Taking all three beasts to the vet for their annual check-ups, and this time I have the camera charged and ready to go for some awesome live action shot of Tunch in the Hannibal Lector mask while the vets don flak jackets and concertina wire gloves.
Should be fun.
*** Update ***
Much less exciting than expected, because I could never find Tunch and had to reschedule him. The girls behaved ok, and Rosie is now chipped.
Rosalita
We expect pictures.
I just came from the vet myself. Blue is having behavioral or some kind of physical problem. Hate to see them in distress.
jane from hell
I see no way this can go wrong.
Ash Can
coroner’s reportspics or it didn’t happen.PurpleGirl
Hope the vet’s staff survives Tunch. Also that all three critters are healthy.
shortstop
We had a dog who had to be held down by five adults when getting a shot. As he only weighed 30 pounds and was fairly lazy most of the time, we could never figure out where that strength was coming from. Must be like the old scenario in which a child is trapped under a car and its mom can suddenly lift the car off the kid.
Walker
This is why I use a vet that makes house calls.
Napoleon
Run for the door if Tunch calls one of the nurses “Clarice”.
Loneoak
Turnip just produces the saddest sad-face evar, which is like claw- and fang-marks on your soul. Pits are great at pathos.
Loneoak
@Napoleon:
Or requests fava beans.
shortstop
@Loneoak: Ugh, I’d rather have a knock down drag out than that face.
FFrank
You forgot to mention the crane
kdaug
Used to have an old tabby whose vet folder was stamped with one of those “red triangle with exclamation point” symbols and the words “DANGER CAT”.
Found it amusing that the vet had actually had a stamp made saying that.
Also felt a tinge of pride that my cat had earned one.
Mary G
Sophie once tore a flea collar across the middle when the vet tried to give her nose drops.
While wrapped in a towel being held by two vet techs and me, no less.
Now only one tech will touch her and he puts on the thick leather gloves that go up to the elbow.
ChrisS
Need to take the pup for his annual soon. Jack loves the vet. He gets treats and pets and there are hundred bajillion new smells.
The other night he was shaking his head every few minutes and scratching at his ear … not sure what was causing that. His ears are quite clean and he’s on frontline. Maybe an insect bite or something else?
He didn’t seem to be doing it this morning.
gbear
When I had two cats, they used to ride to the vet in the same car carrier. They weren’t best buddies on a regular basis, but they were united in their dislike of going anywhere so they got along fine in the carrier.
OT: Does mail travel by horseback in John’s neck of the woods? I ordered a CD and the tracking site shows that it took four days to get from Allentown PA to Martinsburg WV. What’s with that?
shortstop
@kdaug: That’s hilarious on all counts.
shortstop
@ChrisS: That’s typical ear infection behavior, but I wouldn’t worry unless he keeps doing it.
BGK
I have a pretty easy time with vet visits.
Jack complains in the carrier, but once he gets there he’s happy to meet all the new people and get fawned-over.
Rizzo is quiet and timid, and may hiss once or twice but that’s it.
Angus puts on his grumpy face and gets squirmy.
Ava shrieks like she’s being dismembered, usually bringing multiple vet-techs running, but aside from having a death-grip on the edge of the exam table she neither bites nor claws.
Sophia is usually scared into total passivity.
I like to bring multiple cats as the same time as I only get charged for one exam that way. Plus everyone in the waiting area usually enjoys seeing a crowd of black-and-white cats.
Loneoak
@ChrisS:
Sometimes those head shakes are a sign of ear infection. But if he’s not still doing it and there’s no gunk or smell, then don’t worry about it.
Laura Clawson
I want to know how much Tunch weighs. This is not a “Tunch is fat” joke, it’s vaguely competitive a “I bet my cat weighs more” thing. At Henley’s last checkup he weighed about a pound more than the dog I had growing up.
Interestingly, though he’s a cat who won’t let strangers get anywhere near him and won’t get in the carrier without me disassembling the couch so he can’t hide under it, Henley is apparently pretty well behaved at the vet — just a towel seems to do the trick.
