Surgical Procedures

Spay surgery involves the surgical removal of the ovaries and uterus in the female so that they cannot have puppies or kittens. This is major abdominal surgery for your pet. Spaying stops messy heats, pesky males hanging around, and unwanted or surprise litters. It also prevents certain medical conditions such as uterine infections (pyometra) or tumors and reduces the chances and severity of mammary tumors – all of which can be deadly!. The surgery should be done prior to the first heat in order to realize these benefits. This generally occurs around 6 months of age but it does depend upon the breed. The high estrogen spike with a heat cycle or pregnancy is what sets up the female for health problems down the road. The surgery does not cause a personality change and the slight tendency toward weight gain can easily be controlled by diet.

Female dogs will generally go through a heat cycle or estrus every 6 months. The heat cycle may last several days or up to three or four weeks. She may become short-tempered or anxious during this time.

On the other hand, female cats come into heat cycles every three to four weeks during certain times of the year. They may show signs of nervousness, and exhibit unusual behaviors such as rolling on the floor, furtively hiding, or wanting constant attention. They can also become quite vocal.

When your pet is spayed at Animal Hospital of Tiffin, they will undergo anesthesia with full anesthetic monitoring during the procedure. They will be placed into heated recovery and will spend one night in the clinic to ensure exercise restriction, as they may still be groggy after surgery. They will go home with pain medications and an e-collar (cone) to prevent them from licking their incision along with instructions for strict exercise restriction for the next 2 weeks. They will return to our clinic in 2 weeks for complimentary suture removal and incision inspection before being given the all-clear to return to normal activity. If you have any questions or concerns regarding surgery or would like to schedule surgery, please give us a call for more information.

Most male dogs and cats are ready and willing to reproduce by the time they are 6 to 12 months old. They are able to breed consistently throughout the year or whenever they are exposed to a receptive female. Both male dogs and cats are prone to wander in search of romance and may find themselves exposed to fighting with other animals or even greater dangers such as cars.

In addition, male cats are well-known to mark their territories by spraying odorous urine on furniture, walls, shrubs, etc. Male dogs will also mark their territories. Surgical neutering of male dogs and cats eliminates reproductive behavior and reduces urine odor and the desire to spray. Your dog or cat will continue to have his own unique personality. He will be less likely to roam and will enjoy staying around home more. The surgery removes the testicles. Deciding when is the best time to neuter or castrate your pet is a decision you should discuss with your veterinarian. All neuters are performed under general anesthesia and will proper anesthetic monitoring. They will be placed into a heated recovery and will spend one night in the clinic to ensure exercise restriction, as they may still be groggy after surgery. All pets will go home with pain medications and dogs will go home with an e-collar (cone) to prevent them from licking their incision along with instructions for strict exercise restriction for the next 2 weeks. Cats do not have sutures and dogs will have absorbable sutures, so no follow-up appointment is required unless you have questions or concerns regarding the surgical site.

Mass/Tumor Removal

Here at Animal Hospital of Tiffin, we perform mass removals of all shapes and sizes. With the surgical laser, we can control bleeding and swelling in areas of the body and with certain tumors that would otherwise present a challenge. We can tailor the surgery to fit your pet and always strive for a cosmetic outcome. We can remove masses that are cancerous or benign and send masses to a pathologist for further examination when needed. Masses are removed under general anesthesia with full anesthetic monitoring and heated recovery. We tailor our anesthetic and surgical plan to your pet based on medical conditions, such as heart or kidney disease. Your pet will have stitches after surgery and will spend at least one night with us following a mass removal. Depending on the location of the incision, your pet may go home with an e-collar (cone) to prevent licking of the incision. Sutures are removed after 2 weeks and all patients are sent home with pain medications.

 

Aural (Ear) Hematoma

Cats and dogs can rupture blood vessels in their ear pinnae that leads to swelling of the outside of the ear with blood and serum. This is most often secondary to an ear infection or rough-housing with other pets. This requires surgery to drain and repair, which we offer. Pets are sedated and a small drain is placed into the ear along with a bandage to keep the ear collapsed and allow the ear to heal cosmetically. Not correcting this condition will result in an ear abscess or a cauliflower ear that is irreparable.

