When your veterinarian performs a procedure requiring anesthesia, we understand your apprehension. While your concern is normal, anesthesia is safe, helping keep your pet comfortable and stress- or pain-free during a veterinary procedure.  

Our Commonwealth Animal Care team has extensive experience administering anesthesia to pets, and we take every precaution to ensure their safety before, during, and after all veterinary procedures. The more you know about veterinary anesthesia, the more at ease you will feel when your veterinarian has to anesthetize your pet. Learn about anesthesia’s benefits and risks, and our safety protocols for ensuring your pet remains comfortable and calm during a veterinary procedure. 

What is pet anesthesia?

The Greek term anesthesia—lack of sensation—is defined as the loss of one’s ability to feel pain. When your veterinarian administers anesthesia, your pet enters a state of deep sedation or unconsciousness, during which they do not feel pain. The anesthesia type your veterinarian administers to your pet depends on the procedure, and may include:

  • Local anesthesia — Your veterinarian applies or injects local anesthesia to a specific skin area to induce temporary localized numbness. Local anesthesia does not cause your pet to lose consciousness.
  • Sedation — Your veterinarian adds systemic sedation to other anesthesia types to calm your pet, and minimize movement. Some sedatives also have pain-relieving properties, although your veterinarian may administer additional pain medications to your pet.
  • General anesthesia — Your veterinarian administers general anesthesia for procedures that require your pet’s complete, but carefully controlled, loss of consciousness and physical sensation. General anesthesia is necessary to ensure your pet’s safety when your veterinarian performs procedures—such as high-level diagnostic imaging, or surgery—that require total immobilization. 

What are the benefits of pet anesthesia?

You likely would refuse having a tooth pulled or surgery with no anesthesia, and your pet must be anesthetized during a veterinary procedure to protect them from extreme pain. Anesthesia helps keep your pet calm, and minimizes their pain during and after surgery. In addition, anesthesia medications ensure your pet remains still, enabling the veterinary surgeon to complete the procedure with accuracy. 

What complication risks does pet anesthesia pose?

Veterinary anesthesia poses minimal health risks, and is quite safe. Recent studies report that, on average, fewer than 2 in 1,000 dogs, and 3 in 1,000 cats experience an anesthetic-related death. For most pets, anesthesia’s benefits far outweigh the minimal associated risks. The most common anesthesia-related complication risks include:

  • Breed — Brachycephalic (i.e., flat-faced) pets have naturally small airways that are more susceptible to obstruction. In addition, greyhounds metabolize anesthetic agents differently, and may require more time to recover.
  • Size — Extremely small pets can be difficult to regulate under anesthesia.
  • Weight — Excess body weight strains pets’ cardiovascular system, and an overweight pet’s heart and lungs must work harder under anesthesia. If an overweight pet’s cardiovascular system is already compromised, their complication risk is increased under anesthesia. 
  • Pre-existing conditions — Pets with underlying heart, liver, or kidney disease, and some cancers, may have an increased anesthetic complication risk. Fortunately, preanesthesia screenings identify many of these at-risk conditions.

Our Commonwealth Animal Care team has extensive experience administering anesthesia to pets, and we take every precaution to ensure their safety before, during, and after all veterinary procedures by determining whether they have an increased complication risk before administering anesthesia medications. 

What safety measures do veterinarians take when administering pet anesthesia?

Your veterinarian takes into account all your pet’s anesthesia complication risks when planning their surgical procedure. To ensure your pet’s anesthesia safety, our team follows standard anesthesia safety protocols—before, during, and after their procedure—to customize your pet’s medication based on their risk factors: 

  • Preanesthesia — Before your pet’s scheduled procedure, we perform preanesthetic testing to evaluate their health. This veterinary visit includes: 
    • Physical exam  
    • Blood work  
    • Urinalysis 
    • Diagnostic imaging, as needed 
  • Procedure day —  On the basis of your pet’s preanesthetic testing results, we follow stringent anesthesia protocols. To ensure your pet’s safety on the day of their procedure, we provide the following:
    • Preanesthetic sedative to reduce stress
    • Intravenous catheter to administer fluids and medications
    • Intravenous fluids to support healthy circulation
    • Endotracheal tube for a secure oxygen and anesthetic gas exchange
    • Anesthesia to ensure your pet’s safety and comfort 
    • Electronic monitoring to measure your pet’s vitals continuously
    • Pain management to keep your pet comfortable during and after the procedure

  • Recovery — During anesthesia recovery, we closely monitor your pet in a warm, quiet location until they are fully conscious and alert. Your veterinarian will discuss your pet’s postoperative instructions before you take them home.

Knowledge is empowering, and we hope the information you have learned about anesthesia and the safety protocols we follow help alleviate the apprehension you may feel when your pet must undergo a veterinary procedure. Contact our Commonwealth Animal Care team to discuss your additional concerns, or to schedule your pet’s anesthetic procedure.