Pre-anaesthetic Blood Testing

The anaesthetics used today, both in human and animal medicine, are extremely safe, greatly minimising the anaesthetic ‘risk' for a healthy animal. However , if your pet is not ‘healthy', complications can occur during and after an anaesthetic.

 

What do we do?

Prior to anaesthetising your pet, we perform a complete physical examination. Unlike humans, our pets cannot tell us directly if they are feeling unwell, and often will instinctively protect themselves by masking any signs of illness. To assist our evaluation of your pet's current health status, we can perform a pre-anaesthetic blood analysis of their kidneys, liver and blood sugar level. Most young apparently healthy animals will have normal results and we will then proceed with their anaesthetic and surgery. We always keep your pet's results on record so we can compare them with any tests we do later in life.

What if the tests show an abnormality?

Depending on the results, we may modify the anaesthetic procedure or provide additional supportive therapy such as intravenous fluids during the surgery OR we may delay the surgery and recommend further tests or examinations. In some cases, by finding an abnormality early through pre-anaesthetic blood testing we can diagnose and treat a disease before it becomes a serious health problem.

Peace of mind

We offer you pre-anaesthetic blood testing so you can be assured your pet is receiving the best possible care and the most appropriate treatment. We look forward to helping you provide your pet with a long, healthy and happy life.