New Vet and Festa Nazionale del Gatto!
Today is National Cat Day in Italy! So what kind of a cat lady would I be if I didn't wish call Italian cats a happy day?
Tantissimi auguri a tutti i gattoni del Italia! Oggi e un giorno proprio importante per i felini che portano non solo belleza ma sicureza a le strade piu famose e piu belle dell Italia. Della nostra casa con due gatti vizati nel USA gli aguriamo a tutti i gatti Italiani una bellissima giornata piena di tonno o di cual cosa delizioza e un bel riposino nel sole.
Congratulations to all the cats of Italy! Today is a very important day for felines who bring not only beauty but safety to the most famous and beautiful streets of Italy. From our house, with two spoiled cats in the USA, we wish Italian cats a beautiful day full of tuna or something delicious and a nice nap in the sun.
In these parts, our two American cats are forgiving me for their trip to the vet yesterday. They didn't go to the vet for the first 8ish years of their life, not even for vaccines. I was a poor college student and they were indoor-only cats so it didn't make sense. We all lived dangerously in those days. These days, we go to the vet to catch up on rabies vaccines. The kittens both fought me tooth and nail to go in their travel cage. I found that taking one bag is easier for me to carry than taking two. I use a Sherpa carry bag that is really easy to carry and load the animals. It is a bit expensive but I got mine for free from a cat food brand because they suddenly stopped making my cat's food and I complained about the dangers of doing so for senior citizen cats. The cats kept eating like little pigs and the Sherpa bag was a welcome apology.
Anyway, finding a new vet, especially for older cats is a challenge. Saying "ok" to any vet isn't necessary because you can get overcharged and your pet can get hurt. Don't settle till you feel that the vet you found is trust able, gentle with your pet, and actually likes animals. If you feel like your vet doesn't actually like dogs or rabbits or your type of pet, then don't go through with the visit or treatments. It will only cost you money and your pet will be uncomfortable. Our vet in New Jersey was excellent.
1. Has a cat (or dog if you have a dog)
2. Isn't overly pushy about medications, surgery and tooth extractions. These days vets are really pushing tooth extractions. If your pet isn't suffering, is eating and pooping ok then leave them be. Surgery should almost never be considered. Try to let your pet live a natural life. If the new vet is pushy with medications and tooth extractions then you should keep looking.
3. Is gentle with your cat (or pet) and does most procedures in your presence. This means that they are being gentle with your animal. Years ago, Fatty got really sick, and the vet took blood from his neck and nearly killed him...Fatty has nine lives and thankfully used one of them to pull through.
4. Will give you tips on caring for your beasts in ways that don't cost so much money. My vet in Jersey taught me that I can use Neosporin to heal minor wounds in cats, how to clean wounds with hydrogen peroxide and how to feed the cats when they were sick and refusing food for days. It is really helpful because most times if you are confident with knowing what your pet needs for minor things you can really be a good nurse for them when they are ill. Being a responsible pet owner means being a nurse for your pet and a good instructive vet helps you prepare for the unexpected.
5. A good new vet will ask medical history questions about your pet. They should want to know if the animal has been sick before and if it was reoccuring. If the vet doesn't ask questions then it means that they won't know their patient well enough to make recommendations.
Our trip to the vet yesterday was marked with some sadness. Upon entering I saw a lady crying and holding a velvet bag. I went to hug her and knew instantly it was a cat. Her poor older cat died and she was really sad. Bentley and Fatty looked on with giant eyes. "We all have to die," I told them. Fatty understood this as in, "I must make the most of life and eat as much as possible."
They did well, in my perspective, with their exam. Fatty is a tiny bit fat and Bentley needs tooth extractions! Every vet has wanted to rip all of Bentley's teeth out of him for years but my cat is dying with his teeth intact. In the end, I decided to keep looking for another vet. This one didn't ask questions about either cat, was very quick to propose medicating both of them for arthritis, and was very pushy about those tooth extractions. I think that cats, and humans, need to live as natural and unmedicated as possible. Our bodies usually know what is going on and when we get older it is normal to have aches and pains. The old kittens simply adjust themselves to their senior age by sleeping more, I feed them a little less so that their weight doesn't add to the joint pain, and carry them when they look like twenty stairs is a bit too much at the end of the day.
All in all, it is better just to let them be:
Tantissimi auguri a tutti i gattoni del Italia! Oggi e un giorno proprio importante per i felini che portano non solo belleza ma sicureza a le strade piu famose e piu belle dell Italia. Della nostra casa con due gatti vizati nel USA gli aguriamo a tutti i gatti Italiani una bellissima giornata piena di tonno o di cual cosa delizioza e un bel riposino nel sole.