PattyP
I had a cat named George, deity rest his soul, who was the sweetest little guy at home but a terror at the vet. Thankfully I found one, Dr. L, who could handle him, and I had taken him to her clinic for years and through a few vet staff changes. Then one Sunday evening in early 2007, I had to rush him to the emergency vet after he got in a nasty fight with the neighborhood bully tom. He was pretty messed up and in no condition to resist this time. The emergency vet, whom I’d never met before, took him into the back of the clinic for x-rays and such. When he returned, he commented with surprise that “everyone” knew George! Turns out that a couple of his vet techs had once worked for Dr. L and apparently had fond (??) memories of dear George’s regular vet visits, which often included towel wrapping, the Hannibal Lecter mask, and sometimes even mild sedation just to perform simple checkups. His reputation preceded him, for better or worse. LOL.
Emily L. Hauser/ellaesther
@kdaug: I like the phrasing of “DANGER CAT.” Like one of the villains in animal comix.
Cromagnon
We used to have a big black panther looking cat, around 20+ pounds with not an ounce of fat, teeth and claws straight from hell… Took him to the vet once where they had to draw some blood. Took me and the nurse to hold him down while the doctor tried to draw the blood. It was the cat who ended up drawing blood, from all three of us
Eric S.
I’m lucky on the vet front.
Ozzie, on the three vet visits of his young life, has been a good boy. He’s not excited about the car ride but he’s fairly calm at the office. He purred through his shots. He calmly accepted his nail clipping.
When I picked him up after he had his “tonsils” removed, the vet said he spent the day trying to play with the cat in the carrier next to him. This neighbor cat apparently should have had one of those red triangle stamps but Ozzie just didn’t see it that way.
ChrisS
@Laura Clawson:
My mom’s maine coon is just shy of 21 lbs. He’s a beast and he’s exceptionally strong. When playing with him you have watch the claws because he’ll grab a hand and it’s like getting your hand caught in a garbage disposal.
@Loneoak & @shortstop: Thanks for the head’s up.
maya
Say, is any of this vet visit being paid for by taxpayer money – Peticare, Peticaid – or do they only kick in when your pet(s) turn 65? In dog years, 9.4. Cats, idunno.
jane from hell
@Eric S.: Is “tonsils” a euphemism?
bemused
One of our dogs is having TPLO surgery next week. Not looking forward to the long recovery period and the cost.
tomvox1
OT: Another unnecessary and tragic casualty in the insane War on Drugs™:
Arizona Cops Shoot Former Marine In Botched Pot Raid
Eric S.
@jane from hell: Yes.
MGB
My cat Satin (nicknamed Satan) does not like people outside of me and two others. Going to the vet is always an adventure with her. Once getting her into the cat carrier, she yowls at the top of her lungs for the entire car ride. Once at the vet, she starts growling at the doctor and me. The vet always makes me get the cat out of the carrier. Last time she even tried batting at me with claws extended. Once she’s finally out of the carrier, the vet has to take her to the operating room and have a few people hold her down while she listens to her heart and takes her temp. Anything more, and she would have to be sedated I’m told.
Violet
Oh, my. Can’t wait for the photos.
CaseyL
“Death Match 2011: Tunch v. Tech!”
All of my kitties have cried fit to break your heart, the whole way to the vet and while in the waiting room. But it was the tiniest, daintiest of my girlcats, the late great Ariel, who came closest to being hell-on-wheels enough that the vet needed multiple techs to assist. It always amazed me, because she was the sweetest creature at home.
My boy kitties have unfailingly been meek and mild at the vet. Copper and Jazz were the politest guys ever. Oscar climbs into my arms and tries to hide in my armpit.
PS: Jane From Hell: Yes. It is. Think other end of the body.
Darndest thing.
kdaug
@Emily L. Hauser/ellaesther: Yup.
Thought about making her a little cape or something.
I reconsidered. IIRC, we were out of Band-Aids.
bystander
@bemused: It’s not so bad. The description of the surgery is gruesome, but the recovery isn’t onerous as you might imagine (both hind legs on one dog done six months apart). This made the recovery process a whole lot more manageable. Highly recommended. This is overkill unless you need to belay your pooch from a helicopter.
Han's Solo
Do you have pet insurance? It wouldn’t pay for the checkups, but it is a good idea nonetheless.
Culture of Truth
My cat was feral when young so he’s never liked the vet, or other people for that matter.
Also a Wisconsin judge just struck down the collective bargaining law.
