Anesthesia and patient monitoring varies greatly among clinics. When you choose your veterinarian, be sure to question the types of anesthetics used and the protocols for monitoring anesthesia. Often the more expensive anesthetics are safer to use; however, anesthetics are also chosen for other reasons including their ability to control pain. Because your pet will be going under general anesthesia, we want to ensure that everything goes as safely as possible, so a pre surgical blood panel is done to assess for any potential complications in your pet's ability to handle the anesthetic. Our clinic provides you with the peace of mind that your pet will be continuously monitored by a dedicated technician throughout the entire procedure. We will be monitoring your pets blood pressure, pulse, Heart rate (ECG), temperature, oxygen and carbon dioxide levels. We administer pain medication to your pet prior to the procedure to ensure that he or she is as comfortable as possible. While under anesthetic your pet will be on a hydraulic heated mat which will help them maintain body temperature throughout the entire procedure. Some of our smaller patients will be placed in our incubator for recovery if the procedure is long. We also do Post surgical Laser therapy -- we use Class 4 Companion Therapy Laser which gives pulsed laser energy at 10Hz to reduce pain, at 500 Hz to reduce swelling and at 5000 Hz to accelerate healing. It is part of our pain management protocol. A complimentary nail trim is also done as your pet wakes up from anesthesia.
Tranquilization or sedation is used to calm an animal under various conditions. The animal remains awake or may ‘sleep’ but is easily aroused when stimulated. Pet owners frequently request sedation for their animals during travel, thunderstorms, fireworks, etc. Sedation and tranquilization are not without risk and each animal should be assessed prior to dispensing these medicines.
For some procedures, your pet will need to be administered general anesthesia so that he or she will be unconscious and not feel pain. Many pet owners worry about their pets being administered general anesthesia. We can assure you that modern anesthesia is generally quite safe; to further lower any risk, we perform a physical examination and run blood work ahead of time to catch any underlying health issues. In addition, we follow a specific anesthetic protocol, including monitoring vital signs during the procedure, to ensure the safety of our patients.
We begin most general anesthetic procedures by administering a sedative to help the pet relax and decrease any anxiety and pain. We then administer an intravenous drug to provide complete anesthesia and place a breathing tube into the patient’s trachea (windpipe). To maintain the state of unconsciousness, we deliver a gas anesthetic in combination with oxygen through the breathing tube.
Please contact us if you have any questions or concerns about your pet receiving general anesthesia or about the procedure for which your pet is scheduled.
If your pet is having a minor surgical or diagnostic procedure performed, we sometimes use a local anesthetic to help control pain. For example, when we perform a biopsy (in which a small portion of tissue is surgically removed so it can be examined), we often use a local anesthetic. Local anesthetics cause a loss of sensation in the area where the procedure is being performed. We sometimes use a sedative and/or anxiolytic (anti-anxiety medication) in combination with the local anesthetic to keep pets calm during a procedure.
Please contact us if you have any questions or concerns about your pet receiving local anesthesia or about the procedure for which your pet is scheduled.
