The following information summarises this care and what to expect. We all have pets of our own and appreciate you may be worried and have further questions about your pet's procedure, if this is the case we are more than happy to talk to you so please ring ...
Our registered veterinary nursing staff follow the instructions of our vets and prepare your pet for their scheduled procedure.
Our registered veterinary nursing staff follow the instructions of our vets and prepare your pet for their scheduled procedure.
If an anaesthetic is required, you can be certain we use the safest and most modern veterinary anaesthetics as standard. This and the fact that All our patient's anaesthetics are monitored only by our registered veterinary nurses under the direction of the vet reduces the risk to a minimum. That same nursing care continues right through to recovery in our wards.
To ensure your pet is ready for admission, and procedures run smoothly on the day the following instructions are summarised as followed:
YOUR CHECKLIST
- Book an appointment for your dog to be admitted
- Bring your dog to the practice on the morning of the procedure at your appointment time. Our consulting nurses admit patients from 8 am. We need to see your pet at your scheduled appointment time. All our day cases are admitted early to give us time to settle your pet into our Dog Ward and prepare them
- Your dog should be as clean and dry as possible (a quick shampoo the previous day helps!). This is particularly important if they are going into an operating theatre. If your pet is dirty, we may have to delay their procedure
- Your dog can be fed at bedtime in the evening before they are admitted. We advise you do this as late as possible but before midnight. Our canine patients need an empty stomach if they are having an anaesthetic or a procedure that requires fasting. Remember to remove any other food sources e.g. from other pets
- There is no limit to their water intake and this should continue as normal until they arrive for their appointment
- Take your dog out for a short walk in the morning to empty their bowels and bladder
THE CONSENT FORM
Before any procedure, whether your pet is having an anaesthetic or not, we must by law, have a consent form completed. This will need to be signed by the dog's owner or someone on behalf of the owner. The person signing the consent form MUST BE OVER THE AGE OF 18.
- You will be asked to check your and your pet's details, we will check your dog's planned procedure/s mention on the form with you and will also check your contact telephone number/s.
- IT IS VITAL THAT WE ARE ABLE TO CONTACT YOU OR SOMEONE ON YOUR BEHALF, AT ANY GIVEN POINT DURING YOUR PET'S STAY - ESPECIALLY WHEN YOUR PET IS ANAETHETISED AND HAVING AN OPERATION OR PROCEDURE. This is in case of an emergency, we need to speak to you about your dog's treatment or we find something unexpected and need your permission for further treatment. If your pet is under anaesthetic at the time of the call, contacting you quickly is vital.
- We will need to know when your dog last ate, this includes any treats they might have had. If you suspect they could have eaten after midnight, you must tell us.
- Please bring minimal accessories with your pet, e.g. harness, lead. We may ask you to take these items home and bring them back when you collect your dog.
- You can of course bring a towel, blanket or toy to take in with them. The item/s may need to be washed so we ask that you name it with your dog's name and surname using a permanent marker or similar. If you are doing this we advise bringing an older item, rather than for example their favourite toy as we can't accept responsibility for their items - but we always try to return these to you.
THE COST OF YOUR PET'S PROCEDURE
We hope you have been advised about the cost of your pet's procedure before your appointment. If your pet is having a routine procedure then an estimate or quote will have been given to you. For more involved procedures we will need to speak to the vet in charge of your pet. If you haven't been made aware of this, please contact us in advance of your appointment. If you are unsure about the cost when we admit your dog, please ask the nurse admitting him/her.
If your pet is insured and treatment will result in a claim, you will need to contact your insurance company. Explain the planned procedure and check you are covered. If it is, they will issue you with a claims reference number and send you a claims form. Please advise us about your intentions to claim through your insurance company. (Please note that pet insurance does not cover all procedures including routine treatments such as neutering and many dental procedures. It is therefore important to check first.)
PET A LITTLE OLDER?
You may want to consider having a pre-operative blood profile performed before your dog is anaesthetised. This is advised for dogs over the age of 7 and is a way of establishing any underlying conditions that may affect our choice of anaesthetic for example. In non-routine cases, your vet may have advised you about this prior to admitting your pet. There is an extra charge for this, but the nurse admitting your pet can advise you further.
WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOUR PET HAS HAD THEIR PROCEDURE?
We recognise you may be worrying about your pet. You can ring our ward line at any point of your dog's stay, ring 01376 325511 and select option 2. We can assure you that your dog will be made as comfortable as possible and we always aim to reunite them with you at the earliest possible time.
We aim to ring you after your pet's procedure has finished and if they are having an anaesthetic then after they have woken up. We will book an appointment for you to collect them, but we may wait until they are less drowsy before doing this. If this is the case we would ask you to ring back when requested so we can book this appointment for you.
(Please do not be concerned if we have not phoned you - it may be a particularly busy day or we are dealing with an emergency.)
When we speak to you after your dog's procedure we will give you any specific information that you will need to know so you can care for them at home.
When you arrive to collect your pet, we will ask you to settle your bill or in the case of an insurance claim ask that you pay your policies excess and any co-payments and leave a signed claim form for us to complete. If you are sending someone else to collect your pet and they are not paying your pet's bill, please ring us first so we can arrange payment.
A member of our nursing team will then discuss your pet's needs and issue a post-op or procedure care sheet. We will advise you if your pet needs any medication, change to their exercise or diet regime and if/when a follow-up appointment is necessary. Once this has been completed we will reunite you with your dog.
Your dog will be pleased to see you but be aware that they may still be drowsy. We advise you to collect your pet by car or taxi.
If your dog's condition results in them being hospitalised for the night or longer, we will keep you informed on their progress and are happy to speak to you throughout their stay. Visiting hours are currently not permitted during the pandemic but we will may be able to use video calling by prior arrangement, please just ask. This may be more difficult after 6.30 pm on weekdays, due to staffing levels and the need to focus on our patients.