• To Provide You With Knowledge to Make Choices
• To Help Your Horse With Quality Diagnostic and Therapeutic Services
• To Practice Competency By Combining Current Technology with A Solid Foundation of Experience

Careful, lengthy preparation precedes each surgery.

The exam/prep area is where the patient is clipped, shaved, scrubbed and sedated prior to surgery  

Shoes are pulled and Feet are scrubbed

An intravenous catheter is placed in the jugular vein and most horses receive 5-10 litres of sterile fluids before their anaesthetic.

The induction area with the completely padded chute. Muscle relaxant and anesthetic are administered here.

The special hoist moves the horse quickly and easily onto the operating table, and later, to the recovery room.

 

The thickly padded operating table with raised sides cradle the mare comfortably in place.

Before starting surgery Dr. Kleider catheterises an artery to allow direct blood pressure monitoring.

 

The very large bladder stone is located and removed, and after being sutured, the patient is moved to the padded recovery room.

A video surveillance camera (see below) allows monitoring her recovery from outside the room.

The state-of-the-art operating theater at Kleider Veterinary Clinic is used for both routine and complex procedures. Here Dr. Kleider is removing a bladder stone from a 12 year old eventing mare.

Equine Surgery requires a great deal of pre-surgical planning and preparation. This takes more time than the actual surgery!

In this case, a 12 year old mare has come in for the removal of a bladder stone. A rare condition in horses but one that without surgical intervention would be fatal.

Before the mare arrives, her shoes are pulled to prevent self trauma during recovery. She is admitted the day before surgery so a blood test can be taken to alert the anaesthesia team to any potential complications. The patient is then fasted overnight.

On the day of surgery, pre-sterilized surgical equipment is laid out in advance to minimize total anaesthetic time. The surgical table is modified for the relevant procedure. A thorough checklist is followed for each surgery.

The mare is brought into the exam/prep area and sedated. Preliminary clipping, a thorough hoof cleaning and the first surgical scrub are done here to limit contaminates in the OR. Administration of pre-operative antibiotics, a tetanus vaccine, and pain medication is followed by a mouth rinse and a final check by the anaesthetist.

She is then led to the induction area which consists of a completely padded chute. Here, intravenous muscle relaxant and anaesthetic are administered causing her to slump quietly onto a padded mat as she reaches a state of unconsciousness.

A long endotracheal tube is placed into her lungs through her mouth to ensure a patent airway and administer oxygen and anaesthetic gas.

Special hobbles are placed on all four lower limbs, then attached to a hoist, and the mare is quickly and easily moved onto the operating table. When she is positioned correctly on the thickly padded table, both sides are raised to cradle her comfortably in place. A final shave followed by surgical scrubbing, and the patient is ready for sterile draping.

Before starting surgery Dr. Kleider catheterises an artery to allow direct blood pressure monitoring. Electrodes are attached to monitor the heart via an EKG. Carbon Dioxide levels and anaesthetic gas concentration is measured by constant sampling using an analyser. A pulse oximeter attached to the tongue monitors oxygenation. Most horses receive a minimum of 5 litres of fluids throughout the duration of the operation. The anaesthetic team constantly monitor all readings and vital signs.

When the surgery is completed the hoist is again used to move the mare into the padded recovery room. The recovery room was built with safety in mind. Octahedral walls and a deeply padded floor promote quieter and safer recoveries.

When the mare's swallowing reflex has returned, the endotracheal tube is removed and she is left to recover. This usually takes about half an hour. A video surveillance camera allows monitoring her recovery from outside the room. When she gets to her feet, she is led to an adjacent stall. She still needs time to regain full muscle coordination and get over her "hangover". This takes another half hour after which she is led back to her stall and given a wet bran mash to avoid choking.

If there are no complications most minimally invasive surgeries are discharged the following day,

Other Monitoring

A pulse oximeter measures oxygenation, a capnograph measures carbon dioxide values and the level of anaesthetic gas the horse breaths in and out are constantly monitored by a gas analyzer off the endotracheal tube. This lets us know a) if the anaesthetic depth is too light or too deep and b) allows us to decide if your horse needs to go on the respirator!