Daily thoughts - Boomer update

When I took Boomer to the vet last December and early this month, people would curiously take a quick peek in the carrier and ask me "is it imported". When I say no, they look either amused or disappointed. It doesnt come as a surprise to me though because most people in my country would prefer to take in a pedigreed pet. They would take pride in having an animal companion that they can show off to friends and say its a pure bred. I dont understand their reasons behind it but I dont take it against them. At least they love animals even if its not the regular Puspin or Aspin (stray cats and dogs in the Philippines). I on the other hand have a soft spot for the abandoned and neglected strays. I proudly show of my cats and even tell them that with the proper care and enough love, a regular stray can look really beautiful. One of the cats I adopted in Singapore was a real stray. We literally picked her from the void deck on one of the housing estates. Her name is Marble. If you go to my previous posts, you will see how much she has changed and how pretty she is now.

I really love cats. If I can, I would like to save them all. But its not possible. I dont have the means to do it. So while Im still here in the country, I try to do my best to improve their living condition at least. Currently Im feeding all the animals in our house. We have 11 cats and 5 dogs. I dont make much money but it is possible to ensure they have something to eat everyday. I have a small variety store with rice and other canned goods that come in handy when the kibbles run out. The animals here follow me around like IM the pope or something. Its both funny and yet annoying sometimes. I almost fell from the stairs one time because Maki and Squid just kept following me and I almost got caught in their legs and tails. I was like WTF.

The rest of the cats in the house are fine. They have all the faculties they need to go stroll everywhere they want without me having to supervise them all the time. But Boomer is different. Both of her eyes are severely damaged that she has gone totally blind.

Its really a heartbreaking story. Im also still annoyed over the fact that here eyes couldve been saved if I had brought her to the right vet. I admit I am also accountable. I dont have all the time to go to town. I also have to tend my store otherwise, I wont make any money to buy my basic needs or even catfood. I have to allot one day to take the cats to the vet if necessary. When I took Boomer to the town vet, the guy there named Dr Cruz recommended Maxitrol, which is an antibacterial / steroid eye drop. It cost me 348PHP and that is hard earned money. I found later on that this is not supposed to be given to animals with perforated eyeballs.

the prescription by the town vet Dr Cruz

Maxitrol

I was giving the drops to Boomer for a few days until I realized nothing good was happening. I took Boomer to Assumpta Dog and Cat clinic and the vet there was the one who told me that I should have just used antibiotic. The steroids made things worse for Boomer. He then told me that the enucleation would cost 5500PHP total. And I had to wait because his Dad who is the main surgeon of the clinic, is out of town.

But seeing Boomer in pain is just too hard for me to ignore. I had to go take her to Philippine Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PSPCA) to get their advise. I originally planned to take her to VIP (Vets in Practice) in Mandaluyong, which is closer. But they advised me that per eye it is going to cost 4500PHP. I dont have that kind of money. So due to urgency of the situation, I took a 4 hour trip to Mendiola to have Boomer checked and the surgery performed.

