You know your pet is in good hands at Parkside Animal Hospital, but that doesn’t make an impending surgical procedure less intimidating. Pet surgery is a common occurrence, though, and knowing what to expect can make it just a little less scary.

Preparing for Pet Surgery

Whenever we recommend surgery for a pet, we will be sure to go over what to expect with you. From cost to potential complication to recovery, knowing what to be prepared for makes things less worrisome. 

It is also important to know that we take our jobs as your pet’s surgeon, anesthetist, and recovery team very seriously. Our hospital treats every veterinary surgery with care and utilizes up to date protocols to ensure safety. Preanesthetic blood work, intravenous catheters, well-trained staff monitoring anesthesia, high tech monitoring equipment and practices, and excellent pain management are used for each and every surgery performed in our building.

Soft Tissue Surgery for Pets

Soft tissue surgery for pets involves anything that doesn’t involve a bone or joint. Some of the more common procedures that our pet patients undergo include:

• Spay or neuter — Most pets should be spayed or neutered. This helps to prevent unwanted litters as well as avoid health problems including mammary cancer, pyometra (uterine infection), prostatic hyperplasia, and testicular cancer. 
• Gastropexy — For at-risk pets, tacking the stomach to the inside of the rib cage can lessen the incidence of life-threatening gastric dilatation volvulus, or bloat.
• Lump removal in pets — Growths and abnormalities of the tissues can require removal and/or sampling for biopsy to determine prognosis and treatment options.
• Enucleation — Diseased eyes can be very painful, and sometimes removal of the globe is the best option to help a pet. 
• Laceration repair — The surgical repair of a cut or other wound may be needed in order to improve healing and minimize complications.
• Abdominal surgery — Abdominal surgeries to remove a diseased spleen, take care of a bladder stone, repair a hernia, or foreign body removal for pets who have something stuck in their gastrointestinal tract are frequent procedures. 

Laparoscopic Pet Surgery

Laparoscopic surgery is done with a small camera on a telescoping rod (called a laparoscope) that is inserted into a surgical patient through a small incision. By using the laparoscope, the surgeon is able to perform a procedure using minimally-invasive techniques with other small tools to cut, suture, and perform other surgical tasks. 

Veterinary surgeries can be done using laparoscopic techniques include:

• Spay (ovariectomy)
• Cryptorchid neuters (in which one or both testicles are retained internally)
• Prophylactic gastropexy (stomach tacking)
• Abdominal exploratories and internal organ biopsy
• Joint exploratories

Laparoscopic pet surgery has some benefits, including smaller incisions, faster healing, faster surgery and anesthesia times, and reduced risk of infection. It can be a great option for appropriate procedures.

Pet Surgery Recovery

Once your pet is discharged after surgery, they are in your hands. Your post-surgery pet care plays a big role in how well and quickly your pet recovers. 

Be sure that you encourage your pet to rest in a quiet, comfortable area where they are not being disturbed. You will also want to monitor closely to be sure that they are eating, drinking, using the bathroom and not having any complications. Keeping tabs on these things can help us to monitor how they are recovering.

At your pet’s discharge, you will be given instructions outlining the care of your pet. Be sure to follow them closely. Give all medications as directed, and be sure to follow any dietary instructions, exercise restrictions, or nursing care instructions given.

Don’t be shy to contact us if you are having trouble complying with any recommendations or if you have concerns about how your pet is doing. 

When a pet has surgery, it can be a little scary. Please know, though, that they are in good hands with us, and that we are here to help.