Maximizing Safety & Minimizing Pain

Maximizing Safety:
Porter Pet Hospital (Dr. Liz) fully examines all pets that are not fractious prior to administering any pre-medications and before injections are given that may alter your pets cardiovascular condition. We will inform you if there are any concerns found that may increase risk for your pet. Pets with respiratory infections or conditions that may need to be treated prior to anesthesia can be prescribed medications and sent home for some healing time prior to their procedure. Pets that appear healthy will be given a small dose of sedation/pain medication combination to help them relax until the time their surgery is performed. Feral or very aggressive pets may be given a drug or drug cocktail to help them become more approachable prior to full evaluation.
Porter Pet Hospital (Dr. Liz) fully examines all pets that are not fractious prior to administering any pre-medications and before injections are given that may alter your pets cardiovascular condition. We will inform you if there are any concerns found that may increase risk for your pet. Pets with respiratory infections or conditions that may need to be treated prior to anesthesia can be prescribed medications and sent home for some healing time prior to their procedure. Pets that appear healthy will be given a small dose of sedation/pain medication combination to help them relax until the time their surgery is performed. Feral or very aggressive pets may be given a drug or drug cocktail to help them become more approachable prior to full evaluation.
Drugs used at our hospital for your pets procedure are considered to be very safe and are consistent with medications used in most hospitals. Do not think that lower prices are obtained by skimping on your pets care or the quality of medications used. Once your pet is anesthetized, their oxygen levels, heart rate, respiratory rate, and body temperature are continually monitored both by special monitoring equipment as well as by experienced technicians trained to take care of your pet. We also evaluate EKG's and blood pressure on most animals depending on the length and type of their procedure. All surgical equipment used on your pet is cleaned, packed individually and sterilized just as it would be at any high quality general practice and because Dr. Liz has over 15 years of experience in small animal surgery you pet's surgery will be performed efficiently and safely.

Pets that are 5 years of age and older are required to have pre-surgical blood work to try to make sure the organs that metabolize the anesthetics used for surgery are healthy. Pets that are over 5 years of age are also given subcutaneous fluids (fluids under their skin) to allow their bodies to more efficiently get rid of the medications used. Pets that are 7 years of age and older are required to have pre-surgical blood work before surgery and will be given intravenous fluids during surgery. This makes the procedure safer for older pets and also makes their recovery smoother. Older pets commonly heal a little slower, but are also more prone to the side effects of anesthesia that younger pets don't typically have to deal with. Side effects such as nausea, diarrhea, sedation, and anorexia are typically minimized with the right choice of anesthetics and intravenous fluids to help more efficiently flush the medications from their bodies. We will discuss with you if there are other recommendations for older pets outside our "normal" age/health based protocols. Sometimes even young pets will have an intolerance to a specific drug and if they show gastrointestinal upset or seem to not be feeling well, we will treat your pet with anti-nausea medications or fluids as needed. Most changes in surgical protocol are included in our surgery price, but small charges are possible, especially for larger dogs. Unless we are in an emergency situation, we will inform you of these recommendations and charges PRIOR to your pets procedure.
Owners of young pets can always choose to have blood work checked and subcutaneous or intravenous fluids given to further increase safety. If it is possible for you to do so, we recommend it. But, it is not a requirement unless we feel it is necessary based on exam, breed concerns, or other anesthetic risk factors.
Please call us or talk to us the morning of surgery if you have any further questions!
Owners of young pets can always choose to have blood work checked and subcutaneous or intravenous fluids given to further increase safety. If it is possible for you to do so, we recommend it. But, it is not a requirement unless we feel it is necessary based on exam, breed concerns, or other anesthetic risk factors.
Please call us or talk to us the morning of surgery if you have any further questions!
Minimizing Pain:

There are many options for pain control for your pet. Surgical pain can vary between pets and procedures. Veterinarians today have more options than ever before to help keep your pet comfortable. We will utilize some of these great medications to keep your pets pain levels as minimal as possible. However, with all pain medications, even the "best" ones, there can be side effects. Because of this potential, it is important for us to balance the "risk" vs benefit for your pet with every drug prescribed. Age and breed predispositions can increase concern in some patients. Most of the potential problems are associated with gastrointestinal side effects that you would see at home as lack of appetite, depression, vomiting or diarrhea. If your pet has these symptoms we may need to avoid, change or add medications. But even the mild side effects are uncommon; serious side effects quite rare.
We will assess your pet so we can send home medications that are as safe as possible, but also catered to the pain levels typically associated with their procedure. Our pets RARELY show us obvious symptoms of pain they are feeling but we know the anticipated pain and healing timelines associated with a particular procedure and we will prescribe medications accordingly. It is important, even if you think your pet is "fine", to give prescribed medications BUT, as mentioned briefly above, anesthetics used for your pets procedure can slow down the gastrointestinal tract and cause acid accumulation and nausea. Because almost all pain medications are more likely to worsen an already upset stomach and because dehydration from anorexia or vomiting can increase the likelihood of more serious issues, it is VERY IMPORTANT AFTER YOUR PET HAS SURGERY THAT THEY ARE EATING AND DRINKING BEFORE TAKING THE PAIN MEDICATIONS WE PRESCRIBE. Because side effects are uncommon and risk low and because the benefits are high, if your pet is feeling well, it is important to finish the medications sent home with you. Call us if you have concerns before or after surgery!!
We will assess your pet so we can send home medications that are as safe as possible, but also catered to the pain levels typically associated with their procedure. Our pets RARELY show us obvious symptoms of pain they are feeling but we know the anticipated pain and healing timelines associated with a particular procedure and we will prescribe medications accordingly. It is important, even if you think your pet is "fine", to give prescribed medications BUT, as mentioned briefly above, anesthetics used for your pets procedure can slow down the gastrointestinal tract and cause acid accumulation and nausea. Because almost all pain medications are more likely to worsen an already upset stomach and because dehydration from anorexia or vomiting can increase the likelihood of more serious issues, it is VERY IMPORTANT AFTER YOUR PET HAS SURGERY THAT THEY ARE EATING AND DRINKING BEFORE TAKING THE PAIN MEDICATIONS WE PRESCRIBE. Because side effects are uncommon and risk low and because the benefits are high, if your pet is feeling well, it is important to finish the medications sent home with you. Call us if you have concerns before or after surgery!!