A nurse will greet you, carry out a quick examination, he / she will then ask a series of questions such as  

• When was the last meal given

• Does your pet take any medication and the time of the last dose if any
• Do you require blood test
• Is your pet microchipped

You will then be asked to read and sign a consent form, if you have not already signed an electronic version. The nurse may also require you to stay for a short period, just in case he/she recommends that the vet examines your pet before admitting, so please allow plenty of time on the morning. Then you will be given a time to call us, to see when your pet will be ready to go home.

Yes, provided they are over the age of 18. We understand that work commitments may make it difficult to drop your pet off at the required time, we are more than happy for someone else to drop of your pet providing the person coming can answer all of the above questions, if not then we would require a mobile number that we could call at the time of admitting.

Yes, provided they are over the age of 18. Should your pet recover quicker than we anticipated, then we will call you to collect at an earlier time, we recommend having someone on standby anyway should this happen, we would rather a patient recover at home if they are getting stressed at the surgery.

We will of course explain the aftercare to you over the phone, will also explain again to whoever will be collecting your pet, and there will also pet a printed instruction sheet for home.

Should you not be able to attend your scheduled appointment then we require at least 48 hours’ notice. This enables us to offer the appointment to another patient, we would require this notice period as another patient would need to be starved. Failure to notify us will results in a charge.

Unfortunately, we require a patient to be starved to avoid vomiting, if a patient vomits whilst under the anaesthesia there is a risk of choking. If you have multiple animals its best to starve everyone, to be sure the patient did not have food.

DO NOT WITHHOLD WATER OVERNIGHT, just take the water away about an hour before making your way to the surgery.

• Pets should be as clean and dry as possible on the morning of the procedure
• Cats should be kept indoors the night before, with a litter tray provided
• For Dogs, if at all possible, go for a short walk just before arriving at the surgery to empty his/her bowels & bladder

This will always depend on how the animal recovers, and if they need continued supportive treatment overnight / over the weekend. Should your pet need continued care, then we will transfer your pet via ambulance to the Valley Veterinary hospital in Rhadyr. Once they are happy that the patient is fit to travel, then he/she will be transferred back to us. This will only happen with prior consent from the owner.

Sometimes anaesthesia can cause an upset tummy, so we would recommend a bland diet for the first couple of days. Plain boiled chicken / white rice and boiled rice would be best, or you can feed your pets normal food, either way it should be given little and often, as they might be hungry after being starved, and we don’t want them to be sick eating to fast or too much in one go.

Should you choose the chicken/fish and rice option, please gradually re introduce the original food over 4 days proportionally, for instance

Day 1 – 75% chicken 25% normal food

Day 2 –  50% chicken 50% normal food

Day 3  – 25% chicken 75% normal food

Day 4 –  Back to only normal food

Other than that, a nice warm bed and plenty of TLC

Yes, you will need to give your pet medication this will usually be pain relief, all instructions will be on the label, and we will demonstrate how to give. PLEASE ALWAYS FOLLOW THE INSTUCTIONS ON THE LABEL, as some medications will have certain days to start.

Its is normal for your pet to be out of sorts for a day or two after surgery, just like we would be. The surgery is open until 6pm, should we be closed, then please ring the surgery and you will be transferred to the Valley Veterinary Hospital Out Of Hours, should you be concerned.

Simple answer is no, for the first 3 days at least, it should only be out the garden to use the toilet for dogs, depending on the procedure we will advise and exercise regime.

Cats we would advise to keep them indoors for 10 days, always provide a litter tray, should your cat be very stressed indoors and you have decided to let them out earlier than advised, please remove the collar, as this may get the cat stuck, or it my get caught on something.

Yes, we will always provide a post operative check up usually on day 3 and day 10. This may change, multiple checks may need to be made depending on the nature of the procedure, and also how well the patient is recovering. If any suture material needs to be taken out then the vet / nurse will advise on the best day to do this. If we have provided a dressing, then this may need to be changed multiple times.

Please look out for any vomiting and or diarrhoea, lethargy and bowel movements. If we have sent your pet home with a collar, this needs to be kept on at all times. This will prevent your pet getting to the operating site, potentially pulling sutures out, or introducing and infection. If the wound site looks red, sore or you notice any discharge then please ring the surgery immediately.