Surgery and Dentistry

No matter what procedure your pet needs, all of the staff at Loyal Family Veterinary Hospital appreciate that your pet is a beloved companion and that any anesthetic procedure should never be taken lightly. Therefore, our doctors work to maintain proper pre-surgical care through bloodwork and other diagnostic tests to ensure that your pet is prepared for anesthesia. All of our staff work to maintain the highest standards of care possible, from initial check-in, to recovery and discharge. We pride ourselves on following AAHA standards (www.aaha.org) and we want to make every procedure as smooth and stress free as possible for both you and your pet.

Surgery - Our doctors routinely perform many surgeries, including, but not limited to: 

• Spays 
• Neuters 
• Mass removals 
• Wound repairs 
• Cherry Eye repair - prolapsed third eyelid 
• Cystotomies, or bladder surgery to remove bladder stones 
• Amputations 

Our surgical suite is fully stocked and equipped with high-end anesthesia monitoring equipment to make sure that your pet is safe during their procedure. Each pet's surgical plan is tailored precisely for their weight and any other specific health condition. All of our patients have intravenous catheters for IV fluids to maintain hydration levels. All patients are prepped under sterile methods. We use gas anesthesia to maintain constant, appropriate depth of surgical anesthesia and a multi-parameter machine to ensure all vital systems are functioning properly.

Our monitoring system includes looking at: 

• SPO2: monitoring oxygen levels in the blood 
• End tidal CO2: monitoring carbon dioxide levels within the closed anesthesia system 
• Heart rate 
• Respiratory rate 
• Anesthesia level: We can adjust the depth needed to maintain anesthesia at the appropriate level indicated for the surgery. 
• Blood pressure (systolic/diastolic) 
• Temperature: Our surgical table is heated and additional heat support is provided to keep patients warm and stable 
• Positive pressure ventilation: manually assisted additional ventilation as needed to ensure proper lung volume function 

Dentistry - Routine dental care is key to increasing the lifespan and quality of your pet's well-being. While we recommend at-home dental care and provide a variety of methods to assist you in the home care of your pet's teeth, we offer anesthetic dental cleanings and care as recommended by the American Veterinary Medical Association and American College of Veterinary Dentists. Following current medical standards, we do not recommend non-anesthetic dentistry as it can cause harm and does not allow for complete evaluation of all interior aspects of the teeth or allow for a thorough cleaning to remove plaque and bacteria. We follow AAHA (American Animal Hospital Association) guidelines (www.aaha.org) to maintain the best possible standards for our care. 

• Under anesthesia, a full oral exam is performed, complete with probing of all surfaces, checking for any signs of gum disease or oral masses. Teeth are ultrasonically scaled both on the visible surface and under the gumline, where the majority of bacteria will accumulate. The teeth are then polished with a power hand piece and a fluoride treatment is applied to strengthen the enamel. 
• In addition to the dental exam and cleaning, we also recommend full mouth dental radiographs. Our doctors use these dental radiographs to look at the health of your pet’s teeth below the gumline as well as within the tooth. As most problems start below the gumline, radiographs give us an accurate look at the roots and ligaments of the teeth and the jaw bone. Radiographs can help us find hidden problems such as abscesses, broken roots, and bone decay at an early stage before they become painful for your pet.
• If necessary, our facility is capable of performing dental extractions. Pre and post x-rays are taken for complete assessment of the extraction. Dissolving sutures are used and complete pain management before, during, and after the procedure for your pet, including nerve blocks and post-operative pain medications to go home for full pain management.

Surgery discharge instructions are provided for each patient, specific to the procedure they underwent. A technician will discuss the procedure and any follow up care and answer any question you may have.