Advanced Surgery Services in Arcata

Routine or Complex
Here, your pet only gets the best.

Surgical Procedures There may come a time when your pet will need to undergo surgery. Our veterinarians are skilled and very well experienced in performing a large variety of soft tissue surgeries. In addition to a wide range of standard soft tissue surgeries, we offer laparoscopic assisted surgical options, be sure to visit this section on our website.  As with every other service we offer, we make your pet’s safety and comfort a #1 priority with our surgical services, and we abide by AAHA’s surgery protocols. Our Standards of Care Protocols for patient surgery and anesthesia at Arcata Animal Hospital help ensure the comfort and safety of your pet. Our team of dedicated nurses continuously monitor and support your pet using advanced equipment to monitor your pet’s vital signs and maintain their blood pressure, body temperature, and respiratory function. Whether your pet is in need of a spay/neuter procedure or some other soft tissue surgery, we can help!

What does Anesthesia Monitoring include?

Our support and monitoring includes:

  • Maintaining patient warmth with heat conserving padding, foot covers and circulating warm air blankets. Temperature is monitored continuously throughout the procedure.
  • Intravenous fluids flow through a special warming device to help keep our patients warm and calibrated fluid pumps ensure the proper fluid rate is administered to maintain blood pressure.
  • Respiration is closely monitored and recorded – both rate and quality of respiration.
  • Oxygen saturation of the blood is continuous monitored to ensure proper ventilation and oxygenation of our patients.

  • End-tidal CO2 is closely monitored to ensure our patient ventilation is adequate.
  • Heart rate and rhythm is monitored with a continuous ECG and simultaneous auscultation with a stethoscope.
  • Mucous membrane color and refill times are continuously monitored to ensure adequate perfusion.
  • Blood pressure is continuously monitored to ensure adequate blood flow to all organs.

Your pet is at a much greater risk of infection, pain, or other internal organ problems due to dental disease than they are from an anesthetic complication.

  • Maintaining patient warmth with heat conserving padding, foot covers and circulating warm air blankets. Temperature is monitored continuously throughout the procedure.
  • Intravenous fluids flow through a special warming device to help keep our patients warm and calibrated fluid pumps ensure the proper fluid rate is administered to maintain blood pressure.
  • Respiration is closely monitored and recorded – both rate and quality of respiration.
  • Oxygen saturation of the blood is continuous monitored to ensure proper ventilation and oxygenation of our patients.
  • End-tidal CO2 is closely monitored to ensure our patient ventilation is adequate.
  • Heart rate and rhythm is monitored with a continuous ECG and simultaneous auscultation with a stethoscope.
  • Mucous membrane color and refill times are continuously monitored to ensure adequate perfusion.
  • Blood pressure is continuously monitored to ensure adequate blood flow to all organs.

Your pet is at a much greater risk of infection, pain, or other internal organ problems due to dental disease than they are from an anesthetic complication.

Spay and Neuter Your Pet for Maximum Health    You may have heard the saying “spay or neuter your pet.” but have you thought about all the reasons why this routine procedure is recommended for most? It’s true that unless you are a breeder or plan on responsibly breeding that your pet should be spayed or neutered. The fact of the matter is that spay and neuter surgery lends individual health advantages as well as furthers the well being of pet populations as a whole. 

The timing of when to spay or neuter your pet is dependent upon a number of different factors.  There are health related advantages to waiting until certain pets are physically mature before being spayed or neutered.  We’re here to guide you through this decision making process for your pet. 

Orthopedic Surgical Services Arcata Animal Hospital is proud to partner with Dr. Fetherston of Fetherston Veterinary Orthopedics to offer a wide range of advanced orthopedic surgical options for our patients locally.  Dr. Fetherston’s practice has been limited to orthopedic surgery for over 15 years.  In addition to providing a wide variety of advanced orthopedic surgical services, he serves as a consultant for medical devices, an educator and instructor at home and abroad. We greatly appreciate his skill, compassion and commitment to excellence. To learn more about Dr. Fetherston and his services, we encourage you to visit Fetherston Veterinary Orthopedics . This site also has detailed and informative explanations about what to expect before and after various surgical procedures.