What to expect at the Animal Hospital of Ivy Square 

In your search for a veterinary facility, we believe you should expect high quality care as well as great service.  Our goal has been to assemble a veterinary health care team committed to providing exceptional client service and veterinary health care.  Our commitment to you is to continue to offer our world class service and a state of the art veterinary facility.

Your pet's annual vet check-up will include a total physical exam, with a thorough investigation of your pet's head, body and tail, and all his assorted cavities. Because even the most cooperative pet may not readily go-along with a tooth and gum brushing, an annual cleaning by your veterinarian maybe in order. Like you, your pet can lose his teeth due to decay and neglect. It's a good idea to keep an accurate medical diary not only of the procedures and vaccinations your pet receives at the vet, but also of notes on things like your pet's elimination habits and any physical changes or unusual occurrences. Keep track of small shifts in your pet's behavior, including urinary marking habits and mood swings, along with diet and routine modifications. Take this notebook when you visit the vet. These seemingly unrelated occurrences may help explain results of your pet's medical tests. Also, if you need to change vets, it's good to have this journal to provide a complete medical history.

Choose a veterinarian who is calm, compassionate and willing to explain all the procedures your pet undergoes. Try to find a vet with whom both you and your pet feel comfortable. Try to have it convenient, choose a clinic with qualified staff and facilities to undertake surgery and perform procedures requiring anesthesia, such as teeth cleaning. Because of the general risks inherent to anesthesia, especially for very old, very young or very ill pets, your veterinarian will likely suggest a few exams, including a chest X-ray and lab work of blood and urine, before your pet is anesthetized. During the procedure he might need an IV drip; antibiotics may be necessary before and after.

We may refer you to a specialist, a veterinarian who has completed advanced studies in specialties such as internal medicine, surgery, and emergency care, if your pet must undergo a procedure that requires more precise knowledge and experience.

Surgery and your pet
Many clients have questions about various aspects of their pet's surgery, and we hope this information will help.  It also explains the decisions you will need to make before your pet's upcoming surgery.

Today's modern anesthetic monitors have made surgery much safer than in the past.  Your pet's veterinarian here will do a thorough physical exam here before administering anesthetics, to ensure that a fever or other illness won't be a problem.  We also adjust the amount and type of anesthetic used depending on the health of your pet.

Preanesthetic blood testing is important in reducing the risk of anesthesia.  Every pet needs blood testing before surgery to ensure that the liver and kidneys can handle the anesthetic.  Even apparently healthy animals can have serious organ system problems that cannot be detected without blood testing.  If there is a problem, it is much better to find it before it causes anesthetic or surgical complications.  Animals that have minor dysfunction will handle the anesthetic better if they receive IV fluids during surgery.  If serious problems are detected, surgery can be postponed until the problem is corrected.

We offer in-house blood testing before surgery, which we will go over with you when you bring your pet in.  We also offer more extensive blood panels that are sent to the lab for analysis. To make sure we have results prior to surgery, blood samples for these tests must be drawn a couple of days before the procedure.  For geriatric or ill pets, additional blood tests, electrocardiograms, or x-rays may be required before surgery as well.

It is important that surgery be done on an empty stomach to reduce the risk of vomiting during and after anesthesia.  You will need to withhold food for at least 8 to 10 hours before surgery.  Water can be left down for the pet until the morning of surgery.

Will my pet have stitches?
For many surgeries, we use absorbable sutures underneath the skin.  These will dissolve on their own, and do not need to be removed later.  Some surgeries, especially tumor removals, do require skin stitches.  With either type of suture, you will need to keep an eye on the incision for swelling or discharge.  Most dogs and cats do not lick excessively or chew at the incision, but this is an occasional problem you will also need to watch for.  If there are skin sutures, these will usually be removed 10 to 14 days after surgery.  You will also need to limit your pet's activity level for a time and no baths are allowed for the first 10 days after surgery.

