It's not just what we know... it's how much we care!

At Wingham and Valley Vets your pet’s comfort and safety are our priority. Every pet is loved and important and so we pride ourselves on our best practice approach to general anaesthesia and surgery to minimise any risk to your pet, and to ensure that their surgical procedure is as stress-free and safe as possible.

We offer competitive prices for surgical desexing of all species including dogs, cats, rabbits, ferrets and guinea pigs, as well as farm animals such as cattle, horses, pigs, goats, alpacas and sheep. Our veterinarians have over 150 years combined experience, including anaesthesia and surgery of less common pets such as miniature pigs, rabbits and ferrets.

Every animal undergoing desexing must have good quality pain relief to ensure they are comfortable in recovery and once they have gone home. All our patients are administered pain relief before surgery and more is given during the surgery where required.

All pets are given a pain relief injection after surgery that lasts 24 hours and except in special circumstances, all pets go home with extra oral pain relief for several days.

State of the art surgical theatre

Our clinic protocols involve a ‘best practice’ approach to maximize patient safety:

• Every pet is examined by an experienced veterinarian prior to anaesthesia to ensure they are in good health. Any concerns will be discussed with you and if indicated, the vet may recommend a preanaesthetic blood test (these are available to all pets at their owners’ request and can be run in-house on the day of surgery.)
• Every patient is administered a premedication to reduce their stress and provide pain relief which results in a safer, more stable anaesthetic and a comfortable pain-free recovery.
• An intravenous catheter is placed prior to anaesthesia. This allows instantaneous intravenous access for drugs in the event of an anaesthetic emergency, and also the administration of intravenous fluids.
• Intravenous fluids are administered throughout surgery to maintain your pet’s blood pressure and to help them recover more quickly from their anaesthesia.
• Every anaesthetized patient has a fully qualified and experienced veterinary nurse constantly monitoring and recording the anaesthetic from induction to full recovery.
• The safest anaesthetic agents are chosen every time, whether the patient is deemed ‘high risk’ or not.
• We use advanced monitoring equipment – including blood pressure, blood oxygen levels, expired carbon dioxide levels and constant core body temperature monitoring.
• All animals receive temperature support either via a thermostatically controlled heat mat or Bair Hugger (warm air blanket) to prevent hypothermia during anaesthesia.
• Staff are highly trained in the special anaesthetic requirements of ‘brachycephalic’ breeds (e.g. Pugs, Bulldogs, Boston Terriers, French Bulldogs). General anaesthesia in these pets is higher risk because of the special anatomy of their airways.

As an animal behaviour clinic, we aim to make your pet’s experience as stress free as possible. We are a Gold-Accredited Cat-Friendly Hospital!

Positive early experiences are extremely important in shaping the future temperament and behaviour of young dogs. Since many animals are desexed at 6 months of age, it is critical that their hospital stay is managed appropriately to make the experience as positive as possible and to avoid the development of negative associations with the vet clinic environment.

Some steps we take to maximise your pet’s comfort include:

• Special treatment for known anxious animals
• Pre-visit medication which is taken the evening before and morning of the surgery to reduce your pet’s anxiety prior to their visit to the hospital
• A sedation/pain relief injection on arrival to help them settle and remain calm prior to surgery.
• Comfortable, clean bedding at all times.
• Gentle soothing handling at all times.
• Cats are admitted in a dedicated cat-only consultation room, transported directly to the dedicated cat ward and they are also anaesthetised in this location so they at no point cross paths with a dog
• A soft warm cat ‘igloo’ for cats to hide in during their hospital stay and spacious, comfortable cat condos
• Anaesthetic drugs that are known to promote a smooth, gentle recovery.
• Exceptional pain relief measures.

Animals with skin sutures will require a complimentary revisit appointment 10-14 days after surgery for a recheck of the wound and suture removal. If you prefer that your pet has dissolvable intradermal sutures placed instead, that do not require removal, please notify us at the time of booking your pet’s appointment.

To book an appointment or If you have any further questions such as the cost of desexing your pet, please don’t hesitate to contact the clinic on 6557 0000.