Thirteen years ago, Doris Day started a national event to draw attention to the need for spaying and neutering dogs and cats in the United States. In San Luis County, this event, known as Spay Day USA, has expanded to 6 weeks. Many veterinary clinics provide discounted surgeries or expand availability for spay/neuter appointments during this time. Our focus is to continually have a high availability to schedule appointments at a high quality of care.

Neutering is a surgical procedure that removes the testicles. Spaying involves entering the abdominal cavity and removing the uterus and ovaries. While these are routine surgeries in most veterinary hospitals, they are major surgeries that can involve a great deal of pain. At Animal Care Clinic, every animal being spayed or neutered has pre-anesthetic labwork performed and an IV catheter placed. We pay close attention to pain control using a combination of narcotics and local anesthetics, and send pain medication home with every pet. Anesthetic safety is of the utmost importance to us, so a dedicated veterinary nurse monitors each anesthesia, and animals recover in our Intensive Care Unit. Since being warm and comfortable diminishes pain perception, , we pay close attention to keeping pets warm & cozy, using a heated surgical table, lots of blankets and post-operative warming devices. Most importantly, we lavish our patients with TLC. Come by and visit us. We have a viewing window into our surgical suite, so you can watch if you wish!

by Bonnie Markoff, DVM, ABVP