 

Anal Gland Removal

We have the tools and the expertise to removal anal glands from both dogs and cats. This surgery is recommended for pets that have a history of painful, impacted, infected, or ruptured anal glands. Removing the anal glands completely will prevent these problems from recurring. By using the surgical laser for this procedure, we are able to control bleeding and swelling in the area following surgery. Call us today to schedule a consultation for your cat or dog with anal gland disease!

 

Perineal Urethrostomy (PU)

When male cats have repeated urinary blockages, we recommend surgical intervention, which involves rerouting the urethra to avoid the most narrow portion, which is where they frequently become blocked. This is a delicate surgery, and one that Dr. Bob has been performing since 1976 with great success. This surgery can allow male cats to live more normal lives and prevent repeated urinary blockages.

Ear crop surgery is often requested for several different common breeds, such as Boxers, Doberman Pinchers, Great Danes, Pit Bulls, and Schnauzers. While ear trim surgery is considered to be completely elective and cosmetic, many pet owners request the procedure out of convention and personal preference.

If you have made the decision to have your pet’s ears trimmed, Dr. Bob McClung can and will provide the surgical procedure after examining your dog and discussing the different types of ear trims. He encourages you to bring pictures as to what you want the ears to look like. Dr. McClung has over 40 years of experience in ear trim surgery. We will provide general gas anesthesia, surgery performed with the surgical laser, post-op pain control, antibiotics, and post-surgery follow-up care and taping. He prefers to do the surgery at 12 weeks of age.

If you are considering this procedure, here are a few important things to remember. First, your puppy will need to undergo this procedure at about 12 weeks of age. He/she will stay with us a minimum of 2 nights in the hospital after the procedure. After the gas anesthesia is administered the ears are measured and cut using a CO2 surgical laser. The laser minimizes pain and controls bleeding. The cut edge is then sutured, and the ears are taped to provide support to both ears in an upright position. Your pup will be monitored and kept in the hospital for 2 nights to prevent excessive exercise and movement that could contribute to bleeding from the cut edges. He/she will be discharged the second day after surgery. You will receive instructions for post-op care, pain control, and antibiotics.

A post-op recheck is scheduled with sutures removed on days 10-14 post-op. Retaping is done as needed. If at any time following surgery there is a problem, Dr. McClung needs to see your pup the next working day.

Please call our office at 419-455-0470 to make an appointment for a complete physical exam and to discuss the procedure. Please bring any veterinary medical records, vaccination history, or medical problems known to you.

 

We offer declaw surgery for our feline patients. This surgery is typically done in conjunction with spay or neuter but can be done as a separate procedure as well. We recommend cats be done earlier in life, as they recover faster and with less chance of complications than adult cats. We offer this surgery with the surgical laser as it greatly reduces bleeding and pain post-surgery, especially in adult cats. All cats receive pain medications and multiple therapeutic laser treatments with this procedure as well. Declaw patients will stay with us for 2 nights following surgery to ensure exercise restriction, as well all know how hard it is to keep a happy kitten quiet. If you are concerned about putting your cat through this surgery, we can discuss non-surgical options with you as well to help you and your cat live well together.

Entropion/Ectropion

Entropion is a rolled-in eyelid where the eyelashes/fur is rubbing the surface of the eye and causing pain and trauma to the eye. Ectropion is when the eyelid rolls out, which doesn’t allow the tear film on the surface of the eye to stay healthy and keep the eye hydrated. These surgeries are delicate and performed on many patients each year to allow them to have less pain and better vision. Not correcting these problems can lead to permanent damage to the eye and even blindness.

 

Grid Keratectomy

A grid keratectomy is performed when a corneal ulcer is not healing properly. This most commonly occurs in certain breeds of dogs, such as Boxers and English Bulldogs. Patients are sedated and the eye is numbed with numbing drops and the ulcer is scraped in order to encourage healing factors and blood vessels to come to the area and heal the ulcer.

 

Cherry Eye

A cherry eye (proposed 3rd eyelid gland) is common in certain breeds and usually develops by the time they are a year old. You will see a ball of red tissue at the inside corner of the eye. We offer multiple types of surgery to correct this defect, including removal of the gland or replacing the gland into its proper position in the eye. Each procedure has its benefits and downfalls, and we will discuss these with you in-depth and decide which is best for your dog.

