The Vet Adventure
So far it seemed like a simple plan. The first step was to find a Vet clinic. Sounds simple, but bear in mind we are in another country where we did not speak the language. Rick did a Google search and, much to our surprise, there were 5 clinics listed in our small town. He went through all of the reviews and determined that we would go to one called La Vet del Puerto. We just needed to make the appointment. Easy, right? No. We contacted the clinic on Saturday and the lady who answered the phone did not speak any English. We asked our friend, Jerry, to help us. We went to his shop on Monday and he called for us. After a lengthy conversation we determined that they would see us that evening and no one in the clinic spoke English. We downloaded a translation app on our iPhone that we use while in Mexico and prepared to take the little guy for his check up. It was going to be an adventure for all of us. Also, some time between our first call on Saturday and the next call on Monday the long term plan changed again. IF Raffy was healthy (No FIV or Leukemia, presence of tumors or any cancer) we would bring him back to Canada with us and find him a home. We had worked with a couple of rescues and would try to tap into their networks. I actually knew then that he would be joining our herd and would not be going to a different home, but I went along with "the plan".
At some point, even before calling the Vet, we decided that he needed a proper name. Tony did not fit and we were calling him by a few different names. I suggested BoB (Bag of Bones. He really was just skin and bones. You could feel every rib and spinal bones when you petted him.) However, Rick decided he would be called Rafael, for the street where he lived. Of course we never called him that. It was quickly shortened to Raffy.
I do not ever recall being so stressed out over a visit to the Vet or having so many challenges to make it happen. Our first challenge was that we had no carrier. There was no chance that we would be able to purchase one before the appointment as it would mean a trip to a big city like Cancun or Playa Del Carmen and we did not have time to make that trip. Rick figured it would be no problem. He would just carry him. I had my doubts. He would probably be scared and if he got away from us there was little chance we would get him back. In the end, we had no choice but to carry him and hope for the best. We tried to wrap him like a burrito and put him in our backpack to ease his stress a little. Our failure to get him wrapped was epic. In the end Rick held him against his chest and I zipped up his hoodie so Raffy was somewhat secured. I feared Rick would be cut to shreds by Raffy’s very sharp claws long before we arrived at the vet..
Our next challenge was finding the clinic. Mexican addresses are not like we see in Canada. The address on line was Calle Chaca, MZ 43, Lt 18, Colonia SM17 CP. 77580. This was in a part of town that we were not familiar with and Google Maps really was not helpful. We hoped that the Taxi driver would know exactly where it was. He did not. Many of the Taxi drivers did not speak English. Some of them did, and we hoped that we got one of them. We did not. So we got in the cab and waited while the driver consulted with the other taxi drivers to figure out where the address was. Finally he shrugged and off we went. We did get on the correct street but he could not find the proper address so he dropped us off in front of a hotel. So there we were, standing on a busy street not knowing where the heck to go. There was a candy shop near the hotel so Rick went in and asked the lady there if she knew where to go. She did not know the address, but noticed it was a Vet clinic and was able to direct us. It turned out it was just a half block away!
There are some places on this earth that just exude a positive, happy vibe. This small Vet clinic was one of these places. There were 4 or 5 cats inside and outside the small reception area acting as greeters. They were unbothered by the barking dogs in their presence. The receptionist was friendly and, through a series of hand gestures and head nodding, we managed to get the paperwork done and Raffy registered for his appointment. It was around this point that we discovered the translator app on the phone required registration and a credit card payment to use it, so we made the decision to use our Canadian phones and just eat the roaming charge. Then we caught a break. The Vet came out to greet us and she spoke English!
The examination was routine, and Raffy bore it like a champ. The vet gave him some food to distract him as she gave him his first vaccine and he didn’t flinch at all. He looked at us for reassurance as they shaved his leg so they could draw some blood to test him for FIV and feline Leukemia. It only took a few minutes to get the results and we were relieved to find out he tested negative to both things. We were also surprised to hear he was around 1 year old, based on his teeth. Lack of nutrition likely contributed to him looking/acting younger. We explained our concerns about his breathing and choking and after listening to his chest she told us his lungs sounded clear. She also told us that his heart sounds should be heard mostly on his left side, but his were on the right. She recommended an x-ray and we quickly agreed. We would have to wait a day or 2 for the equipment and technician to come to the clinic, so we set the date for his neuter and the x ray to be done in 3 days time.
Our Vet adventure was not quite over, though. We asked the Vet to call a taxi for us. Raffy was back inside Rick’s sweater for the trip home, but not really as content as he was on the trip there. We waited on the street with the fidgeting cat for over 30 minutes before we decided the taxi was not coming so we flagged one down and set off for the apartment. Rick unzipped his jacket so that Raffy could pop his head out and look around, thinking that if he could see us it would calm him. Finally we were back at our building and the instant Rick stepped out of the cab Raffy bolted! He ran across the street, right into the path of a guy walking 2 very big dogs. The dog owner decided to act like an idiot (we called him something much stronger so you can insert any swear words you can think of here!)and ordered his dogs to “kill the cat” Raffy bolted back across the street towards our apartment while Rick stared down the dog owner. No words were exchanged but the message was delivered.
When Raffy bolted we were both very afraid that he would not come back to us again, after such a frightening experience going to the vet. It was now getting dark and trying to find a scared black cat was pretty much impossible. We went out to quickly grab something to eat and hoped for the best. When we returned less than an hour later, there was Raffy sitting on the wall waiting for us!
Although most nights Raffy came in and slept with us, we were afraid he wouldn’t the night before his X-ray and neuter. He had to be fasting after 10:00 pm so we captured him early and locked him in our bedroom. He really didn’t mind until the next morning when he was not allowed to go back out. We couldn’t take him to the vet until 10:00 am and the five hours between when we got up and had to leave dragged on for all of us. One thing that was much easier this time is that we had a carrier for him. Our friend Jerry had offered to take us to Cancun for dinner one night so we asked if he would mind taking us to a pet supply store before dinner. We found a Petco in Cancun and found both a collar and a carrier that fit the requirements of our airline and purchased it for a King’s ransom. Never again will I complain about the price of a large pet carrier in Canada.
We dropped Raffy off at 10:00 am and were instructed to pick him up at around 5:30 pm. We did our best to have a “normal” day. We went for a walk, spent some time in the pool and tried to have a siesta. We checked our watches frequently and decided to have an early dinner. We waited in the park near the taxi stand for about 45 minutes before it was time to get a ride to pick up the little guy. There were a lot of people in the reception area waiting to pick up their pets. Almost immediately Dr. Val took us aside and said that they could not neuter him that day. The took the X Ray first and discovered a major problem. During his first examination Dr. Val remarked that his heart sounds were on the wrong side of his body. The X-ray revealed that not only was his heart on the wrong side, but so, too were the rest of the organs that should have been on the left, including his lung and most of his intestines. We were informed that he needed surgery to correct this. Without it, he would not live much more than a year. The surgery would have to be performed at a different clinic in Cancun where they had the surgical expertise and the ability to handle the critical care afterwards. We asked how much she estimated that would cost and she told us $6000 - $8000 Pesos. While that sounds like a big number, it actually amounted to $375.00 - $500.00 Canadian. We knew the same surgery in Canada would cost close to $10,000 so we immediately agreed and asked her to contact the surgeon. The catch was that we were going home in a little over 2 weeks so it had to be scheduled quickly. Rick told her the only bad day for us was the following Tuesday when we had a special dinner planned to celebrate my 60th birthday. So we took Raffy back to our apartment and settled in to wait for the surgeon.
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