Surgery

Our surgery suite has state of the art diagnostic monitoring and surgical equipment in order to provide your dog or cat with the safest, most comprehensive care available.  While your pet is anesthetized, a licensed veterinary technician will monitor their heart rate, respiration, blood oxygen level (SPO2), blood pressure, EKG and temperature to assure a smooth procedure.  The technician is with your pet and monitoring their vitals throughout the entire surgical experience, from induction to extubation, and throughout recovery.  All anesthetized patients are intubated to maintain proper oxygenation and maintenance of anesthesia.

Prior to your pet’s procedure, the doctor will perform a pre-surgical exam to ensure the pet is health enough to go under anesthesia, and to determine proper protocol that is personalized to your pet’s needs.  When necessary, the doctor will also give a recommendation of pre-anesthetic blood work to further determine health status and protocol.  You will be given the option to accept or decline this at the time of the procedure.

Anesthetic procedures are performed Monday thru Friday.  We ask that patients be dropped off between 7 AM and 9 AM the morning of their scheduled procedure.  It is important that your pet be fasted after midnight the night before to minimize potential complications.  There are certain exceptions to these anesthetic instructions, and if your pet has any pre-existing medical conditions, please advise us so the doctor may discuss with you further.

Laser Assisted Surgery:

“LASER” is an acronym for “Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation”.  Highly concentrated light rays are transmitted through a pen-like laser scalpel to perform the functions of a traditional scalpel blade.

Patient benefits of Laser Assisted Surgery:

• Minimizes blood loss – as it cuts, the laser cauterizes and seals small blood vessels.
• Minimizes pain – as it cuts, the laser cauterizes and seals nerve endings leading to minimal inflammation.
• Reduces risk of infections – the laser efficiently kills bacteria in its path, producing a further sterilizing effect on the tissue.
• Faster recovery – due to minimized pain, inflammation, blood loss, and risk of infection, the patient has the greater opportunity for a speedy and more comfortable recovery.

If the laser is an option for your pet’s surgical procedure, we will discuss the benefits, answer any questions, and allow you to authorize or decline its use a the time of your pet’s hospital admission.  In most cases, the use of the laser is required by the doctor as it is best practice for the pet.