Surgical/Monitoring

At Washington Heights Veterinary Clinic, we perform a variety of surgical procedures including routine spays, neuters, and declaws; bladder stone removals; intestinal surgeries such as foreign body removals, intussusception repair, and intestinal resections and anastamoses; exploratory laparotomies; biopsies; and C-sections, to name a few. Whatever your pet's surgical needs, we can help.

Each pet that has a surgical procedure must be placed under anesthesia. There are always inherent risks with anesthesia, and this is a fact that the doctors and staff of Washington Heights Veterinary Clinic do not take lightly. Many steps are taken to ensure that your pet is as healthy as possible before anesthesia is considered. Besides a comprehensive physical examination on the day of the procedure, each pet also has their blood analyzed prior to anesthesia in order to uncover any obvious abnormalities that may put them at increased risk for complication. Once under anesthesia, each pet is aggressively monitored by the veterinarian as well as by a veterinary technician. The team is by the pet's side from induction through recovery. In addition, an electronic surgical monitoring system is employed. This machine constantly gives read-outs regarding the pet's heart rate, oxygenation, blood pressure, and temperature. It also displays the pet's EKG. This tells the doctor and technician how the heart is beating at any given time. While these precautions are never a guarantee, we at Washington Heights Veterinary Clinic do everything we can to ensure that your pet's anesthetic and surgical experience is smooth and uneventful.