Post-Surgical Home Care Instructions
- Your pet’s home care may vary depending on what type of surgery they had. Please always follow the specific advice given to you by our healthcare team after your pet’s surgery. The following are guidelines.
- Directly after a procedure requiring sedation or anesthesia, your pet may be drowsy (sometimes the opposite!). Food should be delayed until later in the evening, starting with small amounts the same evening after getting home from a procedure. Water can be offered at any time but in small quantities at a time. Nausea is a common post-surgical side effect the first day and your pet may not want to eat or drink much the first night home.
- Exercise restriction is very IMPORTANT to reduce the risk of sutures breaking down, seroma development or infection. Typically we recommend 2 weeks of restricted exercise (confine cats to indoors only and keep dogs on leash at all times when outside).
- Please monitor the incision twice daily for the first week and once daily for the second week after surgery. If you notice any extra swelling, redness, discharge, or worsening discomfort, please let us know immediately and a recheck may be needed.
- An E-collar, inflatable neck collar, or protective clothing are often required to prevent licking or chewing of the incision. Check with your vet care team to decide which would be most effective, as it depends on the location of the incision site.
- If any stitches are visible, they are typically left in for 14 days. Please book a suture removal appointment to have them removed at the appropriate time. There is no charge for the suture removal after surgery.
- There may be medications dispensed for your pet at the time of surgery. We will give you instructions on when and how to give them. If your pet is on any other regular medications, please check with us on when they should be resumed.
- If any samples/biopsies were taken at the time of surgery and are to be sent for analysis, you can expect to get results in 1-2 weeks following surgery. We will let you know when the results come in but if you haven’t heard from us by the 2 week post-op mark, please contact us to inquire.