Tell Us What You Think

Fear of anesthesia is one of the most common concerns I hear from pet parents and it makes complete sense. In this episode, JoJo and I have an honest, reassuring conversation about what modern anesthesia actually looks like, what your veterinary team does to keep your pet safe, and why vet medicine has genuinely gotten so much better over the years, making anesthesia safer for your pet.

We talk through pre-anesthesia bloodwork, dedicated monitoring, heart murmurs, when to ask for a specialist, and why anesthetic time matters more than most people realize. I also share a story about a cat with a barely audible murmur that turned out to have serious heart disease caught only because we screened before the procedure. That's exactly what good preparation looks like.

You can feel confident going into your pet's next procedure. This episode will help you get there.

Want to talk through whether your pet is a good candidate for an upcoming procedure? Book a consultation at boulderholisticvet.com.

Key Takeaways

• Anesthetic deaths are very rare and continue to decrease as protocols, monitoring, and pre-screening protocols improve.
• Age is not technically an anesthetic risk factor but experienced veterinarians do factor it into their recommendations, especially for very senior animals.
• Pre-anesthesia bloodwork checks kidney and liver function, blood counts, and helps surface underlying disease before it becomes a crisis during the procedure.
• A dedicated monitor should not be the same person performing your pet's procedure and should be watching your pet's vitals continuously throughout.
• Heart murmurs require more than a stethoscope. A small murmur can hide major disease. No murmur at all can also hide major disease. Echocardiograms matter for high-risk breeds and any patient with a cardiac concern.
• Anesthetic time matters, especially for senior patients. It is worth asking whether a specialist could complete a procedure more efficiently.
• Reversible injectable sedation exists for shorter procedures but is not appropriate for every patient or situation.
• It is always appropriate to ask your veterinary team about their monitoring protocols, equipment, and experience before any anesthetic event.

Soundbites:

"You can have a small murmur and big disease. You can have a big murmur and small disease. You can have no murmur and big disease." ~ Dr. Angie

"The quality of the anesthetic protocol and the education of the team and the experience of the team that's where it's at." ~ Dr. Angie

"The most common reason for an anesthetic death is there was underlying disease there that we didn't know about." ~ Dr. Angie

"I've only had one {pet that's passed}, and I've done a lot of surgeries." ~ JoJo

"Do you want to resuscitate? I mean, as soon as that question is asked, that's terrifying. Like, what am I doing? What am I saying yes to?" ~ JoJo

"If they're recommending a procedure, it's probably important." ~ JoJo

• Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube
• Schedule your personalized one-on-one consultation with Dr. Angie
• Shop my favorite CBD.

Please subscribe and review! xoxo Dr. Angie & JoJo