Veterinary Care Basics
- 1. How to Tell if a Cat or Dog May Need Veterinary Care
- 2. Choosing a Vet
- 3. Basic, Commmonly Used Drugs
- 4. Veterinary Specialists
- 5. Can Your Dog Be a Blood Donor?
- 6. Getting the Most Out of Your Pet's Veterinary Visits
- 7. Holistic Pet Care
- 8. Medical Procedures on Young Animals
Medical Procedures on Young Animals
Dr. Lila Miller, V.M.D., ASPCA Sr. Dr. Animal Sciences and Vet Advisor
The ASPCA recently received the following letter. Its author wishes us to withhold her name, but she has given us permission to edit her letter for publication and to print my response, in the hope that others might benefit from her experience.
Dear ASPCA,
On May 16 we adopted a four- to six-week-old kitten from our
local shelter. We named him Ripple and loved him immediately. Ten
days later, Ripple died in our veterinarian’s office, where
he had been admitted due to lethargy, vomiting and diarrhea (he
was found dead in a pool of worm-infested feces). This tiny
kitten weighed less than a pound, yet due to shelter policy, had
been wormed, vaccinated, micro-chipped, tested for FeLV and
neutered—all within 24 hours! I realize that the existence
of millions of unwanted animals is what led to the neutering of
this kitten before adoption. But shouldn’t there be
guidelines? Standards?
—Mad and Sad in PA
Please accept my condolences on your loss. As a shelter veterinarian, I can assure you that one of the most devastating events for both the staff and the adopter is the death of an animal who had been rescued and placed in a loving home. Although hindsight may make it appear that Ripple should have qualified for a deferral of some of these procedures, I am sure that the veterinarian felt it would be safe to proceed. Every shelter and hospital has had an unexpected death following a routine elective surgery. This usually prompts an extensive review of procedures to minimize the chances of it happening again.
Medicine is not an exact science, and there are no universal mandatory guidelines for veterinarians or shelters (or even hospitals) when it comes to medical or surgical procedures. Most states have minimum standards of practice, but these tend to be broad and not intended to dictate specific medical practice. Each shelter (or hospital) sets its own policies, then relies on the veterinarian to make the final decisions based on the health of each patient. It appears from your letter that your shelter has a comprehensive health care program, especially if it is microchipping and testing for feline leukemia. It sounds like a lot of procedures, but the leukemia test only requires a few drops of blood, and microchipping is routine and fairly benign. Vaccinations and dewormings may cause some physiological stress, but both were warranted. Deworming does not normally cause diarrhea, however, and it sounds like the worms were the real culprits in Ripple’s death. Young animals sometimes do succumb to heavy worm loads despite treatment and without having undergone any additional stress such as surgery.
Pediatric neutering, like any surgical procedure, is not without risk, and while shelter animals are at a somewhat higher risk due to hidden health hazards, the procedures have been successfully performed on thousands of animals over the past 20 years. Six to eight weeks of age or two pounds in weight have been generally accepted as a guideline for when to perform these surgeries, but they are not used universally, especially when neutering male animals. Neutering only takes a few minutes—usually less than five—and the vast majority of pediatric patients are awake less than half an hour after the procedure and go on to do just fine.
Many shelters do not offer animals under eight weeks of age for adoption because it is too difficult to keep them healthy in the shelter. We all know that the youngest animals tend to be the most irresistible, so the rules are often bent to allow them a chance at a home. Perhaps this was the case with Ripple.
Many shelters now have a neuter-before-adoption clause that is either self-imposed or imposed by the municipality because adopters often do not honor neutering agreements. Unless a veterinarian finds a medical contraindication for neutering, the shelter’s alternatives may be to neuter or to euthanize. Some shelters hold animals for a few days before or after surgery to observe them, while others believe it is safer to get them out of the facility quickly to reduce their exposure to diseases.
I hope that I have given you some insight into the problems facing shelters in general, and the different approaches they take to handle them. Unfortunately, even guidelines and the very best intentions do not always lead to the desired result. If you decide to get another pet, I hope you would consider returning to the shelter and discussing your concerns about Ripple. It sounds as if this is a shelter that is trying to provide responsible medical care.
Dr. Lila Miller is ASPCA Veterinary Advisor and Senior Director, Animal Sciences.
© 2001 ASPCA
ASPCA Animal Watch - Winter 2001
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