What You Need to Know Before Your Pet's Upcoming Surgery

 Many people have questions about various aspects of their pet's surgery, and we hope this information will help.  It also explains the decisions you will need to make before your pet's upcoming surgery.

Is the anesthetic safe?

Today's modern anesthetic monitors have made surgery much safer than in the past.  Here at Colton Veterinary Services , we do a comprehensive physical exam on your pet before administering anesthetics, to ensure that a fever or other illness won't be a problem.  We also adjust the amount and type of anesthetic used depending on the health and age of your pet.  Pre-anesthetic bloodwork is always recommended and often times required depending on the age and physical condition of your pet.

Preanesthetic blood testing is important in reducing the risk of anesthesia.  Every pet should have blood testing before surgery to ensure that the liver and kidneys can handle the anesthetic.  Even apparently healthy animals can have serious organ system problems that cannot be detected without blood testing.  If there is a problem, it is much better to find it before it causes anesthetic or surgical complications.  Animals that have minor dysfunctions will handle the anesthetic better if they receive IV fluids during surgery.  If serious problems are detected, surgery can be postponed until the problem is corrected.

It is important that surgery be done on an empty stomach to reduce the risk of vomiting during and after anesthesia.  You will need to withhold food for at least 8 to 10 hours before surgery.  Water can be left down for the pet until the morning of surgery.

Will my pet have stitches?

For many surgeries, we use absorbable sutures underneath the skin.  These will dissolve on their own, and do not need to be removed later.  Some surgeries do require external skin stitches.  With either type of suture, you will need to keep an eye on the incision for swelling or discharge.  Most dogs and cats do not lick excessively or chew at the incision, but this is an occasional problem you will also need to watch for.  If there are skin sutures, these will usually be removed 10 to 14 days after surgery.  You will also need to limit your pet's activity level for a time and no baths are allowed for the first 10 days after surgery.

Will my pet be in pain?

Anything that causes pain in people can be expected to cause pain in animals.  Pets may not show the same symptoms of pain as people do; they usually don't whine or cry, but you can be sure they feel it.  Pain medications needed will depend on the surgery performed, the species, age, and physical condition of your pet.  Major procedures require more pain relief than things like minor lacerations.  Providing whatever pain relief is appropriate is a humane and caring thing to do for your pet.

What other decisions do I need to make?

While your pet is under anesthesia, it is the ideal time to perform other minor procedures, such as dentistry with fluoride treatment, ear cleaning, or implanting an identification microchip.  These procedures will be offered to you at the time of admittance. 

When you admit your pet for surgery, we will need to 5 to 10 minutes of time to fill out paperwork and make decisions on the blood testing and other options available.  When you pick up your pet after surgery you can also plan to spend about 10 minutes to go over your pet's home care needs.

We will call you the day before your scheduled surgery appointment, to confirm the time you will be admitting your pet and to answer any questions you might have.  In the meantime, please don't hesitate to call us with any questions about your pet's health or surgery.

A routine canine ovariohysterectomy.......
midline incisionremoval of 1st ovary/tube removal of 2nd ovary
ligation of ovarian stumpclosure of incisionclosure of skin
completion

A routine canine neuter

A midline incision is made just cranial to the scrotum
&  the testicle is exteriorized

Ligaments are broken downTesticle is triple clamped
& ligated with suture material Process is repeated with second testicle

An "empty suitcase" and "the package."