Jay C
@Cromagnon:
Yeah, sometimes “taking the cat to the vet to draw blood” has a whole different meaning….
That said, I am (again) thankful for the personalities of our three little darlings: vet visits faze them not a bit. And since they all still have their claws, its a good thing….
Sarah, Proud and Tall
My Fluff-Fluff (Breeding name Fluff-Fluff Begrif Forrester III, but commonly known as “Frogbutt”, “Mr Crazypants” and “Oi, stop that!”) is a bug-crazy pekinese with a dicky bladder.
He managed to bite two trainers and a vet before we found a vet who knew what she was doing and who, blessedly, put FF on drugs for his over-protectiveness and anxiety, which puts a happy pink glow around his world.
The damn dog now gets stuffed with treats from the moment he walks in the front door of the clinic, and so he just adores going to the vet.
The only thing he hates is having his temperature taken, although now he just tenses up and looks hideously embarrassed until the nice lady takes the nasty thing out of his bottom.
JPL
Did the vet celebrate when Tunch did not show up?
Bulworth
Since this thread is about pets and stuff, I could use some Balloon Juicer expertise: One of my cats got out of the house last weekend. I saw him for the first time last night (at 1 a.m.) on the porch as he has been partaking of the food I’ve put out. But aside from not being able to find him for almost a week, I’m at a loss as to how to get him back in the house. He didn’t seem so inclined last night and took off when I opened the door.
If some Balloon Juicers could weigh in with some pertinent advice I would be most appreciative.
[email protected] for any private suggestions so as to avoid hijacking this thread.
Thanks
Sasha
Why are you chipping Rosie if you’re trying to get rid of her?
Omnes Omnibus
@Culture of Truth: Woo fucking hoo! Link.
bemused
@Sasha:
Ha, ha, that was my first thought too, also.
wonkie
My cat Wren had a differet defense mechanism. She would huddle in a pathetic little heap in the crate, submit peacefully to being dragged out of the crate by the vet tech–and then pee and poop all over the office. She did it every time.
shortstop
@Culture of Truth: I wonder if that will wipe that expression of rank stupidity combined with towering arrogance off Walker’s face for a minute or two?
Felinious Wench
The Labrador loves the vet, lots of new friends! The cat…as long as I’m holding her, she’s good, but if anyone else tries to hold her or get her away from me, no freaking way she’s going quietly.
You know that growl cats get? That “I’m warning you now, you come any nearer, your ass is all mine.” Yeah. That.
gelfling545
My part-time cat, Mewtant (the most profusely polydactyl cat I have ever seen) never has a vet appointment. They know at the clinic that sometime after we receive the annual notice about shots we will bring him in when we can find him. He has never in his 12 years of life actually made it to a scheduled appointment & is able to hide for DAYS. I swear he reads our mail because he goes into hiding when the notice arrives.
trollhattan
Fess up: whose name and address did you register her under?
trollhattan
@shortstop:
“Activist judge!”
Rinse & repeat as necessary.
trollhattan
@gelfling545:
Kitteh name FTW.
bemused
We need to look into pet insurance but have no idea who offers the best plans. I wish we had considered getting pet insurance sooner. We have an older dog not yet having health issues and a young very active dog who could tear the tendon in the other leg plus their yearly checkups with all the shots, tick prevention, etc going up $100 every spring, I think pet insurance is the way to go for us.
Any recommendations would be appreciated.
Sarah Proud and Tall
@shortstop:
No, not for an instant, unfortunately. That look is petrified on there by now.
shortstop
@Sarah Proud and Tall: I’d like to see that monkey take a whack at his mug after it’s done with Bobo’s.
WaterGirl
@bemused: I did hours of research and concluded that Pet Plan was the clear winner. You have tons of control over what is covered and how much you pay. There are 3 sets of parameters and you get to mix and match between them.
@bemused: I did hours of research and concluded that Pet Plan was the clear winner. You have tons of control over what is covered and how much you pay. There are 3 sets of parameters and you get to mix and match between them.
deductible: 50, 100, 200
coverage after deductible: 80%, 90%, 100%
annual cap on payouts: gold plan, silver plan, bronze plan
obviously 50.00 deductible, 100% after deductible and gold plan costs the most.
200.00 deductible, 80% after deductible and bronze plan costs the least.
