Pre-anaesthetic check
Normally you should check that the animal has been fasted. For this prac, you can assume that your dog has been fasted for 12 hours and your sheep for 24.
Weigh the animal. (If you weigh the animal in pounds, remember that 2.2lb = 1kg.)
Take its temperature. Dogs should be 38.5˚C, sheep about 39˚C. Both can be slightly raised by excitement.
Listen to the animal's heart and feel its pulse at the same time. Report any arrhythmia to your supervisor. Normal heart rates: dog 70 - 100, sheep 60 - 70 beats per minute.
- normal heart sounds (slight sinus arrhythmia)
- systolic murmur
Listen to the animal's lungs. There should be no obvious sounds in a healthy animal, although many sheep have subclinical respiratory disease. Count the respiratory rate: dog 15 - 18, sheep 20 - 30.
Look at the animal's nose and eyes for signs of upper respiratory tract infections - particularly important in sheep.
Check that the animal's mucous membranes are pink and that the capillary refill time is less than 1 sec.
