Anesthetic Safety in Pets

The naming of cats is a difficult matter.
It isn’t just one of your holiday games.
You may think at first I’m mad as a hatter.
When I tell you a cat must have three different names… – T.S. Eliot

My first cat had three first names but that probably had more to do with an attempt at avoiding sibling conflict. I don't remember very well since I was only 3 years old at the time. My brother was five.  I do remember that our cat's name was Terry Abigail Mopa Hallett and that my brother and I didn't always get along.  (The photo at the right shows my brother, me and our cat Terry.)

My parents were thrilled to teach us the facts of life when Terry Abigail Mopa had kittens. My preschool teacher was shocked when my mom told her that my brother and I would watch the birthing process. She remarked that she had never seen a cat have kittens so mom promptly invited her over to see it all.  I remember telling my teacher exactly what was going to happen since my nurse-mother had been getting me ready for days.

My first memory of a veterinarian was when Terry was spayed later that year, 1969. My parents brought her home to our rural Rhode Island home and we watched her slowly die that night after the surgery.  Maybe that is why I take  anesthesia and surgery so seriously now.

We do complete physical exams prior to surgery and require pre-anesthetic blood tests in older or high risk patients (and recommend it for all patients). We complete a pre-anesthesia checklist inspired by book 'The Checklist Manifesto' by Atul Gawande. We use IV catheters and fluids and monitor blood pressure, pulse ox, co2, ECG and body temperature. We have trained assistants and certified veterinary technicians that handle the monitoring so the surgeon can focus on the surgery. Our techs call owners at home at 8pm to check on the patients that we sent home earlier that day.

Some clients worry about anesthetic risk. I tell them that there is always risk with anesthesia but that we do all we can to minimize that risk, to identify problems early and to intervene before there is a crisis.  It's just the right thing to do. If you cut corners, sooner or later it will cost a patient their life and then some parents will have explain to their young son why their cat with three names died.

Click here to see behind the scenes anesthesia and monitoring at Hallett Veterinary Hospital.