PSPCA

St Francis of Assisi statue

Bulletin board

Queue

one of the patients, a pug

Poodle giving birth

that poodle puppy sadly died. it was too tiny

one of the vets trying to revive the puppy

a Mini Pincher named Yepuda. The owner said its Korean for beautiful

this Persian Cat's name is Siopao

Siopao being prissy

Siopao strolling

s

Siopao and her owner

Siopao and kibbles I brought

Fudge

Fudge making a move on Siopao

Fudge and Siopao

The place was packed. I had to wait for almost an hour before my turn. But I didnt get bored. I met animal lovers who were very interesting. One woman named Ludy brought in her mini pincher named Yepuda for vaccination. The dog was very tiny. The woman told me that she breeds mini pinchers. She loves animals especially dogs. She also said that she has a smaller pincher. I was surprised because Yepuda, who was 2 months old, was smaller than my cat Dapper. I hear that mini pinchers are very tiny when theyre young. they can be the size of a finger. I also met a woman named Merrian who has 46 cats! I was really so amazed and had to ask her so many questions about her cats! Then there was a lady who has a Persian kitten named Siopao (steamed bun in English). I gave the kitten one kibble but it ignored it. Later on we realized she didnt want one kibble. She wanted the whole little bag I brought! It was so funny because her owner was saying, Siopao youre embarrassing us! The girl even said, that she doesnt eat like that around them. Hehehe but I didnt mind. The kitten was so cute I was tempted to steal it. There was also a tiny black kitten named Fudge. The lady owner said she found him on the street and took him home. She is even planning to take the kitten to Macau. I gave her my number because she wanted to know how the export procedure is like.

I almost didnt notice the time go by. When my number was finally called, I promptly took the sleeping boomer to the examination table.

Boomer pissed after the antibiotic shot

Boomer trying to relax

The vet Dr Crisostomo was the one who checked Boomer. He was a young but a compassionate vet. At first I was thinking maybe he is too inexperienced to handle my cat. But he said he has performed surgeries on kittens like Boomer before. And unlike Dr Cruz, he never mentioned anything about PTS (put to sleep). Despite the fact that Boomer is blind, he seemed hopeful she would make it. I told him about what happened to Boomer and how I was given the wrong prescription by the doctor. He agreed that Maxitrol is bad for punctured eyeballs. He said that the town vet should ve prescribed antibiotic with no steroids.

Upon inspection, he noted that the kitten is too young. He said I have to come back after a month to have Boomer checked again and if possible, the surgery will be performed. I told him that the kitten cries every night because of pain. He said that if he performs the surgery now, Boomer will likely die. He mentioned something about the vessels being too tiny to be ligated. ill have to come back for her shots and her eyes to be checked again. I asked him whether there is a possiblity that her eyes will rot and my affect her brain. He didnt really guarantee that the infection will not spread, but he told me that other cats have survived under the same circumstance. He said the eyeball will shrink. Once Boomer is a little older, the vet said he can perform the surgery. He mentioned that her eyeball sockets are too delicate. He told me to put antibiotic for one more week. He also prescribed something for the eyes.

prescription by Dr Crisostomo

That means I have to go back next month to Mendiola at PSPCA for Boomer's check up and surgery. I plan to bring her to the Assumpta Cat and Dog Clinic tomorrow though. Not that I dont trust Dr Crisostomo. I also owe the previous vet 100PHP for the last visit I made. Also, I have to get some pain reliever that maybe I can administer on my own. Right now Im just putting antibiotics and cleaning Boomer's face and area around the eyes. The good news is she eats fine and drinks water. She sleeps most of the day but would walk around the room at night. I am hopeful she will make it. The only problem is her eyes are very sensitive and the slight touch makes her uncomfortable.

I almost forgot to add on this post how Boomer was so behaved during the entire trip. People from the jeepney and bus I got on, all curiously wanted to see what was inside my carrier. When they saw her eyes, they had this aghast look. One woman couldnt control herself from saying OMG! what happened?? So I had to repeat the story over again.  One lady told me, "you know there are no more people like you." I asked her what she meant. She said that people dont give a shit about animals anymore, especially ones who are handicapped. She said that I was "rare". I was really moved with what she said. I dont particularly think Im a saint. I just really love animals, specifically cats. But her remark resonated through me while I made that trip to PSPCA. I was really touched with what the woman said. I did tell her though that there are still people out there who care. In fact Im taking my kitten to a place where there are people who share my sentiments on animals. 

Boomer after a quick shower

Boomer and Enchong

Boomer and Dapper (most recent)

At this moment boomer is curled up in her sleep. She may not be able to understand or realize it but she is very lucky because she was given a chance.I am very touched with the outpouring of support from some people I havent even met yet. I will never forget the generosity and kindness. I wasnt expecting it but God heard my prayers. Thank you to all of you. I will update you with Boomer's progress.Thank you for giving her a chance..