Article Featured on AVMA
Some veterinary procedures need to be performed with your pet under anesthesia (for example: dentistry, surgery, and some diagnostic imaging). Simply put, anesthesia is a controlled unconsciousness, where your pet’s level of consciousness is controlled so they don’t feel pain and don’t move. We certainly don’t want our pets to feel pain whenever possible, and it’s important that they don’t move because precision is required during these procedures and movement could lead to complications. Most healthy pets – even senior pets – don’t have any problems with anesthesia and, in general, the risks are more closely related to the procedure being done and your pet’s general health than to the anesthesia itself.
