Cat Goes To The Vet

Last week, we took Cat to Dr. Solano for a general checkup and vacinations. As far as we know, he has never had vacinations. We know nothing of his history because he just appeared one day at our house over a year ago.He was unneutered so we had that done shortly after he appeared. It was our intention to find a permanent home for him but - hah! - of course he had other ideas. So, since it appears a cat now owns us we decided he needed a checkup.

Dr. Solano is an excellent vet here in Atenas. His telephone numbers are 2446-6646 and 2446-6068. He also has a cell phone: 8995-8585 and email: veterinariadrsolano@gmail.com. His office is located 100 meters east of the ICE office (ICE being the acryonm for Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad - the Costa Rican government run electricity and telecommunications services provider).

Cat (the name that has stuck) was very unhappy in the carrier and the short taxi ride but was a good boy while being examined by Dr. Solano and his assistants. This is a cat that is outside all day, hunting and lolling around in the grass/dirt so he had fleas and no doubt worms. He stays inside at night. He needs to lose some weight so we have him on a calorie reduced diet now. Dr. Solano said Cat is built larger then most Costa Rica cats.

The treatment Cat received was: deworming, flea treatment (Frontline Plus, I think, or similar), Felocell and Leukocell shots, and feces exam. The total cost, including the consultation, was 48,050 colones - about 96.00 USD. We also bought 1.5 kg of weight reduction kibble for 9850 colones (19.00 USD) and a product to spray on furniture to kill any fleas. Pet food in Costa Rica is pricy because it is imported.

Here is the dewormed and flealess version of Cat:

 

 

Oh My Gawd! It's May!

This is zero month, the month we leave, no more sitting around saying "when we go to Costa Rica" - because we really are going there this month.

So much has been happening. A lovely young couple with a toddler have rented the house we have been leasing. Genny our cat had a wellness exam last week, plus a chip inserted, rabies shot and one of her innoculations. She goes back on May 9th for a couple of more tests and another innoculation. We are liaising with her vet, World Pet Travel and Veterinarios Asociados in San Jose, Costa Rica, where Genny will be boarding until we find our long term accommodations.

I'm now down to packing the last few storage bins and my paintings. We went to Rona this morning and bought pipe insulation tubes. They are perfect for putting around the edges of paintings to protect them from damage.

Here are some photos of Genny helping me pack today, the paintings I need to pack and the insulation tubes around some paintings.

Breaking News!!!

Tuffy went to the vet today to be vaccinated, dewormed, chipped and apparently have a sex change operation.

Yes, it turns out Tuffy is really a boy and not a girl! I swear I saw nothing to indicate that. Neither did my husband or my sister (who is a nurse, she ought to know these things).

It's not like we are entirely ignorant on these matters. Our Siamese cat, Mat, had very definite, albeit, tiny gonads but they were there.

Huh, just when you think you know everything ....

Genny Update

Looks like Genny will be good to go next spring. Her tests showed the infection had reached her kidneys and caused a bit of damage there. It appears the infection is on it's way out and she is scheduled for another ultrasound in a month.

Her belly was shaved so she's not fond of going out in the wet grass right now. She's an indoor kitty but does like to explore the garden on nice days. It was sort of funny when she got home last week after her tests. The sedatives had caused her pupils to expand so she looked exceptionally bright but couldn't see very well - she kept missing her food in her bowl.

Just Slogging Along and Downsizing

The more stuff I take to the various charity shops, the more stuff I seem to find in the house. All our Christmas items are on Craigs List and I've had a few calls but no buyers. It's a real deal: $100 will get you a 6 foot tree with stand and carrying bag, tree and outdoor LED lights, ornaments for the tree that are really nice, a bag of wrapping paper and gift bags, and assorted decorations for table tops. One of my favorites is a fabric white swan with a wreath around his neck.

Genny the cat has been spending inordinate amounts of time at her vet. Routine blood tests before her dental cleaning showed a UT infection and blood in her urine. Antibiotics have cleared up the infection but the blood remains. This coming Friday she is booked for ultrasound and x-rays on bladder and kidneys to find out what might be going on. Could be a stone and that can be removed, but kidney problems are more difficult to treat. She is ten years old now and hardly sick a day in her life.

I spend a lot of time reading Costa Rican blogs and have started reading A.M. Costa Rica, an English language on-line newspaper. Their rainy season this year has been so bad. It should be ending soon, everyone hopes.