Hospital Opening Hours

• Monday: 8.30 to 5.30
• Tuesday 8.30 to 5.30
• Wednesday: 9 to 1
• Thursday: 8.30 to 5.30
• Friday: 8.30 to 5.30
• Saturday: 9 to 1
• Sunday: Closed

7047 Great Alpine Road,
Porepunkah, VIC 3740

When a much loved pet requires surgery it can be a scary time for the animal’s owner. Utilising our state-of-the-art surgical suite together with integrated support from our anaesthesia, diagnostic and intensive care facilities, our animal hospital is equipped to ensure your pet receives an exceptionally high standard of care when they need soft tissue surgery.

The Alpine Animal Doctors soft tissue service provides skilled treatment for dogs, cats and other species needing surgery for ear, nose and throat, gastrointestinal, urogenital, respiratory, thoracic and cardiac diseases.

We also provide treatment for animals requiring surgery for congenital disease, cancer and the repair and reconstruction of traumatic injuries.

Wherever possible soft tissue surgery is performed using minimally invasive techniques — ‘keyhole surgery’ — minimising post-operative pain and helping reduce possible post-surgical complications.

We pride ourselves not only on our exceptional surgical facilities but also on the very strict protocols we have in place to maximise the safety and wellbeing of your pet during any operation. While we can never completely eliminate the risks inherent in any surgical procedure we go much further than most veterinary clinics in our efforts to ensure the best possible surgical outcome for your pets.

Prior to surgery all our patients receive a thorough health check. Blood tests and other appropriate pathology are run to check internal organ function and to establish a health baseline. These tests are all conducted in our own in-house pathology lab and allow us to more precisely refine the type and level of sedation, induction and gas anaesthetics your pet will need during their operation.

Our surgical prep area — where your pet will be sedated, clipped and shaved prior to their operation — is separate to the operating theatre for maximum hygiene. All surgical instruments are sterilised before and after use in a separate scrub and pack area and everything to be used in the procedure, including swabs and sutures, is counted before and after surgery.

The surgical suite itself is a closed, sterile environment with its own climate control and air filters. Our anaesthesia gas lines are also fitted with viral and bacterial filters to eliminate the possibility of cross-contamination.

Our ‘standard’ gas anaesthetic is the tried and trusted isoflurane. We are however more and more recommending the use of sevoflurane, particularly for senior animals and for very ill patients. Sevoflurane is rapidly metabolised and very quickly removed from the body once the gas is turned off. We have had remarkable results using it, with animals up and about and back to normal within minutes.

During surgery your pet will be closely monitored, both by an experienced theatre nurse and by electronic monitors that provide detailed information on heart rate, breathing rate, blood pressure, ECG, oxygen levels and the type and amount of anaesthetic agent. This critical information allows the surgeon to note slight changes in blood pressure and ECG that can indicate impending issues, even though the patient may appear perfectly fine to the naked eye.

Once the operation is over your pet will be transferred to either our day surgery recovery ward or our Intensive Care Unit. In both wards all patients enjoy a quiet space to recuperate and are constantly monitored during their recovery.

All our surgical patients are routinely given pain relief and long-acting antibiotics to ensure their comfort and post operative welfare. The pain relief provides 24 hours of active cover and the antibiotics continue to protect your pet whilst they are convalescing.

When soft tissue surgery is essential we think that your pets deserve exactly the same level of care as you would want for yourself. At Alpine Animal Doctors, that’s exactly what they will receive — highly skilled, professional surgical care in facilities at least as good as those found in university teaching hospitals.

Some of the soft tissue procedures we undertake include…

• Ovariectomy/ovariohysterectomy.
• Cryptorchidectomy.
• Cystotomy in dogs/cats.
• Preventative treatment of gastric dilation and volvulus (twisted stomach or GDV) syndrome.
• Removal of the kidney and ureter for chronic pyelonephritis/abcess, neoplasia, dysplasia of the kidney.
• Gall bladder removal.
• Pericardectomy.
• Lung biopsy or lung lobe removal.
• Cranial mediastinal mass biopsy or mass resection.
• Thoracic duct ligation.

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