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Anaesthesia & Pain Management

Your Pet’s Safety and Comfort are Our Absolute Priorities

We know that handing over the leash or the carrier on the morning of a procedure is one of the hardest things you do as a pet parent. The anxiety surrounding general anaesthesia is completely normal, and it is a concern we take incredibly seriously.

At Bardon Veterinary Hospital, we treat every patient exactly as we would treat our own pets. That means we do not take shortcuts. From routine dentistry to complex orthopaedic surgery, our anaesthetic and pain management protocols mirror the elite safety standards found in human hospitals. Here is exactly what happens behind the scenes to keep your pet safe and pain-free.

Step 1: The Morning of the Procedure

Safety begins before the anaesthetic is ever administered. When you bring your pet in, we don't just admit them; we carefully evaluate them.

  • The Pre-Surgical Physical: Your veterinarian will perform a comprehensive nose-to-tail examination, listening carefully to their heart and lungs.
  • Pre-Anaesthetic Blood Testing: We strongly recommend blood tests before surgery. Run in our in-house laboratory, these ensure your pet’s liver and kidneys are functioning perfectly to process the anaesthetic.
  • Tailored Protocols: A young, bouncy Labrador requires a completely different anaesthetic plan than a senior cat with a heart murmur. We customise the medications specifically to your pet.

Step 2: Pre-Medication (Staying Ahead of the Pain)

We believe in staying ahead of the pain. Once your pet is cleared, they receive a customised "pre-medication" injection while resting in their cosy hospital ward. This gently sedates them to melt away any hospital anxiety, and floods their system with pain relief before the procedure even begins.

Step 4: Advanced Pain Blocks

We utilise a "multi-modal" approach to pain, combining different medications to block pain from multiple pathways. Just like a dentist injects local anaesthetic to numb a tooth, we frequently utilise advanced Local Nerve Blocks and Epidurals. By injecting a numbing agent directly around the nerves of the surgical or dental site, we block pain signals from reaching the brain, keeping your pet profoundly comfortable.

Step 5: Waking Up & Going Home

Because body temperature naturally drops during anaesthesia, your pet is moved to a quiet recovery ward equipped with warming systems (like forced-air Bair Huggers) and thick bedding. Our nursing team sits with them, offering gentle reassurance as they wake up warm, groggy, but completely pain-free.

When you arrive, we will go through a detailed discharge plan and provide a tailored "Pain Management Toolkit" of medications for home. Our care doesn’t stop when you walk out the door—we will call you the following day to check on their progress. At Bardon Veterinary Hospital, your pet is part of our family, and their comfort is our commitment.