HOW TO PREPARE YOUR PET
FOR SURGERY
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When you are preparing for surgery, be sure to ask your vet that medications your pet has been prescribed are safe to give the day before/of the surgery. If you have been dispensed PVP (pre visit pharmaceuticals) these are safe to give the morning of surgery as they make up part of the pre-anaesthetic medication.
Please bath your dog the day before surgery and ensure they have enough time to dry before being admitted for surgery. Some surgery, such as orthopaedic surgeries require your pet to be bathed in medicated shampoo for a few days before surgery. Please contact the clinic to purchase some. Also consider washing your dog’s bedding for their return home to ensure the surgical site is kept as clean as possible.
It is important that your pet is fasted before a procedure or surgery. This is to prevent your pet from vomiting during the anaesthetic. Food should be withheld from 10pm the night before, water is fine to have until they come into hospital and PVP medication can be given in a very small amount of food. On the morning of the surgery, ensure your pet has been outside to give them the opportunity to eliminate.
If your pet needs to be confined and their movements restricted after surgery, consider purchasing a crate or organising a confinement area before the day.
Intravenous (IV) fluids during surgery.
We include IV fluids in nearly every procedure we perform. These electrolyte solutions are infused directly into the blood stream via an IV catheter. This IV catheter is also used to deliver important medications, anaesthetics and emergency medications if needed. Your pet will have their fur clipped on one or more legs.
IV fluids help maintain blood pressure to ensure adequate blood flow and oxygen are delivered to vital organs. Before procedures, animals need to be fasted to reduce the risk of them vomiting under anaesthesia and therefore could become dehydrated. IV fluids help to keep your pet optimally hydrated and reduce nausea afterwards. They also help the kidneys flush out anaesthetic agents from the body and recover more quickly from the anaesthetic.
Your pet is placed on IV fluids before the procedure, during the pre-operative portion of their stay, and remain on fluids until they go home.
Pre-anaesthetic blood test.
Although we perform a physical examination of your pet before administering an anaesthetic, this does not give us a full picture of your pet’s internal health. Pre-anaesthetic blood tests give us vital information on your pet’s basic organ function, such as the liver and kidney function as this is where most anaesthetics are metabolised. We also look for signs of anaemia, infection and inflammation, all of which could potentially cause complications during the procedure.
Pre- anaesthetic blood tests are recommended for pets of all ages but particularly older pets.
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