We offer the most advanced surgical techniques and technology for your pet. All patients are carefully screened for safety and anesthetic protocols are specifically tailored for each pet.
Surgical services and facilities include fully trained veterinary and technical staff to ensure the safest, most efficient, state-of-the-art procedures for your pet. Both Ottawa area vet hospitals have padded surgery tables for greater comfort, advanced sterilization techniques, ECG and apnea alert monitoring as well as full blood testing.
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Canine and Feline Spay and Neuter
Our clinics recommend that you have your cats and dogs spayed or neutered if you’re not planning to breed them.
Pets are neutered or spayed to control population and unwanted births, to manage behavioral problems such as aggression and urine marking, as well as to significantly reduce the risk of certain diseases.
Did you know that every month millions of pets are euthanized in North America because the pets are unwanted? Animal shelters are over-flowing. In the United States, between six and eight million dogs and cats enter animal shelters each year. In Canada, the numbers are equally disturbing. According to Adopt an Animal Canada there are roughly three times as many dogs and cats born as people, with over 10,000 being born every hour. This is the reason animal shelters and humane societies have to put to death thousands of animals every year. By spaying or neutering, you can help solve this problem.
Our vet clinics usually perform a spay or neuter after your pet’s last vaccine and before their first heat cycle (if female). The procedure requires full general anesthesia and is held to the highest standard of veterinary medicine: AAHA standards.
Learn more about what AAHA is and what being AAHA accredited means for you and your pets.
Puppy and Kitten Packages
At both clinics, we provide a special advantage for new pet owners! These packages take the necessary beginning costs of getting a pet and we take a huge bite out so that you can enjoy the first stages with your pet and create wonderful memories.
Puppy Package Details Kitten Package Details
Canine and Feline Pyometra and Cryptorchid
These surgeries are spay and neuter procedures but under different circumstances.
Pyometra is an emergency surgery for a female patient. It occurs when an infection has occurred in the uterus and the uterus fills up with pus and is unable to drain. If untreated and the uterus is not removed in a timely manner, it can be fatal for your pet.
Cryptorchid occurs in male patients. It is when one (or both) of the patient’s testicles have not descended into the scrotum. This is not life threatening but can cause medical issues if not removed at the time of neutering. This surgery is more invasive than a regular neuter surgery as the surgeon must go into the abdomen to retrieve the patient’s testicle that has not descended. Our clinics recommend that you have your cats and dogs spayed or neutered to prevent these issues from occurring.
Oral Surgeries
For certain breeds it is common to have issues with the oral structure. Our veterinarians and surgeons can help repair and give better quality of life to our patients with these issues by offering Soft Pallet and Stenotic Nares Corrections.
During a pre-surgical appointment our veterinarian will determine if either of these surgeries are needed for your pet.
Soft Pallet Correction is a surgery where the soft palate of a patient is shortened to open their airway and reduce turbulent airflow when they breathe. Stenotic Nares Correction is a surgery that humanely adjusts the patient’s nostrils so that the patient is able to breath better and have a better quality of life. These surgeries are only done for medical, quality of life purposes and are not for cosmetic preference.
Eye Surgeries
There are also breeds that are predisposed to certain eye issues throughout their life – though, it is important to remember that eye issues are not breed specific.
If you notice your pet’s eye(s) appearing abnormal or your pet behaving as if there is discomfort around the eyes, it is always beneficial to seek the advice of a veterinary professional.
Our clinics have a full on-site laboratory where we can test the functions and health of the patient’s eye. Upon this appointment the veterinarian will let you know if there are any issues.
Some common issues regarding the eye that require surgery are ectropion and entropion surgery. This is where the eyelids either roll inward to the eyeball, causing extreme discomfort where the hairs scratch the eye, or where the eyelids roll outward allowing debris to enter into the eyelid also causing discomfort. In extreme cases such as infection or trauma, eye removal surgery may be required. Our surgeons here are skilled in general eye surgery and will give the patient the best care possible.