Will my pet be in pain?
Anything that causes pain in people can be expected to cause pain in animals.  Pets may not show the same symptoms of pain as people do; they usually don't whine or cry, but you can be sure they feel it.  Pain medications needed will depend on the surgery performed.  Major procedures require more pain relief than things like minor lacerations.

For dogs, we may recommend an oral anti-inflamatory formulated just for dogs the day after surgery and several days after to lessen the risk of discomfort and swelling.  We use newer medications, which are less likely to cause stomach upset and can be given even the morning of surgery.  The cost of the medication ranges from $20 to $40, depending on the size of your dog. Do not give your pet any over the counter medications like aspirin, ibuprofen, or Tylenol.

Because cats do not tolerate standard pain medications such as aspirin, ibuprofen, or Tylenol, we are limited in what we can give them.  Recent advances in pain medications have allowed for better pain control in cats than ever before.  We administer a pain injection 10 minutes prior to surgery.  After surgery, pain medication is given on a case by case basis.  Any animal that appears painful will receive additional pain medication.

We use narcotic patches for some surgeries in dogs as well.  The cost will depend on the size of the dog.  Injectable pain medications may also be used after surgery on both dogs and cats.  Providing whatever pain relief is appropriate is a humane and caring thing to do for your pet.

Care of your pet after surgery
Your pet's veterinarian and technician will go over your pet's specific home care instructions before you take your pet home. All pets who have had surgery will need to rest for at least 10 - 14 days after surgery. This can be done by keeping cats inside. Dogs need to be walked on a leash.

You also need to keep your pet from licking, scratching, or rubbing their incision. We have some products to help with this including: elizabethan collars, bite-not collars, woundwear (surgical recovery clothes for your pet!), bandages, boots, and ointment that tastes bad.

What other decisions do I need to make?
While your pet is under anesthesia, it is the ideal time to perform other minor procedures, such as dentistry, ear cleaning, or implanting an identification microchip.  We are also happy to trim toe nails, clip mats, and do sanitary hair trims. If you would like an estimate for these extra services, please call ahead of time.  This is especially important if the person dropping the pet off for surgery is not the primary decision maker for the pet's care.

When you bring your pet in for surgery, we will need to 5 to 10 minutes of time to fill out paperwork and make decisions on the blood testing and other options available.  When you pick up your pet after surgery you can also plan to spend about 10 minutes to go over your pet's home care needs.

We will call you the day before your scheduled surgery appointment, to confirm the time you will be dropping your pet off and to answer any questions you might have.  In the meantime, please don't hesitate to call us with any questions about your pet's health or surgery.

Digital Ultrasound
Our digital Ultrasound allows us to assess the internal architecture of the body. It helps your pet's veterinarian to see inside the organs, where x-rays see only the outside. Ultrasound uses the technology of sound waves to produce an image of the inside of your animal. Every organ can be evaluated. This procedure is non-painful and sedation is not necessarily used for every animal.

How is it done?
First thing we do is a "shave-down". Your pet will get a haircut where the ultrasound is going to be done. They then get jelly on their belly' (like a human ultrasound) and then gentle pressure is applied with the ultrasound so they can pick up the image. It's as easy as that, with little discomfort. Mild sedation is sometimes beneficial to help your pet to be comfortable while this procedure is being performed. For this reason, we ask you not to feed your pet anything for 10 hours prior to the ultrasound. Clear liquids are ok until until 4 hours prior to the ultrasound.

What can be found during an ultrasound?
Often times, our list of diagnoses is long and ultrasound can help rule out many diseases. Some of the things that could be found include masses, fluid in the abdomen, detached retinas, gall stones, heart defects and blood flow through the heart. Some of the things that we have found at our hospital are kidney stones, bladder masses, cancerous and non-cancerous masses and prostate cancer.

Telemedicine- what is this and do we have this? Yes!
Telemedicine lets us send your pet's images such as ultrasound, xrays, digital photos, and other information over the internet to other veterinarians and specialists around the world in minutes. Expert opinions are available to help us guide you to a diagnosis and treatment for your pet's condition.