Day 627: Veterinary embarrassment
Dec. 3rd, 2021 10:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
eve_primeSo the plan has been that once we'd finished with the deck and fence replacement, I'd turn my attention to getting the kittens spayed/neutered. After all, they're now 7 months old! The complication is that although we've found a low-cost full-service vet that is comfortable with spaying and neutering feral-born cats (which they've now done for me nine times), they're more than three miles from my house, whereas Sorin and Ajani's vet is two blocks from my house. The reason this matters is because surgery appointments usually require an 8 a.m. check-in, and I am definitely not up that early in the morning - and if I have to be, I certainly don't feel qualified to drive, but I'll make an exception for two blocks away.
So yesterday I spent some time double-checking the spay-neuter prices at our neighborhood vet. They seem to have become something of a boutique practice. The surgery is "$400-500" each, plus an exam with bloodwork before they're even qualified to have it done. The low-cost clinic, by contrast, is $90 for neutering and $165 for spaying. So, alas, it would cost about two thousand dollars more to get three cats "fixed" at the neighborhood vet. But J. is willing to take them to the other one for me.
So today I made the phone call. I'd spelled the names of all the kittens and given their detailed physical descriptions, and then the receptionist asked which vet I'd like them to see for their initial exam... and I realized I'd called the wrong vet. (Good thing I realized!) It was so embarrassing. I should have known something was wrong when the receptionist sounded so relieved when I'd reassured her that these feral-born kittens are fully domesticated. Oh well.
This is what comes from making appointments on nowhere-near-enough sleep! I then called the other vet and made an appointment for the 21st, which works well with J's work schedule. They'll also get their first round of vaccinations and microchips.
Today is the 8th anniversary of our adoption of Sorin and Ajani! They looked much then as they do in my icon.
Meanwhile, I hadn't seen Blitzen for maybe several weeks, but then she appeared in my driveway several days ago, acting even more skittish than usual. Yesterday I saw her down the street at H's house, very eager for me to feed her... at H's house. Nope, I am not in charge of food there. I managed to coax her back to my porch, where she ate happily and seemed fine with the kittens (lots of headbutting), so I don't think they'd been the cause of her disappearance. Maybe their mother had fought with her or something. She's been around a lot today for attention and petting as well. A while ago I found myself on J's front steps, petting five cats at once.
This week's Friday evening movie was Studio Ghibli's Ocean Waves. It was more entertaining than I expected - I thought it would be more slow and dreamy. I joked afterwards that it was the first time I was disappointed by the boy and girl getting together at the end. She was kind of awful, though in an amusing way - but maybe a year of college had matured her.
So yesterday I spent some time double-checking the spay-neuter prices at our neighborhood vet. They seem to have become something of a boutique practice. The surgery is "$400-500" each, plus an exam with bloodwork before they're even qualified to have it done. The low-cost clinic, by contrast, is $90 for neutering and $165 for spaying. So, alas, it would cost about two thousand dollars more to get three cats "fixed" at the neighborhood vet. But J. is willing to take them to the other one for me.
So today I made the phone call. I'd spelled the names of all the kittens and given their detailed physical descriptions, and then the receptionist asked which vet I'd like them to see for their initial exam... and I realized I'd called the wrong vet. (Good thing I realized!) It was so embarrassing. I should have known something was wrong when the receptionist sounded so relieved when I'd reassured her that these feral-born kittens are fully domesticated. Oh well.
This is what comes from making appointments on nowhere-near-enough sleep! I then called the other vet and made an appointment for the 21st, which works well with J's work schedule. They'll also get their first round of vaccinations and microchips.
Today is the 8th anniversary of our adoption of Sorin and Ajani! They looked much then as they do in my icon.
Meanwhile, I hadn't seen Blitzen for maybe several weeks, but then she appeared in my driveway several days ago, acting even more skittish than usual. Yesterday I saw her down the street at H's house, very eager for me to feed her... at H's house. Nope, I am not in charge of food there. I managed to coax her back to my porch, where she ate happily and seemed fine with the kittens (lots of headbutting), so I don't think they'd been the cause of her disappearance. Maybe their mother had fought with her or something. She's been around a lot today for attention and petting as well. A while ago I found myself on J's front steps, petting five cats at once.
This week's Friday evening movie was Studio Ghibli's Ocean Waves. It was more entertaining than I expected - I thought it would be more slow and dreamy. I joked afterwards that it was the first time I was disappointed by the boy and girl getting together at the end. She was kind of awful, though in an amusing way - but maybe a year of college had matured her.