Anesthesia FAQs

• It brings about a state of unconsciousness so that a patient is not aware of what is occurring.
• It blocks pain sensation over the entire body
• It suppresses muscle reflex and allows for muscle relaxation
• It reduces stress and anxiety to the patient.

Surgeries, Dental work, Diagnostics ( X-ray, Ultrasound, EKG, Echocardiogram, Endoscopy, Colonoscopy, CT scan, MRI), sometimes physical exam assessment, and many others.

• Review all medical history and perform thorough physical exams
• Perform lab tests that provide liver, kidney and heart parameters to aid in determining the best anesthetic protocol for your pet.
• Monitoring and constantly assessing and documenting your pet’s vital signs before, during and after anesthesia.
• Recognizing and responding to any abnormalities rapidly and appropriately.
• Adequate post-anesthesia monitoring in the hospital until your pet is discharged to go home
• Providing appropriate home care instruction to pet owners after any anesthetic procedure.

• Follow pre-anesthetic or surgery feeding instructions carefully. It is extremely important that pets not eat and have an empty stomach prior to anesthesia or surgery as to not vomit and aspirate food into the lungs
• Carefully follow homecare and discharge instructions.
• Confine pets to a safe place in the house that allows for restricted area of movement. Many pets are still not 100% recovered from the effects of anesthesia and may need to be monitored by pet owners for 24 hours.
• Do not leave your pet unattended or with other pets or small children as behavior changes can occur and temporarily cause your pet’s mood to swing a bit unpredictably.
• Contact the veterinarian if you feel that your pet is still not acting right the next day.
• MOST IMPORTANTLY, STAY ENGAGED WITH YOUR PETS RECOVERY AND ASK QUESTIONS. WE AT KIND ANIMAL HOSPITAL ARE HERE TO HELP!

At Kind Animal Hospital we have a systematic protocol in place that is widely used at the university teaching hospitals in North America.

Patients undergoing anesthesia or surgery are assessed on many levels and careful consideration is taken with respect to the following:

• The age, species medical history and overall health, body condition, Physical Exam findings, and Pre-anesthetic blood and X-ray results.
• Any concurrent medical conditions that warrant advanced prescreening such as EKG, Ultrasound, CT, or MRI.
• Length and nature of anesthetic procedure
• Elective procedure vs. Necessary procedure
• Type of anesthesia and pain management that is best suited for a particular procedure. This is very important because not all procedures require the same types of anesthesia and pain management. Having this in mind allows for custom tailored anesthesia for individual patients and procedures. This makes for the best anesthetic choices and safer maintenance and recovery for individual patients.
• Potential for complications and estimated recovery time.

After an initial pre-anesthetic evaluation and thorough assessment of overall patient health, the anesthetic choices are made unique to the individual patient.

All our patients have a minimum pre-anesthetic requirement of a complete physical exam and blood work. Some patients may require more diagnostic work ups such as X-ray, ultrasound, EKG, or echocardiogram.

All patients undergoing anesthesia have exclusive personnel specially trained and experienced in anesthesia and surgery dedicated to your pet’s safety and recovery.

The reality is that general anesthesia is performed safely on thousands of animals daily. The benefit of a necessary procedure requiring anesthesia far outweighs the risks associated. The correct veterinarian, facility, and staff are integral in the safety and wellbeing of your pets.