Kutucat Goes to the Vet

Every end of the year, Kutucat pays a visit to the good doctor to get a medical checkup and her shots. We usually go to Animal Medical Centre Sdn Bhd Subang Jaya but this year we decided to check out the Veterinary Hospital of the same group along Jalan Tun Razak KL. It's an animal clinic, surgical unit, pet lodge, grooming and supplies shop all in one block.

Cooperate??? You can't be serious.

Frigthened cat huddled at the far end of the pet carrier.

Not an easy job forcing her to get in at home and tilting her out of the box at the vet's examination room. Obviously, I had my hands full and was unable to take pictures.

Taking a rectal temperature. Aaaieeeee!!!

Now for the hard part - deworming pill.

Had a standoff moment - Kutucat vs Clinic Assistant. A ferocious swipe of a clawed appendage at the human hand. Luckily Clinic Assistant's reflex was faster than Kutucat's angry smite. No injuries were sustained except Kutucat's dignity.

I stepped out to answer a phone call and came back to find the cat wrapped in a towel ala straitjacket style.

Apparently, she retaliated violently the very moment the pill-popper touched her lips. After three valiant attempts, the vet resorted to administering the drug via a second injection. Vet said: "Okay!" after that and Kutucat practically RAN back into her cat carrier.

There is safety behind bars. Now that all the unpleasant business is finished and done with, Kutucat is inquisitive and interested in the on-goings in the clinic.

All in all it was a very energy-draining morning for the humans. We didn't even get to do her dental checkup with all the hissing and spitting and biting. Kutucat is a difficult and hostile patient!! Vets usually shake their heads at the end of the session. Except Dr Nathan in 2007... he's very gentle and experienced and the whole thing was over before the cat realized what was happening.

Those who tagged along to this annual visit usually ended up more tensed and traumatized than the cat. Actually, one must remain calm and in control because pets can sense and react to the owner's anxiety! One should understand and accept that rough handling is sometimes necessary to perform a medical procedure. I've seen kids fight and scream bloody murder when they have to be poked by a needle. It's not a pretty sight when one has to hold a child down to insert a syringe into a child's vein and this is always done behind a closed door without the parents' presence. Some of them know it's for their children's own good but some get upset. Anybody's first instinct to a child's cry for help is to rush to his defense and rescue him from the situation. The challenge is to resist this urge to intervene and let doctors do the needful for the child's own good.

I sound like Bambi is my baby. In a way, she is!!! I held her in one palm when she was a little kitten. I washed her backside when she was just learning to use the litter box. I only refrain from buying her clothes because of she has a thick coat and it's already hot in this kind of climate. As cool as I am about her vaccinations, it's a good thing that Kutucat is generally healthy and we only need to go through this once a year.