Spay and Neuter | What to expect for your pet’s surgery at Zebulon Animal Hospital

What is it, and what are the benefits?

The most common surgical procedures performed at Zebulon Animal Hospital are spaying and neutering.

While these are terms most people are familiar with, many are not exactly sure what is actually done while their pet is with us, what is involved in the surgery, or what all of the benefits are. 

Spaying is the removal of the ovaries and uterus in female dogs and cats, while neutering is the removal of the testicles in male dogs and cats.

Spaying and neutering can help to reduce the number of unwanted animals in shelters, which can ultimately lead to euthanasia. Spaying and neutering can help to prevent certain health problems in both male and female animals, such as pyometra (a life-threatening infection of the uterus in female dogs and cats), testicular cancers, and prostate issues.

Spaying and neutering can also help to reduce unwanted behaviors, such as roaming, aggression, and marking.

What to Expect on the Day of Surgery

On the day of surgery, you will bring your pet in that morning and leave them in our care for most of the day. They will need to arrive on an empty stomach, having no food after 9 PM the night before.

You should allow about 10-15 minutes for check-in, as there will be a short form for you to fill out with a few questions regarding your pet’s health, as well as some additional services you may choose to have done while your pet is with us.

Upon arrival, a veterinary nurse will evaluate your pet and check their vitals. If you opted to have pre-anesthetic lab work done (this is always recommended, and sometimes required) the nurse will also draw blood at this time.

Dr. Kelly then will administer some medications that will help your pet relax as well as provide pain relief.

Shortly before surgery, a veterinary nurse will place an IV catheter in your pet’s leg.

This allows us to administer IV fluids during your pet’s surgery to keep your pet hydrated and maintain normal blood pressure. The IV catheter also allows us to have immediate access to administer emergency medication if the need arises.

When your pet is taken into the surgery suite, they are placed on a warming pad and Dr. Kelly will administer an anesthetic drug through your pet’s IV catheter. Once they are asleep Dr. Kelly will place an intubation tube which allows us to control your pet’s anesthetic level through gas anesthesia, as well as ensures your pet’s airway is protected throughout the surgery.

A heart monitor is immediately placed on your pet and IV fluids are started. The nurse prepares the surgical site, then Dr. Kelly begins surgery while the nurse closely monitors your pet throughout the entire procedure.

Once the surgery is complete your pet is given another pain injection, moved into the recovery area, and closely monitored until they are awake.

After they are alert enough to remove their intubation tube, a nurse will call you with an update and give you a pick-up time. When you arrive a nurse will discuss aftercare and answer any questions you have. 

What to Expect During Your Pet’s Recovery

The evening after surgery you can expect your pet to still be very groggy. We recommend allowing them to rest in a warm, quiet place in the house.

You may offer food and water in small amounts at a time the day you take your pet home from surgery, then resume their normal meal routine the following day. It is normal for them to have a decreased appetite, as well as gastrointestinal symptoms such as vomiting or diarrhea, for up to 24 hours. For two weeks following surgery, your pet should be taken out on a leash, and avoid running, jumping, and rough playing.

Cats should be kept indoors for this two-week period. Absolutely NO bathing or swimming until 14 days after surgery. Your pet’s incision should remain clean and dry. Elizabethan collars are strongly advised, and if not purchased at the time of surgery and your pet begins licking its incision site, you should contact us as soon as possible about purchasing one.

This will help prevent your pet from tearing the incision site open or causing irritation/infection by licking and/or chewing. If your pet does require an e-collar, it must be worn at all times for 14 days. They must be leash-walked and absolutely cannot be left outside unattended with an e-collar on.

Your pet’s incision site should be checked daily, and we should be notified of any swelling or discharge. In most cases, absorbable sutures are placed and your pet does not need to return for a suture removal or any follow-ups unless you have concerns. Your pet may resume normal activity after 14 days.

Spaying and neutering are done by appointment after Dr. Kelly has seen your pet for an exam to establish care.

If you have any questions about spaying or neutering, or if you would like to schedule an appointment please give us a call at 770-872-8343

Serving Zebulon, Griffin, Barnesville, Thomaston, Meansville, Concord, Molena, Williamson, and the surrounding areas.

Heartworms: Testing, Prevention, and Treatment | Let Zebulon Animal Hospital help you protect your pet!

Real life example of heartworm parasites.

Heartworm disease is preventable

One of the most common questions we get asked is, “If I give my dog heartworm prevention, why do I need to have them tested?” This is an excellent question, and we would like to answer this by explaining the heartworm life cycle, and how prevention works, and hopefully answer any other questions you may have regarding protecting your pet from these deadly parasites.

Heartworms are transmitted from one dog to another by a mosquito. When a mosquito bites a dog infected with heartworms, then bites your dog, it transmits the heartworm larva into your dog’s bloodstream (it only takes one bite!)

“More than a million pets in the U.S. have heartworms. But heartworm disease is preventable.”

— American Heartworm Society

Over a six-month period, the larva matures into an adult worm

Adult worms can live an average of six to seven years inside your dog, causing permanent damage to the heart and lungs.

When we test your dog for heartworms, we draw a small amount of blood and perform what’s called an occult test, which detects the presence of adult female worms.

We also look at a blood sample under a microscope to screen for microfilaria, which are immature heartworms.

Adult dogs over 7 months of age and previously not on a preventive need to be tested prior to starting heartworm prevention, and retested 6 months later and annually after that.

Also, if there has been any lapse in prevention, your dog should be retested 6 months after starting back on prevention.

Giving preventatives to a heartworm-positive dog can lead to rare but possibly severe reactions that could be harmful or even fatal.