Translation:
Congratulations to all the cats of Italy! Today is a very important day for felines who bring not only beauty but safety to the most famous and beautiful streets of Italy. From our house, with two spoiled cats in the USA, we wish Italian cats a beautiful day full of tuna or something delicious and a nice nap in the sun.
New Vet
In these parts, our two American cats are forgiving me for their trip to the vet yesterday. They didn't go to the vet for the first 8ish years of their life, not even for vaccines. I was a poor college student and they were indoor-only cats so it didn't make sense. We all lived dangerously in those days. These days, we go to the vet to catch up on rabies vaccines. The kittens both fought me tooth and nail to go in their travel cage. I found that taking one bag is easier for me to carry than taking two. I use a Sherpa carry bag that is really easy to carry and load the animals. It is a bit expensive but I got mine for free from a cat food brand because they suddenly stopped making my cat's food and I complained about the dangers of doing so for senior citizen cats. The cats kept eating like little pigs and the Sherpa bag was a welcome apology.
 |
| Welcome to the new vet |
 |
| "How fat is your cat?" chart. Hmmmmm |
 |
| Unwilling to get out for the vet. |
Anyway, finding a new vet, especially for older cats is a challenge. Saying "ok" to any vet isn't necessary because you can get overcharged and your pet can get hurt. Don't settle till you feel that the vet you found is trust able, gentle with your pet, and actually likes animals. If you feel like your vet doesn't actually like dogs or rabbits or your type of pet, then don't go through with the visit or treatments. It will only cost you money and your pet will be uncomfortable. Our vet in New Jersey was excellent.
You want a vet that:
1. Has a cat (or dog if you have a dog)
2. Isn't overly pushy about medications, surgery and tooth extractions. These days vets are really pushing tooth extractions. If your pet isn't suffering, is eating and pooping ok then leave them be. Surgery should almost never be considered. Try to let your pet live a natural life. If the new vet is pushy with medications and tooth extractions then you should keep looking.
3. Is gentle with your cat (or pet) and does most procedures in your presence. This means that they are being gentle with your animal. Years ago, Fatty got really sick, and the vet took blood from his neck and nearly killed him...Fatty has nine lives and thankfully used one of them to pull through.
4. Will give you tips on caring for your beasts in ways that don't cost so much money. My vet in Jersey taught me that I can use Neosporin to heal minor wounds in cats, how to clean wounds with hydrogen peroxide and how to feed the cats when they were sick and refusing food for days. It is really helpful because most times if you are confident with knowing what your pet needs for minor things you can really be a good nurse for them when they are ill. Being a responsible pet owner means being a nurse for your pet and a good instructive vet helps you prepare for the unexpected.
5. A good new vet will ask medical history questions about your pet. They should want to know if the animal has been sick before and if it was reoccuring. If the vet doesn't ask questions then it means that they won't know their patient well enough to make recommendations.
Our trip to the vet yesterday was marked with some sadness. Upon entering I saw a lady crying and holding a velvet bag. I went to hug her and knew instantly it was a cat. Her poor older cat died and she was really sad. Bentley and Fatty looked on with giant eyes. "We all have to die," I told them. Fatty understood this as in, "I must make the most of life and eat as much as possible."
They did well, in my perspective, with their exam. Fatty is a tiny bit fat and Bentley needs tooth extractions! Every vet has wanted to rip all of Bentley's teeth out of him for years but my cat is dying with his teeth intact. In the end, I decided to keep looking for another vet. This one didn't ask questions about either cat, was very quick to propose medicating both of them for arthritis, and was very pushy about those tooth extractions. I think that cats, and humans, need to live as natural and unmedicated as possible. Our bodies usually know what is going on and when we get older it is normal to have aches and pains. The old kittens simply adjust themselves to their senior age by sleeping more, I feed them a little less so that their weight doesn't add to the joint pain, and carry them when they look like twenty stairs is a bit too much at the end of the day.
All in all, it is better just to let them be:
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| Where is he going? |
 |
| Hm. Maybe I should follow him. |
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| "He better not be going to a secret food bowl." |
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| "I think I have a stalker." |
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| "Did I loose him?" |
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| Nope. Stalker is present. |
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| Now what? |
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| Sniff |
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| Sniff |
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| A tiny bit fat |
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| but very cute. We'll keep him. |
Great blog Hija!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Moose!
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