Clinical assessment of each patient before beginning preparation for anaesthesia enables the detection and mitigation of underlying conditions that may affect the patient's anaesthetic or surgical risk. To overlook this step will increase the chance of unexpected complications as well as the need to adapt to the situation on-the-fly as opposed to pre-empting potential issues and planning accordingly. In some cases surgery may be aborted or postponed entirely, for example if the dog has signs of severe anaemia, or the approach may be adjusted, for example if a male dog is identified as cryptorchid. This section will guide you through the stages of patient assessment in the context of a spay-neuter clinic setting.
