Daily thoughts - Boomer update - a trip to the new veterinary clinic and her daily regimen

A month ago I mentioned that Boomer will have her enucleation procedure this June. The month is almost coming to a close and I havent made an update on how Boomer is doing and what happened with her supposed surgery.

Boomer relaxing last June 6, pre op day.

I took her to a new veterinary clinic that was recommended by an American woman I met at a grocery store. It was an interesting encounter. I was buying groceries when I saw this woman's cart with a bag of friskies. We struck up a conversation after I asked her how many cats she has. She was even able to convince me to use newspaper as litter for the cats. It seems to work so well but I still use kitty litter every now and then because my cat Thumper is a little picky. Also litter is still preferable during times I have to go out for trips to the city. If I leave the cats litter box lined with newspaper and I wont be around to clean it up right away, they tend to leave a trail of pee and sometimes turd on the floor. The last time I went out, one of the cats decided the litter box was just too disgusting so she used the floor as her toilet. So its still good to have a stash of kitty litter for emergency.

The woman's name is Jeri and she is from Montana. She told me that the name of her veterinary doctor is Voltaire and he has a clinic somewhere in Tikling near Taytay. When I got home, I looked up the guy's name online and I also found some good feedbacks about his clinic.

source of screencap

source of screencap

I decided I should give this clinic a try. The name of the clinic is Bethany Noah Animal Clinic.

Before I went to this clinic, I called them up to also have an idea on their going rate for enucleation. I was told it was 3000 inclusive of the professional fee. This is very affordable as compared to the other prices I got from other clinics. I put Boomer in the carrier and loaded her on a tricycle to town. It was a very uncomfortable ride because when I got to the tricycle stand I realized I didnt have enough money on me so I still had to wait for other passengers to board the vehicle. Also I had to prop the carrier on my lap during the whole ride. When I got to town, I still had to draw up some money for the surgery. There was also pouring rain and I had to wait for probably 10 minutes before I could walk up to the nearest ATM. It was a pain in the ass because it was 3PM and there was a slight traffic in town. But I decided I had to bring Boomer to the vet. Withdrawing cash took 10-15 minutes and waiting for an fx took another 10 minutes. But the ride itself was not a problem except when the rain started pouring again. When I got off the fx me and Boomer were a bit soaked from the rain.

The clinic wasnt too hard to find. I remember that Ive noticed their sign before everytime Id go to the city. I was always on the lookout for veterinary clinics along the main road just in case I didnt want to go back to my current veterinary doctor anymore. In this case, I just wanted to try a different clinic for a change.

Counter near the entrance

cat food selections

I'm eying on getting this one when I come back to the clinic

Meow Mix 3kilos!it was so affordable too.

The Jolly Dr Belen checking  Boomer

Boomer getting her eyes cleaned

Boomer's ears being cleaned and checked

First things first. The veterinary doctor was very pleasing and sweet to Boomer. He even called her sweetheart! Boomer was purring the whole time her eyes were being cleaned. The good news was, there was no need for to undergo enucleation anymore. According to Dr Belen, Boomer no longer had any eyes to be removed, hence enucleation was unnecessary. He just recommended regular cleaning of the eyes and also what solution I needed to get for it. I told him that I normally just scoop out whatever white stuff I find in the socket and I also wipe her everyday with wet ones and instill artificial tears.

Dr Belen  proceeded to clean Boomer's ears and also put some of the crusty stuff on a slide (i wish to highlight that this was not done by the veterinary doctor at Assumpta Clinic when I brought Thumper and Dapper for an ear cleaning there last March ). He gently cleaned Boomer's ears and showed me how to do it. He encouraged me to do the same for the other cats at home.

After he was done cleaning Boomer's ears, he went to his microscope and beckoned me to check it. I wasnt able to take a photo of it obviously since it was too tiny for the naked eye, but I couldnt forget how revolting it was to discover that these nasty critters lived in my cats' ears.

google image, but this is what it did look like. ewwwww..

