Cary A. Shatto, DDS
Meet Your New Dentist in Dallas, TX
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My name is Cary Shatto. I'm a doctor of dental surgery. I graduated in 1992 from Baylor. And I'm going to share a little bit of my story. I'm going to tell you a little bit about who I am, where I came from, and my background.
It started in Houston, Texas. I was born there in the mid-60s. And my mother was really a product of the hippie culture of the time, and she was kind of a free-spirited type of person. Really it was kind of a tumultuous few years with her, and she just really probably wasn't fit to take care of kids. She was a loving mother, but for me, about the age of seven or eight we were pretty much separated. And from there, I lived with some family, and I lived with some family friends, but it just never really worked out in these places. So about the age of 12 or 13, I had a short stint again with my mother. And she had substance abuse problems, that was still going on. We tried to make it a go, but it just didn't happen.
So I was placed in a boys' home down in La Porte, Texas. It's kind of the south part of Houston, near the water, actually. So my experience at the boys' home was really quite interesting. It probably gave me the most stability that I'd ever had. I learned a lot and it was tough. It definitely taught me toughness and it gave me a lot of life lessons that I learned. Discipline, and hard work, and perseverance.
I played a lot of sports there. We lived on a 200-acre pecan orchard, and I picked a lot of pecans. Won a pecan-picking contest one year. I worked on a farm. We had a lot of animals. I was in FFA. I showed animals in the stock show. And that was a great experience.
I studied, and at that time, I decided that I wanted to have a better life. I wanted to make something of myself, and I knew that hard work and studying would pay off if I did it. So one of the things that I had gone through as well was I had teeth problems. Kids would call me “Bucky” and you get picked on by some kids, but that kind of gave me the aspirations to become a dentist later on in life.
As I said, I did pretty well in school, where I obtained a couple of scholarships, and I found myself at Baylor University in Waco. I was there for four years. I graduated in 1988. I applied to the three dental schools here in Texas, and I chose Baylor College of Dentistry here in Dallas. I graduated in 1992, and here we are.
Currently I have three girls. My wife I've been married to for 20 years. I love to play sports, I love tennis and basketball, golf. I just love active sports. I love to travel. I love movies. I love home projects. We stay busy. I've got a great life.
Native Texan, Dr. Cary A. Shatto was born in Houston but lived in the Dallas area as well as the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas. After enduring family hardships as a youth, he became a ward of the state of Texas. He was raised in a boys’ home and made the most of his years there, excelling in sports, agriculture, and academics. He also credits his experience with instilling in him the values of discipline, responsibility, and ambition.
Thanks to his achievements, he earned scholarships after graduating from La Porte High School in the Houston area. This enabled him to attain a bachelor’s degree from Baylor University. He then graduated from Baylor College of Dentistry (now the Texas A&M College of Dentistry) in 1992, fulfilling his dream of becoming a dentist. For the next six years, Dr. Shatto used his dental expertise as an associate in a local Dallas dental office to grow that practice into a new, larger facility. In 1998, he was offered a partner position but declined and decided it was the right time for him to have his own private dental practice in the Lake Highlands community of Dallas.
At his practice, Dr. Shatto emphasizes the complete dental health model. He believes there is an oral systemic connection, or direct correlation between the mouth and how it affects your body’s overall health. This philosophy of complete dental health and its connection to overall health helps Dr. Shatto and his team improve the well-being and quality of life for their patients.
After many years of practice, Dr. Shatto has the experience and expertise to provide comprehensive dental care, including orthodontics, implantology, cosmetic dentistry, and sleep treatment. Compassion and understanding are part of every procedure in his Dallas, TX office.
Dr. Shatto has been married to his supportive wife, Angie, for 20 years. The couple has three beautiful daughters: Shea, Maddi, and Jillian. In his free time, he enjoys movies, tennis, basketball, travel, adventure, dogs, and his family life.