My dog needs a spinal X-ray. Is anesthesia always necessary and safe?

Question

My 6 month old french bulldog died last week after having anaesthetic for a spinal xray. Is it correct that he needed to have this anaesthetic for an xray? Thanks. Pet's info: Dog | French Bulldog | Male

Jessica Keay, DVM · Accepted Answer

I am so sorry to hear about your dog. It is always devastating when we lose a patient after anesthesia. Unfortunately it is something that happens on rare occasion, even to the very best veterinarians. Often there may have been an underlying heart condition that we could not have detected. If you want to know more you can request that they send your dog's remains to the university vet school for a necropsy. As far as whether or not the anesthesia was necessary I will say that we do often need anesthesia for x-ray of skeletal structure because it can be very difficult to position a dog properly when they are awake for this type of x-ray. If the dog has an injury it can also be dangerous to try to take the x-ray while they are awake if they are fighting/thrashing around while we try to take the x-ray as they could cause more injury to the area. Since I do not know your dog/the situation/the history of his condition I cannot comment on the necessity of anesthesia, but only tell you that it is commonly used. I am very sorry for your loss.

My dog needs a spinal X-ray. Is anesthesia always necessary and safe?

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