I told Dr Belen I tried to clean the other cats' ears and wrapped the cats like burrito so they couldnt scratch me while I was putting solution and removing the ear crusties. He told me that I did the right thing. He did recommend an ear solution because I mentioned that I needed a new bottle since the one I bought from Singapore is almost out.

Ear solution

Eye wash for Boomer

Medicated ear drops

I ended up using the enucleation money instead for the ear drops (350), ear cleaning solution (350), eye wash, (350) cat food (400) and the services rendered by Dr Belen. The bill rang up to 1800 PHP which wasnt so bad. Actually, I have checked the prices from other clinics and even pet stores and the prices of the stuff I got from him, plus his services are really reasonable.

I still need to go back to the clinic early this month for Boomer's eyes to be stitched up. I have told  Dr Belen that a friend of mine overseas told me that her blind cat's eyes were sewn shut because it prevented germs from infiltrating the perpetually open eye sockets. I asked him if it was a good idea to perform the procedure on Boomer. I have to go back there for him to check her again and suggest what needs to be done next. Also it is high time for Enchong's balls to get chopped off. Sad day for Enchong indeed because he is scheduled for castration.

For now, I religiously clean Boomer's eyes each day with the new solution I bought. Also Ive tried using the ear cleaning solution and medicated ear drops on all four cats in my room and some of the cats downstairs. Dapper and Thumper hate ear cleaning sessions though.I have no trouble cleaning Enchong's ears. He doesnt really mind it and like Boomer, he purrs when Im cleaning his ears.

I think this veterinary clinic is the perfect clinic for my pets. There seemed to be a connection between my cat and her new doctor. There was what Id call a personal touch that the previous veterinarian unfortunately lacked. I wouldnt say the services of Assumpta Clinic was that bad. For one, they have the advantage of being geographically closer than Bethany Noah. The issue however is that I want a doctor who would be sensitive to the needs of my pets. These cats are like my kids, even if that sounds crazy to some. I invest my time, money and love on these animals. It aggravates me when I pay someone to check them out and fails to meet even the basic standards like using an otoscope or a microscope to confirm whats causing their ears from itching.

Other shots at the Bethany Noah Clinic:

a dog patient

another dog patient

a cat patient, very cute too!

so cute!

When I got home, I excitedly took out all the new stuff  and included it in my cat grooming kit.

Cat grooming kit

Boomer burrito prepd for her daily grooming

toilet paper and cotton

artificial tears

qtips

It takes me approximately 10-15 minutes each day to clean Boomer's eyes and ears (20 if she is in a bad mood).  She is such a spritely cat that if you didnt know (or look closer), you wouldnt tell she was blind. There is an unexplained but overwhelming joy when I see her playing, eating and even sleeping. Just a few months ago, this cat was almost as good as dead. Even the vet who is partly responsible why she went blind suggested that she be put to sleep.

Its amazing how kindness and love saw this cat through. I am forever indebted to the wonderful people who have chipped in to help me make Boomer's survival a possibility.

Boomer will hopefully be another happy ever after story. Just like one of the cats we picked up from a potted plant in Singapore. It was a stray cat sleeping in a nasty pot filled with trash. That cat is now a big fat cat, pampered and loved by my mother in law in the USA. One day, Boomer's story will be just like that. After her next visit to the veterinary clinic, she will get her vaccination, then later her 6 in 1 shot,  health certificate and finally a clearance from the Bureau of Animal Industry.

Im also working on getting the cats' plane fare money together. Tough but things are slowly falling into place. I wonder if these rat babies are even aware how lucky and loved they are. Little bastards.

Boomer and her tub of toys

Boomer and one of her favorite hang out spots

Boomer playing with her toys

Boomer relaxing with her "kittens"

Boomer can "smell" the canned goods

stealing Dapper's favorite spot

Boomer playing