I did it! and have a question

[Saje]

I made the appointment for Nanook to go in and get spayed a week from this friday. I can't wait. I hope all goes well.

The question is about blood work. They said I had the option to have her brought in a couple of days before to have bloodwork done. Makes the anisthetic safer. Is that normal? She said it would cost $60 more but it was optional. I want her to be safe so I booked it. What's the truth?

I think I'm going to get her tattooed too. She seemed surprised since Nanook is an adult. Said they usually just do puppies. but she'd ask the vet about prices... Doesn't that seem odd? I kind of want it done though. Thoughts?

 

[Sirius]

You made a good choice Saje. Whatever your vet thinks is best for Nanook.
BTW--- I have a beanie baby with that name

 

[Zoom]

Yeah, it's a good idea, makes sure that your dog doesn't have any present allergies to the anesthetic or any unknown conditions that raise the risk of complications.

 

[Fran27]

Good idea for females I think, too. The other thing I was wondering is about laser surgery. They asked me today if I wanted to use it for Tips. It's $45 more, less bleeding and less swelling and pain. I said no, because it's not such a great surgery for a male, but for a female I would probably do it. I don't know, it's pretty new too I think so I tend to worry, lol.

 

[Saje]

I worry all the time! Especially after I lost my rabbit after a 'routine neutering' But rabbits are more difficult. And this is a new vet. So hopefully it's a good one. Surgery is surgery though. sigh. worry. worry. My little baby. She sure loves her mommy.

Is the blood testing usually an option or do most vets include it? I've heard because there are so few vets in the area they may try to rack things up.

 

[yuckaduck]

Here the blood work is an option but it is encouraged. It checks for kidney and liver functions, and the ability to go through the surgury. They charge an addition $95 for that here and I never bothered with it. Most of my pets came from the humane society and they do not cover that so I just never bothered with it.

 

[Fran27]

They didn't ask me for any of the dogs. Tips was there today to be neutered, and I'm relieved to know that he's fine... I'm picking him up tomorrow. I'm glad it's done, I always worry sick

 

[Saje]

What about the tattoo? I've always liked to have animals tattooed. Anyone have thoughts?

 

[EliNHunter]

Why would you tattoo when they have microchips now? Ouch!

 

[Fran27]

Oh I forgot that part.

I got the boys microchipped. I know everyone can't read them, but tatoos tend to fade with time, and become impossible to read. So it just seems a bit like a waste of money, although I've had cats tatooed in France and we never had a problem reading them, but it's in their ear and cat ears tend to get less messy than dogs. So... I don't know.

 

[yuckaduck]

Why would you tattoo when they have microchips now? Ouch!

Tatoos can be altered but a microchip cannot and a microchip cannot be removed. I have heard of people cutting off dogs ears to get rid of a tatoo.

 

[Saje]

Why would you tattoo when they have microchips now? Ouch!

Um, because she'll be under AND people hardly ever check for microchips - at least from the research I've done. If she was caught out here they don't even have a shelter but this way they can call the vet and get her information. I don't there is anyone who would even check for microchips. I'm not a fan of them. I've done a lot of research for a story I was writing and there are problems with different machines not reading the right chips, chips moving, scanners 'missing' the chips.... I'd much rather have a tattoo.

 

[Saje]

And Mav is tattooed and microchipped. I have no problems reading the tattoo. Of course he has big beautiful ears

 

[Boxer*Mom]

For the average pet it takes 1-3 people to tattoo them. 1 person tattoo's, and 1-2 people gently hold the dog still and rub it's belly to distract it. There is an important difference between the structure of human and animal skin. The epidermis on a human is much thicker and more uneven than the epidermis on a dog or cat. To tattoo effectively, the ink must be inserted just below the epidermis. On humans this means the tattoo must go much deeper into the skin. Dog and cat epidermis is much thinner and is very even. As a result, the tattoo does not need to penetrate as deeply into the skin. The pain sensors are located in the lower layers of skin, the epidermis only has tactile sensors. Because of this the pet does not feel pain while being tattooed, just the vibration of the equipment. And while some pets will object to the noise and vibration of the equipment, they can generally be easily distracted with some petting, calm talking, or maybe a tiny treat.

of course the best option is to do tags, tattooing, and microchipping. that way you've covered just about all your options. oh yeah and a current photo but who doesn't have that?! lol

 

[poodlesmom]

The vets in my area always give you the option of the pre-op blood work. I have always had it done on my furpals. Laser surgery has been around for the past few years - in fact when both Farley & Chloe were "fixed" they had the laser surgery. I personally think both of them recovered quicker but who knows.

 

[yuckaduck]

The vet clinics should be able to scan for microchips. Here they do and it is free you just take the dog in and have it done.

 

[Twilight]

The Blood test is to actually test how well the Kidneys are functioning
and will show if she will be healthy enough for the anastetic and to be able clear the anastetic out of her system
My vet offered this to me when i had Joey castrated and I got it done

Best to be safe than sorry though!

 

[EliNHunter]

Um, because she'll be under AND people hardly ever check for microchips - at least from the research I've done. If she was caught out here they don't even have a shelter but this way they can call the vet and get her information. I don't there is anyone who would even check for microchips. I'm not a fan of them. I've done a lot of research for a story I was writing and there are problems with different machines not reading the right chips, chips moving, scanners 'missing' the chips.... I'd much rather have a tattoo.

Too, bad... it's really taken off here. Almost every vet (aside from shelters) have a scanner. You can literally take a dog in off the street and have them scanned for free. Grammy just did this recently with a big nice girl that showed up at her house and she got her reunited with her family...

 

[Saje]

I'm not ANTI-microchips I just think in my situation tattoos are much better. Tags are even better. If my dog is lost they are going to look for visible markings. Not everyone knows about microchips and if they do they don't know where to go to have them read. Especially without a shelter. I don't think it's likely that they will cut off her ear since she's not a breed that gets cropped and if they wanted her that badly I'd probably never see her again no matter what. I like things that are visible. That's why I want mav to have "Don't shoot me I'm not a bear" died on his fur lol

 

[Renee750il]

Sounds like the blood work is a good idea, and lasers have been used in human surgery for quite some time and are very safe and do cut back on the traumas of surgeries.

As far as the tattoos go, I think they're a good idea. Even in places where the scanners are common, there's no guarantee that your dog's microchip will be detectable or readable on the type of scanner that might be used to check for information.