Dog surgery at The Animal Hospital of Roxbury
At The Animal Hospital of Roxbury, we provide safe, skilled, and compassionate surgical care for dogs and cats, focusing on soft tissue and routine procedures. Whether your pet needs a spay or neuter, mass removal, or abdominal surgery, our experienced veterinary team is here to support you and your pet with the highest standard of care.
We understand that surgery can feel overwhelming—that’s why we prioritize safety, communication, and comfort every step of the way.
Our Surgical Services
Our hospital is equipped to handle a wide range of veterinary surgeries, including:
- Spay and neuter procedures
- Mass and tumor removals
- Wound and laceration repair
- Abdominal exploratory surgery
- Bladder stone removal
- Foreign body removal (e.g., swallowed objects)
- Eye and ear surgeries (e.g., entropion correction, ear hematomas)
- Skin growth removal and biopsy
If your pet needs a specialized procedure, we work with local referral surgeons and are happy to recommend and coordinate that care.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if my dog needs surgery?
There are many reasons that your veterinarian may recommend surgery. If your pet gets injured, if your pet gets sick, or if your pet eats something that they shouldn't have—that's a common one—then they're going to recommend surgery. So, there are lots and lots of reasons that they may need surgery.
What types of surgeries are commonly performed on dogs?
They eat something silly sometimes, and we need to go in and get that silly thing out if it's causing a blockage. If they potentially grow a little mass or something that needs to get removed. Dental disease–if they break a tooth or if they have a bad tooth which will need to come out. You have orthopedic surgeries if they injure themselves, tear a ligament, or break a bone.
Are the success rates for dog surgery good?
Yes, most dogs do very well with surgery.
Will my dog need to see a specialist for surgery?
It depends on the type of surgery. With really big in-depth surgeries, it pays to have a specialist do it.
What are the risks associated with surgery for my dog?
There are always risks involved with surgery and anesthesia, especially if you're dealing with emergency surgery where the dog is sick or injured. Most of the time, dogs handle it just fine. All of our guys here are monitored by our awesome technicians who are on them one-on-one and keep an eye on their heart rate, breathing rate, ECG, and blood pressure, and temperature throughout the surgery.
How should I prepare my dog for surgery?
If it is a surgery that you know of in advance and you're going to use something like an e-collar or surgical recovery suit, we strongly recommend trying to get them used to either their surgical suit or their e-collar before surgery. It's one less thing that they have to figure out after surgery.
Will my dog need to have lab work done prior to surgery?
Most surgeries, if it's not an emergency, we will do blood work ahead of time, and sometimes we will even do x-rays or ECGs.
What should I expect on the day of my dog's surgery?
We ask that you drop your dog off between 8:30am and 8:45am in the morning and they'll get picked up that evening. Just remember, no food or water from 9:00pm the night before surgery. Most of our dogs go home with pain medication and anti-nausea medication that you give the night before surgery, and then you give a little bit more pain medication the day of surgery. That helps them have a better experience and have some extra pain control on board.
How long does a surgery on a dog typically take?
It depends on the surgery. Some surgeries are relatively quick; other surgeries are very long and in-depth. So, it depends on what it is and what they're doing.
Will my dog be in pain after the surgery?
Unfortunately, there's almost always a little degree of some pain with surgery. Here, we use a dew different types of pain control to help keep our patients comfortable, including medication that you give at home, injectable opioids that they get here, and even local blocks to help numb certain areas so that they don't feel what we're doing. So, they typically do really well.
What kind of anesthesia is used for dog surgery, and is it safe?
Dog anesthesia has come a very long way. We usually use a little bit of a pre-sedative so they get a little sleepy, a little drunk when they come in. We place an IV catheter, then give them injectable anesthetic which helps them fall asleep, and then they're intubated. We maintain them on gas anesthesia to help keep them stay asleep, and generally speaking, most dogs do really well with it.
How will my dog's pain be managed post-surgery?
We start with pain medication pre-surgery because pain medication works better when you give it in advance. Then, after surgery, they're usually sent home either with one or two different types of pain medication.
What should I do to care for my dog after the surgery?
The biggest thing is don't let them lick at the incision sites. Obviously, it's a different discussion if they have a tooth removal, but we recommend not letting them scratch, chew, or lick at their incisions. Always follow the discharge instructions that the technicians provide.
How long will it take for my dog to recover from surgery?
It depends on the type of surgery. Every dog's a little bit different.
What signs of complication should I watch for after my dog's surgery?
If it's a mass removal or there's an incision on the outside of the dog, you always want to keep an eye on the incision. Make sure there's no redness, discharge, pain, or swelling at the incision site.
Will my dog need special food or medications after the surgery?
That really depends on the type of surgery.
How can I keep my dog from licking or biting the surgical site?
We typically recommend using e-collars, which are those big lamp shades that go around the neck. They have to extend beyond the tip of the nose, or if the site is covered by it, try one of the bodysuits. This way, you might be able to get away without an e-collar.
When should I bring my dog back for a post-surgery follow-up?
It depends on the type of surgery, but your technicians will let you know. Usually, it's around two weeks.
If you have questions, we would love to answer them for you. Please give us a call at the office at (973) 691-1771, or you can email us at [email protected]. Our staff would love to talk with you!
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