 

Enucleation

Sometimes after a traumatic event, severe and painful eye disease, or tumors in the eye, it becomes necessary to remove a pet’s eye. We take great care to ensure all other avenues are pursued before recommending this surgery, but if the surgery is needed, we can help your pet make the transition. This surgery is performed under general anesthesia and patients spend 1-2 days with us following surgery. Patients also go home with an e-collar to prevent them from scratching at their stitches. You would be surprised at how well pets do with only one eye, or even no vision. They really are amazing creatures!

Foreign Body Retrieval

Dogs and cats eat things they shouldn’t, it is a fact of life. When this happens, things can become lodged in their throat, stomach, or intestines. Sometimes this requires surgery to remove as pets will vomit and be unable to defecate when their intestines are blocked. Without surgical interventions, these patients will die. This is considered an emergency surgery and will be done the same day in our clinic as long as the patient is stable enough to undergo surgery and there is no chance that medical therapy could allow the object to pass. Pets will stay with us after surgery until they are eating and drinking and feeling well enough to go home and be monitored.

 

Gastric Dilatation/Volvulus

Some dogs, especially large breed, deep-chested dogs such as Great Danes, German Shepherds, Labs, Golden Retrievers, and Boxers are prone to this condition. The stomach fills with air and then flips so nothing can come in or out. The stomach will continue to fill with air and press on the diaphragm and the large veins and arteries in the body and quickly cause shock and death. Signs of this condition include nonproductive retching, severe abdominal distention, and a painful abdomen. This is an extreme emergency, if surgery does not happen within a few hours, the stomach will die along with the dog. Please call us immediately if you notice any of these signs. There is someone available 24/7 in emergency for our current patients. We also offer stomach tacking (where we sew the stomach to the body wall) in dogs that are at a higher risk of developing a GDV at some point in their life.

 

Cystotomy

Dogs and cats can develop stones in their bladder. This leads to recurrent urinary infections and can even block the urethra so they cannot urinate. Surgery may be required to remove these stones. All stones removed are sent to a lab for testing so we know the makeup of the stones and can adjust your pet’s diet accordingly to prevent recurrence.

 

Splenectomy

The spleen is a common place for our older dogs to develop tumors. These tumors can rupture and bleed into the abdomen, causing sudden death in dogs. When these tumors are detected before they rupture, we can remove the spleen and the tumor. The spleen is a non-essential organ so we do not have long-term health issues from removing the spleen. Entering the abdomen also allows us to examine the other organs for the spread of cancer.

Stifle/Knee Repair

Just like people, our pets can tear their Cranial Cruciate Ligament (ACL in humans). We provide a comprehensive approach to these patients, weighing all options before performing surgery. Depending on the severity of the tear, we may recommend cage rest and laser therapy along with pain management and PRP therapy. For complete tears, we typically recommend surgery in which we place a suture in the knee to help it stabilize. This surgery reduces the amount of scar tissue that the knee produces and in turn decreases the amount of arthritis the joint will have due to the tear. We can also enter the joint and evaluate the meniscus when necessary, as it can tear as well. We perform this surgery on all size dogs, from Chihuahuas to Mastiffs with good success in long-term pain control and maintaining mobility long after surgery. Consultations and surgery can be scheduled on the same day if desired, just call and talk to us for more information!

Patella Luxation Repair

Small dogs in particular are prone to having patella luxations (floating kneecap). There are several grades of severity of this disease and only the worst cases usually require surgery. Signs that your dog may be a surgical candidate including skipping on one or both hind legs when running, yelping and holding one leg up suddenly and intermittently, or feeling a pop on your dog’s knee. Surgery is designed to help the patella stay in place so your pet and live without the discomfort that is caused when the patella suddenly luxates. Patella luxation is also more likely to cause arthritis when not repaired.

 

Fracture Repair

There are many forms of fracture repair in our pets, depending on the type and location of the fracture and the size/age of the pet. Some fractures can be managed with splints, while others require surgical means of fixation. We provide both of these options to our patients and referrals. We have the ability to pin and wire fractures of various bones and near certain joints. We also provide follow-up care and management of splints, casts, and physical rehabilitation following fracture repair. We have digital radiography, which is superior in the way it allows us to examine bones and fracture healing and find those small hairline fractures that could otherwise be missed. The sooner a fracture is repaired, the better the outcome.