5 common surgical procedures and related services: for the long, healthy life of your pet

While the word “surgery” can inspire dread among even the most no-nonsense

pet parents, all healthy pets at some point or other will undergo at least one surgical procedure: spaying and neutering. These surgical services are critical to your dog’s and/or cat’s health. Unspayed females, for instance, are at a considerably greater risk of developing deadly uterine infections (pyometra) and mammary cancers than their spayed counterparts. When you spay or neuter your pets, you are also doing a great service to your community by controlling the pet population.

Here, we at Bluestar Pet Hospital & Grooming in Jacksonville, Florida, provide a glimpse into some of the most common treatments to maintain or restore your fur baby’s tail-wagging, string-chasing, good health, and well-being.

• Neutering – Medically known as an “orchiectomy,” this process involves removing male dogs’ and cats’ testicles. Neutered pets cannot reproduce. Undesirable mating behaviors and urges, such as “marking” and aggression triggered by hormones, are also resolved.
• Spaying – Drs Sri, Gutta, and Amar know this procedure as an “ovariohysterectomy.” This commonplace treatment involves the removal of female dogs’ and cats’ ovaries, fallopian tubes, and uteruses. Here again, spayed female pets cannot reproduce. Undesirable breeding habits, like loud vocalization when in “heat,” are also avoided or eliminated.
• Dental surgeries – Tooth extractions are highly avoidable among humans. Likewise, our veterinarians work closely with clients to preserve their pets’ teeth; however, if teeth are already damaged, it is critical to remove them promptly. Oral health problems not only pose a threat to the teeth, but also to surrounding tissues; for instance, the gums and supportive bone in the jaws. These straightforward and common treatments are also necessary to eradicate harmful bacteria and inflammation that has been implicated by the American Veterinary Dental College in microscopic damage to pets’ hearts, livers, and kidneys.
• Skin Surgeries; biopsies – Our veterinarians are all about wellness visits and preventive care. Combined with advanced diagnostics, we identify underlying conditions and the cause and nature of suspicious masses early into the disease process. This allows for the condition to be treated promptly before it spreads and when it is easiest to cure or resolve. Biopsies are small samples of tissue that are removed and analyzed to accurately diagnose the cause of troublesome symptoms or concerns identified during visits to our hospital.
• Injuries – Trauma can take on many forms; contusions are bruises that typically don’t break the skin, whereas abrasions are scrapes that affect the outermost skin layers. Likewise, lacerations and punctures are cuts or penetrating wounds. Regardless of the type of injury, we encourage you to contact us immediately for prompt care. We are also privileged to offer emergency services and to have the expertise of professionals in areas like soft tissue surgeries (Dr. Amar) on hand. In the event of an accident, we offer empathetic, urgent care to appropriately treat the condition at hand to minimize the risk of complications such as infections or tissue death.

A final note

We appreciate that upcoming surgeries can be a source of great stress to both pet parents and clients. We work closely with our clients to assure them they are aware of all needs for pre-treatment care and after-care. So, clients’ children with fur can get right back to their usual happy, tail-chasing selves! Contact us without delay at (904) 720-4275 (Jacksonville) and (St. Johns) to schedule your appointment at our Jacksonville, Florida, location.

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