My dog has diabetes. Is surgery safe, and what are the risks involved?

Some anesthetic drugs can alter sugar levels in blood but it is usually a very minor change which does not cause any real health issues. the main problem is with fasting the dog before surgery, which is an issue with dogs with diabetes. the solution is usually to limit the fasting to 6 hours only.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Quintino! I have had patients have successful cataract surgery after being diagnosed with diabetes. The owners have been very happy and feel that their dog's quality of life was improved. Success rates are about 90-95% per eye 6 months after surgery. Complications (the 5-10%) can be imperfect but improved vision, or inflammation that requires long-term medication, glaucoma and/or retinal detachment. Complications can lead to loss of the eye in about 1% of cases. I hope this helps. Good luck!

Hi there. It would help to know what her specific lab results are. Minor elevations in blood sugar are extremely common as a result of stress in the clinic - so in that case, they don't have any particular clinical significance. More dramatic elevations (above 300-400 mg/dL or so) would be concerning for possible diabetes. Your veterinarian should be able to advise you on whether this is anything to worry about, and whether it will affect your pup's surgery in any way. If the elevation is minor, then I would not expect it to be a problem at all in terms of her surgical procedure.

Hello. Without the bloodwork, I can not address her overall condition to say whether surgery is appropriate or not. I would highly recommend that x-rays of her lungs be done to see if there is any evidence that the mass on her liver has metastasized to her lungs. If this has happened, then I would not put her through surgery. An ultrasound of her abdomen would also be very useful in looking at the liver, gall bladder & kidneys, & would give much more information about what is going on. In the meantime, I would start her on insulin to try & regulate the elevated blood sugar. Talk to your vet to see what the next best steps for Layla are. Thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Greetings and thank you for your question on Khleo. First, I am very sorry to hear she has a ruptured disk. Generally speaking, yes, surgery is safe. However, there are always risks when an animal is placed under general anesthesia. The risk is greater in dogs with underlying conditions such as kidney disease, liver disease, and cardio dysfunction. The risk of complications is also greater in older dogs. The veterinary office with likely run pre-anesthetic blood work and preform a physical exam to ensure there are no underlying issues. After the surgery, Khelo may need to stay a few days or more in the hospital receiving care and rehabilitation. Once Khleo is home, she may need assistance walking and reliving herself in the yard. She may need to be on medications for several weeks and also receive physical therapy several times a week. She will need your love, care, and support most of all. Best of luck!

If you are worried about this heart the best test to have done before surgery would be an echocardiogram (an ultrasound of the heart) as that will tell you how the heart is actually functioning and if it can pump blood efficiently. That is what I would have done if I was in your position. Unfortunately, you can do all the testing in the world and there is no guarantee that he will survive the surgery. That is just the nature of a living being. The same happens with people. You can take every precaution and they may still not survive. That being said, it is very rare for a "healthy" animal to not survive a routine/elective surgery. Does it happen, yes; is it likely, no. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

The risk of anesthesia would probably be the biggest concern for Nevah. We always evaluate our patients and put them into a certain class of risk prior to the anesthesia. When we have patients with high anesthetic risk, we usually will notify the owner first, before we do anything, so they are comfortable with the procedure knowing the risk. We will also alter the drugs and procedure as necessary to avoid risk. A skinny healthy dog is not necessarily a risk. However, overly thin dogs may have an underlying health condition that is making them skinny. Before considering the risk, you would want to get bloodwork done on Nevah. This will show if there are any signs of organ failure or disease. Most veterinarians would require this prior to doing anesthesia on a dog this old. After all the information is acquired, your veterinarian would be able to advise you about the risk versus the benefit. If the dental disease is really bad and/or the lumps are cancerous, then the benefit would likely outweigh the risk in most of these situations. However, if the teeth are not too bad and the tumors appear benign, then it may not be worth the risk. I hope that helps.