Surgery

We offer complete surgical services ranging from routine neuters and spays to abdominal exploratory and orthopedic surgeries. When a need for a specialist arises, we are able to refer to several board certified surgeons in the area.

Surgeries are performed Monday through Friday, and your pet should arrive at Northshore between 8:00 am and 8:45 am. Dogs and cats need to be fasted overnight; no food after 9 pm. Please allow free access to fresh water.  Most pets will go home the same day, typically between 3:30 pm and 5:30 pm. However, for some orthopedic and emergency surgeries, the pet owner will pick up the surgery patient from our office in the late afternoon of surgery day and transport the patient for overnight care at Animal Emergency Care.

Your pet’s safety is our primary concern and every pet gets a complete exam in the morning of the day of surgery.  Additionally, we evaluate pre-anesthetic blood work, looking at organ function and electrolyte status.  Pets receive intravenous (IV) fluids during most procedures to ensure they maintain adequate blood pressure and perfusion.  We monitor all anesthetic procedures closely, using ECG (electrocardiography), blood pressure, pulse-oximeter and end tidal CO2.  Most importantly a Licensed Veterinary Technician is continually evaluating your pet’s vital signs constantly throughout the procedure.

It is our policy to administer pain control (analgesia) to all patients undergoing invasive procedures or who exhibit signs of pain. Both before and after the procedure your pet will receive pain medication to keep him/her comfortable. The use of appropriate analgesics not only reduces animal suffering but also speeds healing time and recovery.

We know this is a stressful day for you so you may, of course, call and check on your pet at any time and we will call you with an update as soon as your pet is in recovery.