It’s a breeze to file claims and they have yet to refuse anything I thought should be covered. First claim I filed, the check was in my mailbox 7 days after the vet staff faxed it in.
Pet Plan
Edit: I went with 50.00 deductible, 100% after deductible and the gold plan for my two kitties. i figured I would see how healthy they were and then could make a different choice for the following year.
My boy kitty has one of the UTI issues where he gets crystal in the urine, potential blockages, etc. They covered EVERYTHING except the first 50.00. That includes office visits, tests, preventive drugs, would have covered prescription food forever if he had needed it. For the rest of his life, this particular problem will only cost me 50.00 a year. (as long as I keep up with his insurance.
deductible: 50, 100, 200
coverage after deductible: 80%, 90%, 100%
annual cap on payouts: gold plan, silver plan, bronze plan
obviously 50.00 deductible, 100% after deductible and gold plan costs the most.
200.00 deductible, 80% after deductible and bronze plan costs the least.
It’s a breeze to file claims and they have yet to refuse anything I thought should be covered. First claim I filed, the check was in my mailbox 7 days after the vet staff faxed it in.
Pet Plan
Edit: I went with 50.00 deductible, 100% after deductible and the gold plan for my two kitties. i figured I would see how healthy they were and then could make a different choice for the following year.
My boy kitty has one of the UTI issues where he gets crystal in the urine, potential blockages, etc. They covered EVERYTHING except the first 50.00. That includes office visits, tests, preventive drugs, would have covered prescription food forever if he had needed it. For the rest of his life, this particular problem will only cost me 50.00 a year. (as long as I keep up with his insurance.
WaterGirl
@WaterGirl: I have no idea what happened to my post above. If anyone is interested, this is what it should say:
I did hours of research and concluded that Pet Plan was the clear winner. You have tons of control over what is covered and how much you pay. There are 3 sets of parameters and you get to mix and match between them.
deductible: 50, 100, 200
coverage after deductible: 80%, 90%, 100%
annual cap on payouts: gold plan, silver plan, bronze plan
obviously 50.00 deductible, 100% after deductible and gold plan costs the most.
200.00 deductible, 80% after deductible and bronze plan costs the least.
It’s a breeze to file claims and they have yet to refuse anything I thought should be covered. First claim I filed, the check was in my mailbox 7 days after the vet staff faxed it in.
Pet Plan
Edit: I went with 50.00 deductible, 100% after deductible and the gold plan for my two kitties. i figured I would see how healthy they were and then could make a different choice for the following year.
My boy kitty has one of the UTI issues where he gets crystal in the urine, potential blockages, etc. They covered EVERYTHING except the first 50.00. That includes office visits, tests, preventive drugs, would have covered prescription food forever if he had needed it. For the rest of his life, this particular problem will only cost me 50.00 a year. (as long as I keep up with his insurance.)
Ann Marie
My older cat, Mac, just hunkers down and looks miserable at the vet. The younger one, Louie, loves the vet (although he yowls the whole way there, in the cab). Louie purrs so much that the vet has a hard time hearing his heart beat. She has to tap him on the nose to get him to stop purring for a moment. He loves the attention.
bemused
@WaterGirl:
Wow, that is a ton of research! This is very helpful. Many, many thanks.
Paul in KY
@ChrisS: He has that ‘don’t fuck with me’ look!
Paul in KY
@wonkie: I have one that takes a big crap in the carrier every time I take her to vet. Good times…
Cara
Really! How does a cat the size of Tunch mange to hide?
Andrea
@Bulworth: I had this happen with a cat who was originally from a feral litter and who reverted to feral when he got out. I rented a box trap from the Humane Society and put the food in the very back, so he had to get well and truly inside (and trip the trap) to eat it. I had to release a few opposums before I caught the cat.
If your Humane Society doesn’t rent traps, they don’t cost that much- try any large hardware story.
jayjaybear
Y’know, Cole, you need to learn never to say “vet”. Tunch is too smart not to get the warning.
We have a fluffy calico that we absolutely must catch before we get out the carrier because if she sees it, she’s gone. We ransacked the house, all four floors, looking for her once after she’d gone on a carrier-panic run. We found her up inside a recliner. That cat goes in a towel first, then we get the carrier.