cases, he has become a well-rounded surgical practitioner in his own right, performing various specialty orthopedic and soft tissue procedures since joining the TSVS surgical team in 2020.

Kim joined Texas Specialty Veterinary Services in November 2011. After years of being on the road with Dr. Harper doing mobile surgery, Kim decided to get certified in canine rehabilitation. In November 2019, with support and help from Dr. Harper, Kim made that dream come true. Kim is now certified in Canine Rehabilitation and in January 2020 started Texas Specialty Veterinary Services Rehabilitation and Conditioning. Kim now does mobile rehabilitation, going to the client’s home or Veterinary clinic to do in-house Rehabilitation. Kim still plans on retiring when Dr. Harper does.

When Kim is not on the road she enjoys time with her Husband Brad, camping, hiking, and running. Kim has two children Jordan(26) and Taylor (24), and a brand new grandbaby on the way. Kim has 4 dogs and 2 cats.

Erin grew up in San Antonio and is the youngest of 4 sisters. Her love of animals began at a young age when she tried to nurse back to health an injured baby bird who had fallen from the tree. So, I guess you could say she was destined to work for a veterinary surgeon, right?

Erin started as a kennel technician at a small animal practice in San Antonio. She quickly fell in love with the animals, job, and culture of veterinary medicine. She has been in the animal industry since 2010 and loves it more every day. While Erin enjoys the surgery and medicine aspect of the job, she also enjoys engaging with clients, Dr’s and their staff!

She has been married to Kyle for 11 years. They have two beautiful daughters, Kyndal and Emma. Erin has two dogs and 4 cats… but if you ask Erin, she would have 20 more cats if Kyle allowed it.

I was born and raised in San Antonio, TX. I graduated from Palo Alto College with an Associate’s Degree in Applied Science in Veterinary Technology. I’ve been in the veterinary medicine field for about 6 years. I started off as a kennel technician and worked my way up! As a young girl, my parents always had dogs, cats, goats and chickens around the house. I always had the love and desire to help them grow. When I’m not at work, I like to spend my day outdoors with friends and family. I have 4 dogs- a Labrador Retriever mix, a Pitbull mix, a Jack Russell Terrier and a long hair Chihuahua.

I graduated from Texas A&M – Kingsville in 2018 with a B.S. in Veterinary Technology, and became an LVT in 2019. Since then I have worked in mixed practice, small animal, and equine.

When I’m not at work, I like to spend time with family and friends, and my Siamese cat Granger.