While it is possible for cats to be infected with heartworms, they are not a primary host and typically only have one to three worms (while dogs can have hundreds!).

Heartworms and Cats

Since a heartworm test only detects female worms, this makes diagnosing heartworms in a cat difficult as they may not have a female heartworm for the test to detect.

While cats may not be the primary host, it is still extremely important to give prevention because there is no heartworm treatment available for cats.

Symptoms of heartworms in dogs may include coughing, lethargy, and weight loss, then ultimately it leads to heart failure and death. Many people assume that because their pet isn’t showing any signs of illness, their pet does not have heartworms.

Unfortunately, dogs can be infected with heartworms long before showing any kind of symptoms. With cats, often the first and only symptom is sudden death.

Prevention

Heartworm prevention works by killing the larval stages (immature heartworms) before they mature into adults. Once the larvae reach the juvenile stage, which takes less than two months, they are no longer affected by the heartworm preventative.

This is why oral and topical heartworm prevention must be given monthly. Heartworm prevention is very effective, but if even one dose is missed or your pet vomits the heartworm prevention without you knowing, they are at risk.

There have also been reports of larvae becoming resistant to the active ingredient in heartworm prevention. Because of these reasons, annual heartworm testing is recommended even if a pet is on prevention year-round.

There are numerous different heartworm preventatives available and with various combinations of other intestinal parasite preventatives and some with flea and tick control.

What we recommend

At Zebulon Animal Hospital we recommend Interceptor Plus for dogs, which is a flavored chew that protects against heartworms, roundworms, hookworms, whipworms, and tapeworms.

If your dog is difficult to medicate orally, or if you are unsure if you are able to remember to give it monthly, we also offer the Proheart 6 injection which is administered here at our hospital and protects against heartworms and hookworms.

For cats, we recommend Revolution Plus, which is a topical monthly preventative that protects against heartworms, roundworms, hookworms, ear mites, fleas, and ticks.

These are prescription products and are available in our hospital or at our online pharmacy here: MyVetStoreOnline

Protecting your pet from heartworms is one of the simplest, yet most important things you can do to help give your pet a long and healthy life.

Please visit the American Heartworm Society’s website for more information: https://www.heartwormsociety.org/pet-owner-resources

Serving Zebulon, Griffin, Barnesville, Thomaston, Meansville, Concord, Molena, Williamson, and the surrounding areas.

New Outbreak of Canine Influenza in Metro Atlanta | Vaccine Available at Zebulon Animal Hospital

There has been a recent nationwide outbreak of Canine Influenza, and it has hit the metro Atlanta area. This is a highly contagious virus that affects a dog’s respiratory tract.

Symptoms include coughing, nasal and/or eye discharge, lethargy, fever, and reduced appetite, with coughing being the most common symptom which can last 10-21 days. More severe cases of Canine Influenza can lead to pneumonia and even death. 

Canine Influenza is spread through direct contact with an infected dog, through the air, or through contact with objects or people that have been in contact with infected dogs.

It is most commonly seen in dogs that have recently been in a boarding or grooming facility where they were in close proximity to other dogs.

Most dogs begin showing signs two to eight days after exposure. While there are cases of this virus affecting cats, cases are rare. There is no evidence that Canine Influenza can be spread to humans.

This virus (H3N8) was originally identified in 2004 in racing greyhounds in Florida, then it made its way to numerous other states. Several years later another strain (H3N2) was detected first in Chicago, then across the country.

A vaccine was soon introduced and recommended to all dogs, which greatly helped slow the spread of the virus. There is currently no vaccine available for cats. 

At Zebulon Animal Hospital we strive to provide the best care possible to your pet and make recommendations based on each pet’s individual lifestyle.

When Zebulon Animal Hospital opened in 2018, we initially offered the vaccine against Canine Influenza, however, most boarding and grooming facilities in our area do not require it, as it had not been a major issue locally.

As the Canine Influenza Vaccine is considered a “lifestyle” vaccine (meaning it is only recommended for dogs whose lifestyle puts them at risk of the virus) we soon stopped providing it and to this date have not seen or heard of positive cases of Canine Influenza in our local area.

However, due to the recent uptick in the metro Atlanta area, we have again begun recommending this vaccine to any dog that may come in contact with other dogs.

It is especially important for dogs that visit grooming or boarding facilities.

This vaccine protects against both the H3N8 and H3N2 strains and does require a booster two to four weeks after the initial vaccine.

Your dog is not considered protected until two weeks after the second dose, so it is extremely important to schedule an appointment for the vaccine well in advance of any exposure you may expect your dog to have.

While we have not had any positive or suspected cases at this point in time, we want you to have all of the information and resources available to protect and care for your dog in the best way possible.

Please give us a call with any questions or concerns you may have at 770-872-8343.

Serving Zebulon, Griffin, Barnesville, Thomaston, Meansville, Concord, Molena, Williamson, and the surrounding areas.

 7594 Highway 19, Zebulon Ga, 30295

Zebulon Animal Hospital

770-872-8343

Please refer to the following articles for more information regarding the Canine Influenza Virus and the current outbreak:

https://www.cdc.gov/flu/other/canine-flu/keyfacts.html#:~:text=The%20signs%20of%20this%20illness,in%20pneumonia%20and%20sometimes%20death.

https://www.avma.org/resources/pet-owners/petcare/canine-influenza-pet-owners-guide

https://www.ajc.com/neighborhoods/north-fulton/rapidly-spreading-dog-flu-hits-atlanta-area-animal-shelters/GOGQIBCX7FGZPOWOWIF55YOFFY/