Surgery

 

 

General Surgical
Considerations:

 

All surgical procedures will require some form of sedation. A presurgical fast of at least 4 hours is suggested – and a longer fasting period may be indicated for gastrointestinal procedures. Fluid therapy should be administered prior to surgery, and the patient’s body temperature maintained using a forced warm-air unit or circulating hot-water bottle.

 

Magnification using a binocular head loupe is useful. Blood loss during surgery may be minimized with the use of an electrosurgical unit – and ligations & closures are best facilitated using 5-0 to 6-0 monofi lament absorbable suture (polydioxanone; PDSII, Ethicon), Monomend™.

 

Recovery from sedation is typically rapid and vocal – and Sugar Gliders oft en chew at skin incisions and sutures. Skin closure is best accomplished by placing subcutaneous sutures and the use of tissue adhesive (cyanoacrylate). It is important to note that Sugar Gliders can reach almost every area of their body, (sometimes even when fi tted with a preventative E collar), so whenever