How to check a vet's surgical setup and aftercare

You want your pet's surgery done well and your animal looked after properly when it's over. The tension is this: you can't see the operating theatre before booking, and you won't know if aftercare will truly happen until your pet comes home. So you need to ask the right people and know what to verify.

Check the vet's surgical licence and practice registration

Start with the public record. Ask the practice for their veterinary registration number and check it against the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) register. This tells you whether the vet holding the knife is actually qualified and in good standing. If they're cagey about it or can't produce the number in minutes, that's a warning sign.

Also ask whether the practice itself is registered with the relevant provincial veterinary authority. Some provinces have additional requirements for surgical facilities. It takes five minutes on a call to confirm this; it takes months to deal with complications from an unregistered setup.

Request proof of surgical equipment and monitoring

You can't inspect the theatre yourself, but you can ask for specific details and ask to see evidence. A legitimate surgical setup will have answered these questions before. Request photos or a short video tour of the surgical area, or ask whether you can visit and see the space. Not all vets will allow this, but the ones who refuse outright may be hiding something.

Ask directly: what monitoring happens during surgery? A credible answer includes heart rate, oxygen levels, blood pressure and temperature. Ask what equipment they use for this. Ask whether an anaesthetist or trained technician is present throughout, or whether the vet is managing both the surgery and the monitoring alone. Neither is inherently wrong, but you need to know. Ask too about their backup plan if a machine fails mid-procedure.

Talk to their previous clients

Request the contact details of three to five people whose pets had the same procedure within the past six months. This feels awkward, but vets who have nothing to hide will have a list ready. Call or message them directly—not through the vet—and ask:

• Was the pet's behaviour normal within 24 hours of coming home?
• Did someone from the practice call you the next day to check on recovery?
• Were you given clear written aftercare instructions, and did staff answer your questions?
• If something went wrong, how did the vet respond?
• Would you use them again?

If the vet won't give you references, ask why. If the references paint a murky picture of slow recovery or poor follow-up, listen to that.

Nail down aftercare before you book

This is where many vets fall short. Ask in writing—via email or WhatsApp—what aftercare is included in the quote. Specifically:

• Do they call the next day, or is follow-up only if you call them?
• How many check-up visits are included, and when do they happen?
• If stitches need removing, is that free or charged?
• What happens if your pet develops swelling, discharge or fever within two weeks? Do you pay for an emergency visit, or is it covered?
• Can you contact the vet out of hours if something seems wrong, or only during business hours?

Get their answer in writing so you have a record. If they're vague, ask them to be specific. A good surgical practice will have a standard aftercare protocol they can outline without hesitation.

Once you've verified the vet's credentials, seen or heard credible detail about their surgical setup, heard from people who've been through it, and locked in what happens after your pet leaves, you've done the homework. Use Strove to find vets offering surgical procedures in your area, read client reviews, and reach out to the ones whose answers to these questions sound solid.