Spay Boards Technician

The Spay Boards Technician monitors the cat’s respiration, pulse and color, secures female cats as well as cryptorchid males to spay boards, delivers the secured cats to the Surgery Prep Station, and cleans the spay boards when returned from the Vaccinations Station. This position requires a rabies vaccination.

Spay Boards Technician Instructions

1. Compare the Paw Tag and the Medical Record to be sure the ID# matches.

2. Center the spay boards across the table, so the plastic tubing is accessible under the board at each corner.

3. Roll the sides of the fleece toward the cat with the fuzzy side facing the cat to help hold the cat straight and upright on the spay board. Keep all parts of the cat ON the fleece without the head, legs or tail extending off the edge.

4. Check the Veterinary Examination Form to determine whether cats will receive a midline or flank spay. Lactating cats that need flank spays will have a red “Medical Alert” tag.

   

5. Secure pregnant cats and cryptorchid males on their backs. Tie each leg to the spay board by sliding the slip knot in the plastic tubing above the hock or elbow, gently tightening the knot, then tying a half hitch wrapping the plastic tubing once around the leg at the metatarsus or carpus. The cat should be tied snugly and perfectly straight.

6. Secure lactating cats on their right sides for flank spays, if so ordered. Tie the hind legs and front legs together to the board using ties on opposite sides of the board. This results in the cat being secured diagonally on the board. Slide the slipknot over the joints of both legs, gently tightening the knot, then tying a half hitch (wrap the plastic tubing once around the legs) further down the legs (closer to the paws).

7. Secure the plastic tubing to the top of the board through one of the slots and slide the locks down the plastic tubing to the board to hold the cat in place. Plastic tubing locks need to be on the top side of the spay board so that the board can lay flat and secure on the surgery table. Bind the cat tightly enough to hold the limbs away from the torso but do not overstretch. Ties should be slack enough to allow normal circulation; tie downs should be snug, not tight. There is always excess plastic tubing; excess should be tucked under the fleece under the cat.

8. Deliver the secured cats to the Surgery Prep Station.

9. Notify the Surgery Prep staff if any cat is a cryptorchid male.

10. Clean spay boards returned from the Vaccinations Station with disinfectant from the spray bottle provided in the station kit so the spay board can be reused.

11. Gather and prepare all the cleaned boards for storage when the last cat has cleared the Clinic Records Station.

Station Closing and Cleanup

When the clinic is concluded:

• Inventory the remaining supplies and record shortages on the Inventory Reconciliation included in the kit.
• Repack the kit, including station instructions.
• Empty the ice in the small cooler and return the Penicillin to the Clinic Supervisor. The small cooler is returned to the storage room.
• Clean both rolling tables, ensuring all tape is removed, including undersides of the tables and return them to Anatomy Lab or Prep Room as appropriate.
• Clean the surgical table, including all tape, and return to proper location, ensuring that the table is lifted entirely and does not scrape on the floor.
• Wipe as much of the surgical lamp as can be reached.
• Place the kit on the pre-op rolling cart in the proper location.
• Clean the area and dispose of all trash, including plastic covering from the tables.