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If you’ve ever had surgery, you probably had an anesthesia team made up of an anesthesiologist and nurse anesthetists. Although you may not remember, they made sure you were well cared for. They also helped you wake up smoothly from anesthesia. At CARE, our anesthesiologists and dedicated veterinary technicians provide pets with the same level of oversight. The anesthesiologist is involved before anesthesia begins and manages your pet’s care during the procedure. They monitor for complications and make sure that recovery from anesthesia goes well.
Anesthesiologists don’t wield scalpels or sew sutures. Yet they’re crucial in assisting those who do. While surgery or diagnostics are being performed, they monitor vital signs and help ensure patients are safe and comfortable.
Anesthesiologists Lay the Groundwork
An anesthesiologist’s job begins long before they anesthetize your pet. They review your pet’s medical history and consider their age, weight and behavior to decide the best anesthetic plan for them. The anesthetic plan includes the type and route of drugs given and the level of monitoring required. It can also include special considerations for certain diseases, such as checking blood sugar levels in diabetic pets or being mindful about positioning for older pets with osteoarthritis.
Anesthesia is never risk-free, and it is the anesthesiologist’s job to minimize these risks as much as possible. They think many steps ahead, planning how best to prevent and manage potential complications. This way, if complications occur, there is already a plan in place to address them.
Anesthesiologists During a Procedure
When the anesthesiologist anesthetizes your pet, your pet becomes unconscious and unaware of their surroundings. This is necessary for invasive procedures, such as surgery, or procedures where your pet must be very still (for example, an MRI).
Unconscious animals are unable to regulate their own body functions, such as swallowing, breathing, or maintaining their own temperature. This is why it is so important for your pet to have a dedicated anesthesia team. Anesthesiologists and veterinary technicians take over these important functions for your pet, making sure their airway is protected with a breathing tube, they have a normal heart rate and blood pressure, and they stay warm.
They also monitor your pet’s depth of anesthesia and comfort during the procedure. Their eye position, blink reflex, and muscle tone all change with depth of anesthesia. Heart rate and blood pressure may increase if your pet is experiencing pain. The anesthesia team closely monitors these signs and gives additional medications as needed.
While other specialists at CARE fix and diagnose diseases in the body, the anesthesiologist monitors and maintains its functions.
Their Role After the Procedure
Recovering from anesthesia is a critical time for pets, as they transition from having doctors and technicians take care of their body functions to resuming those functions on their own.
In the initial stages of recovery, the anesthesia team monitors your pet minute by minute, just as they do during anesthesia. As pets metabolize and eliminate the anesthesia drugs, they start to regain awareness. They may start to look around, swallow and lift their head. The team removes the breathing tube and assesses your pet for any agitation or pain. If needed, they receive anti-anxiety or pain medication. If they’re still cold, animals get heat support, as a person would.
If patients have stable vital signs and are calm and comfortable, they move to a kennel, where CARE technicians continue to watch over them. Pets typically need a few hours before they start walking and they may not want to eat until the following day. If there is a concern in the immediate post-operative period, the anesthesiologist, surgeon and doctor in the Intensive Care Unit may confer about what to do.
Though anesthesiologists’ primary responsibilities end once the patient can function on its own, they often check on the pet the next morning to make sure they are still doing well.
Anesthesiologists Add Value to Your Pet’s Procedure
The most important thing for pet owners to understand is that no operation, however simple, can be risk-free. Anesthesiologists weigh those risks, anticipate potential problems, and are prepared to minimize complications that may arise, ensuring your pet has the least stressful experience possible with the fewest side effects.
Think of Charlotte Animal Referral and Emergency as the equivalent of a medical center for people. It’s open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and it offers all sorts of treatment, from emergency attention to board-certified specialty work after a referral from your primary care veterinarian. Please take a visual tour of the practice at carecharlotte.com/tour.