Stone Removal Surgery/Urinary Catheters
Urinary issues are very common and can have many causes. There are many different levels of severity as well. A common issue is bladder infection/urinary tract infection which are treatable with medication and possibly diet change if deemed appropriate by our veterinarian.
In extreme cases where the patient can no longer urinate on their own (commonly known as “blocked”), the veterinarian may opt to put a urinary catheter in the patient which can be done on site at our clinics. There are also cases where though the patient is able to urinate there is significant pain, an x-ray or ultrasound can help determine if there are any bladder stones that need to be removed. This surgery can also be done on site by our surgeon veterinarians.
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Emergency Foreign Body Surgery
Do you have a pet that seems to want to eat everything? Or maybe get into things if you were to leave them out by accident? This is common and you’re not alone, we promise.
What we do caution you about is to make sure you are familiar with your pets’ common behavior; bowel movement and eating/drinking routines are like. When you are confident you know these aspects of your pet it is easier to recognize when there is a strong possibility that your pet has eaten something they weren’t supposed to.
When this happens and the object gets “stuck” in the digestive track, it is what we call a Foreign Body Obstruction. This can be diagnosed by our veterinarians by a physical examination and with our digital x-rays on site at either clinic.
If the issue is in fact a foreign body our surgeon can perform the surgery on site and remove the mystery object from the digestive tract. This is a very invasive surgery and usually requires the assistance of a surgical technician as well.
Hematoma Surgery
Ear infections are commonly heard of in pets – especially those that swim often. Infections make the ears uncomfortable so they shake their head. This can cause an aural hematoma in some cases. This is where shaking causes blood vessels in the ear to leak from pressure and concussion and can be extremely painful for the pet.
Aural hematomas can sometimes be medically managed and may resolve without surgery. If needed, surgery to drain the blood from the pocket of the ear can be done here on-site. Depending on the size of the hematoma the surgeon may opt to “pin” down the tissue of the ear to ensure that the blood is unable to build up again in that area.
Lump Removal
Lumps come in all shapes and sizes for our patients. Our veterinarians can determine what the lump is by utilizing our on-site lab and digital x-ray, some samples need to be sent to a pathologist to determine what it is, and the expectations for your pet.
Upon physical examination our veterinarians will discuss the type of lump, if any treatment is required, the best form of removal if removal is necessary and if it is recommended to send a lump that is removed for testing.
Some of these options may include Electrosurgery, where the lump is removed and cauterized at the same time while the patient is under anesthetic. This is only done on non-life threatening and small lumps. Another option is surgery where the surgeon removes the lump and sutures the area of removal together again. This is commonly done for large lumps such as tumors, or lumps that need to be sent for testing.
Umbilical Hernia Repair
This is very common in younger pets and usually gets repaired at the time of the patient’s spay or neuter. It is not very invasive and the recovery time is the same length as a general spay or neuter.
Caesarean Surgery
Similar to human medicine, for our patients there can be scheduled Caesarean’s or unscheduled. Usually for scheduled it is due to the breed of the patient as some breeds have known difficulties giving birth. If a puppy or kitten gets stuck and the mother cannot push the baby out on her own, it can be life threatening to both the mother and the baby as well as any other babies the mother may be carrying.
Unscheduled caesareans are in the case of emergencies when the mother is having difficulty and needs assistance.
Our surgeon and medical team have all the equipment and training to help the mother and her babies by working safely, efficiently and quickly in stressful and intense situations. Caesareans require an “all hands-on deck” attitude as the surgeon has to hand each puppy or kitten to a technician immediately after removing them from the uterus so that the surgical technician can begin the proper techniques on getting the patient to breathe. The surgeon has to move quickly to get the babies out as soon as possible, when the babies are all safely out, the surgeon then has to repair the uterus and close up the abdomen while the babies are put into an incubator to stay warm.
In an extreme case where a puppy or kitten is failing to breathe, the surgery technician informs the surgeon and while continuing to perform surgery, will direct the surgical technician if medical intervention is needed and what doses to administer. It is an amazingly strong team effort and communication is key in these situations. Our focus and goal are to provide the highest level of medical care to our patients at all times.