1. First and foremost

Thank you for even considering to have your dog or cat spayed or neutered! The vast majority of dogs and cats should be spayed or neutered before they are 6 or 7 months old. (WARNING: I'm about to start on my soapbox!) Only responsible breeders, that is, those who actively show their pets and who are dedicated to improving the quality of a particular breed, or those who participate in breeding programs for guide dog/companion dogs, should consider breeding. Spaying and neutering your pet will not only reduce the likelihood of behavior problems and accidents, but will also give your pet the best chance of living a long and healthy life.  Unfortunately, we hear so many times that a new pet owner wants to breed the new pet because it "Has Papers".  If only folks realized that "Having Papers" is meaningless when it comes to quality.  Being registered with the AKC or other groups, unfortunately, does not mean that your pet is of good quality - it means only that its parents were registered. And any one can breed dogs and cats. There are no license requirements in Tennessee. We see far too many people breeding dogs and cats without regard to the pet's temperament, confirmation, or qualities.

2. Presurgical Evaluation

A presurgical consult and examination is critical for so many reasons. A thorough history is necessary to determine a pet's overall health status and to determine what the pet's recovery environment at home will be like.  The pet should be evaluated for disease risk, vaccination status, medical health history, drug interactions, and have heartworm, flea, and intestinal parasite screenings performed. Likewise, a thorough physical examination is very necessary to diagnose infectious diseases, heart conditions, or debilitation from parasites. At Boyds Creek Animal Hospital, your pet will have a thorough physical exam both prior to the day of surgery, and also again the morning of surgery.  In addition to the exam and parasite screenings, we also recommend a preanesthetic blood test to detect hidden problems, such as with blood sugar, kidneys, or liver, that could cause serious complications with anesthesia or surgery.

3. Low Volume, High Quality

Your pet is an individual here. We schedule only 5 or fewer surgeries or advanced procedures on each surgical morning in order to ensure that your pet is receiving the highest quality and most individualized care possible.  Being thorough takes time! It it impossible to be thorough when performing surgeries on 25-35 patients each day, as in many of the low-cost spay-neuter clinics. Do you want your special pet to be just another number?  High volume, low quality operations are stressful on all involved - and there is never enough staff to properly examine and monitor animals from start to finish.  I know it sounds harsh, but I have worked at low-cost spay-neuter clinics. Low cost spay/neuter operations rely on volume to stay open.  Visit them, and see for yourself. While there, feel free to ask to see the paperwork and forms that will be used to monitor your pet's progress, both before surgery, during surgical induction and the actual procedure, and while in recovery. Compare how detailed their forms are to our forms to see what is being monitored and what is not. You will see that anesthesia is not being monitored and drug doses and effects are not being noted.  Also, please ask about the credentials of veterinary technicians and support staff that will be helping with your pet's procedure. At our hospital, we are so very proud of our staff's capabilities and training. You deserve to know the details of your pets surgery, every step of the way.

4. Anesthesia ASAP (As Safe As Possible)

While most surgical procedures are uneventful, taking added precautions can decrease the risk of anesthetic complication. The first precaution, as mentioned previously, is the presurgical exam and parasite/bloodwork screening. Second, at our hospital, we administer preanesthetic medications to help reduce your pet's anxiety and help stabilize your pet's blood pressure and heart rate during surgery. We also give preoperative pain medication. The pre-medications administered will vary based on your pet's breed, age, weight, health, and underlying medical conditions. Did you know that not all veterinary hospitals give pre-medications prior to surgery?

Next, and prior to inducing anesthesia, an IV catheter will be placed in your pet's leg. The IV catheter is our port to administer IV fluids and for providing emergency drugs should an emergency situation arise. IV fluids may be administered to your pet to help maintain blood pressure, increase perfusion to internal organs, prevent dehydration, and hasten recovery.

5. Pain Management

Surgery hurts! We all know that. Animals feel pain just like we do - but they hide it. Your pet's pain will be managed both before, during, and after surgery. You would likely be surprised at how many hospitals still do not routinely provide pain medication for surgery patients.

 Assisting with Surgical Procedures

6. Facility Quality

A quality veterinary facility will have a separate surgery preparation area from the surgery room. If the surgery area is not a single use area, infection rates are increased by increased traffic  within the room. Performing surgeries or procedures in the surgery room that are not "sterile" procedures increases infection rates. Having sinks, cages, poorly maintained flooring, ceilings, and/or walls in the surgery room, as well as having carpeting, increases infection rates - these areas all harbor debris, bacteria, molds, and viruses.

7. Written Post-Surgical Care Instructions

Aftercare of surgical patients is very important for proper healing. The hospital should provide discharge instructions for your pet.

An often overlooked aspect of surgery is the choice of suture material. There is a great difference in suture materials that are available today. Sutures vary greatly in type, strength, stiffness, and cost. Some suture materials are not very strong, and cause increased inflammation within the tissues, or the knots can even untie. These material are very inexpensive. Better products cause less reaction, with less pain and tissue trauma and inflammation, allowing greater security and faster healing. Some places will even reuse suture, placing the material into a solution until it can be used again. Another cost cutting method is to use suture off of a reel, rather than using individually packaged suture. Suture is simply rolled off a reel and threaded through a needle which is used over and over, and dulls quickly. These needles also leave much bigger holes, as they have to be large enough to thread.