At Neighborhood Veterinary Hospitals of San Diego, we take all anesthetic cases very seriously. We utilize the safest, multi-modal approach that is individually created for each dog or cat. It includes injectable medications for sedation and pain management as well as gas anesthetic agents. The combination of pre-anesthetic assessment of your pet (including blood work), use of modern anesthetic agents, and the latest anesthetic monitoring equipment means that anesthesia is generally considered to be a very low risk for your pet.
During the procedure, we closely monitor your pet and the recovery process using advanced monitoring equipment. Parameters often monitored include oxygen concentration in the blood stream (pulse oximetry), electrocardiogram (EKG), core body temperature, respiratory rate, heart rate, blood pressure, and carbon dioxide level. The monitoring findings allow us to perform safe anesthesia.
When we place your dog or cat safely under general anesthesia, a breathing tube is inserted into the trachea (windpipe) to administer oxygen mixed with the anesthetic gas. As with people, an intravenous catheter is placed into your pet's leg to deliver fluids during the procedure. Once the procedure is completed and the anesthetic is turned off, oxygen continues to be delivered to your pet until it awakens and the tube is removed.