ANESTHESIA AND PAIN MANAGEMENT
The anesthesiology department at King Animal Hospital works closely alongside all other hospital departments and clinicians to provide safe, effective, and pain-free sedation and anesthesia for your pet. Most diagnostic and many therapeutic procedures require your pet to be immobilized when in hospital to undergo care, so our board-certified anesthesiologists, Dr. Rodrigo Aguilera, Dr. Flavio Freitag, and Dr. Annatasha Bartel, personally work with the anesthesiology veterinary technicians to provide the safest and most efficient protocols for either sedating or anesthetizing your beloved pet.
Small Animal Induction
OUR ANESTHESIA TEAM IS ABLE TO MANAGE PATIENTS WITH A VARIETY OF MEDICAL CONDITIONS AND HIGH RISK CONSIDERATIONS, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:
- Cardiovascular Disease
- Pulmonary Disease
- Neurological Dysfunction
- Reproductive Emergencies
- Severe Trauma
- Metabolic Compromise
- Chronic Pain Management
make referral
contact us
As we care deeply about the bond you have with your pet, we want to see our patients return to their families both comfortable and happy as soon as possible.
As Drs. Aguilera, Freitag and Bartel are experts in anesthesiology, they are able to offer a number of advanced anesthetic and pain-management techniques, as well as advanced patient monitoring and support.
Furthermore, our anesthesiologists are trained and certified to perform anesthesia for a variety of different species including cats, dogs, and equines.
ANESTHESIOLOGY SERVICES:
Emergency patient stabilization, sedation procedures, and general anesthesia
Inhalant, partial intravenous, and total intravenous anesthesia
Acute and chronic pain management
Local, regional, and neuraxial anesthetic techniques utilizing ultrasound-guidance
Mechanical ventilation, gas analysis, and spirometry
Airway management including emergency intervention for respiratory obstruction or collapse
One-lung intubation utilizing endoscopy
Invasive blood pressure monitoring and interpretation of metabolic parameters
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation
OUR BOARD-CERTIFIED ANESTHESIOLOGISTS
DR. ANNATASHA BARTEL
BSCH, BVM&S, MRCVS, DACVAA
Board-Certified Anesthesiologist
Dr. Bartel earned her BScH in Biology from Queen’s University in 2002 and then went on to graduate BVM&S with Distinction from the University of Edinburgh in 2008. After working in small animal general practice and emergency medicine in Ontario and Florida until 2011, she completed specialty training in Anaesthesia and Analgesia at Cornell University, receiving board certification in 2016. Dr. Bartel has served as the President of the North American Veterinary Anaesthesia Society, as an examination committee member of the American College of Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia, and as a councillor for the College of Veterinarians of Ontario. She was also a staff instructor at the University of California, Head of Surgery and Anaesthesia at the Toronto Veterinary Emergency Hospital, and most recently, Head of Anaesthesia and Analgesia at Veterinary Emergency & Specialty Hospital in Singapore.
READ MORE
DR. RODRIGO AGUILERA
DVM, DVSc, DACVAA
Board-Certified Anesthesiologist
Dr. Aguilera obtained his DVM degree in 2010 from the University of Chile. After graduating, he practiced as a general practitioner and in 2015 finished a clinical skills internship at the Ontario Veterinary College, followed by an anesthesia internship in 2016. In 2017 Dr. Aguilera started his residency and doctorate program (DVSc) in Anesthesia finishing in 2020. After finishing his residency he has been part of the anesthesia department at Animal Health Partners. Dr. Aguilera became a Diplomat of the American College of Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia in 2023 and is a Board Certified Anesthesiologist for equine and small animals. Professional interests include pain management, neonatal and pediatric anesthesia.
READ MORE
DR. FLAVIO FREITAG
DVM, MSc. DVSc., DACVAA
Board-Certified Anesthesiologist
Dr. Freitag obtained his DVM degree from the Pontifical Catholic University of Parana (PUCPR) in 2015, graduating with honors, first of the class. After graduation he completed a 2-year residency in Anesthesia, with parts in Critical Care, from 2016-2018 at the Federal University of Parana (UFPR) where he also then obtained his Master of Veterinary Science in 2019. He then moved to Canada in 2019, to pursue his Anesthesia Residency and Doctor of Veterinary Sciences at the Ontario Veterinary College, 2019-2022. After residency, Dr. Freitag practiced at the Veterinary Specialty Centre of Newfoundland and Labrador, where he was the first veterinary anesthesiologist of the province. In 2023 Dr. Freitag become a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia and started a pain clinic at the hospital. Dr. Freitag’s professional interests include ultrasound guided loco-regional anesthesia, with focus on TAP block, use of pain catheter, CPR, pain management, chronic pain, anesthesia in different species (small animals and equines). And he has published over 20 manuscripts as first author.
READ MORE