Although Alfie's abscess has been draining, he is clearly sore from it and it wasn't draining as well as I liked, so down the vet's we went. He had to be dragged out of the cat carrier, even when it was up on end!, but was good once out and has had painkillers and antibiotics. I have ongoing painkillers to give him. I needed to get wormers and flea treatments for them all, as they got missed with Keith's demise. As they hadn't seen L. Whale, they couldn't give him a combo as presumably, they didn't know his weight, even though I said that Alfie had just been weighed and he was heavier than him. But he had to have a separate wormer and flea treatment and the flea treatment only came in packs of 3 (really?!). So of course, I had to go down that route as it must be cheaper than taking him in, having him checked/weighed in order to get the Combo. The bill, oh yes, the bill - I nearly swooned. £144 please! For Alf's check over and meds and the wormers/flea stuff. Yeesh. It is just as well I am a resourceful cook as I shall have to make sixpence do the work of a shilling THIS month. I shall be emptying the freezer and at least then I can refill the top half of the fridge-freezer with the contents of the table-top one and Tam can have that back to sell for me - as it will sell better in Aberystwyth than our backwater here. That will be less electricity being used in future anyway. I dare say the fridge freezer (which is in its teens now) will promptly then give up the ghost!
Anyway, I have got a local company coming out to see about unblocking the drains tomorrow, and have emailed the Handyman for a Quote on replacing two roof tiles (bearing in mind he wants danger money to use a ladder . . .) and a copy of Keith's Will is ready for collection when I go to see the Bank in Brecon later in the week. I have paid yesterday's cheque into my savings account, so that's a positive.
Christmas will be very frugal, but I can still make nice edibles and Danny's present to everyone is a very good bottle of wine to go with the meal.
Rosie is now sitting up and Tam sent a lovely photo of her sitting up and playing with an interactive toy. I have bought her the book Tam asked for as a gift for her (for the future), which is a book in Welsh about Celtic legends, and championing the strength and bravery of the female characters (Dros y Mor a'r Mynyddoedd: Straeon Merched Dewwr y Celtiaid.) Rosie will of course be bilingual from the start as Tam uses her Welsh language skills at work all the time.
Right, 2nd half of last night's prawn stir fry now, and then I will set to and bake a Chocolate Apple Cake to be able to offer to new neighbour's friend who is coming round for a cuppa tomorrow and a chat tomorrow. I feel sorry for him as he has been roughing it out in the cottage, which has no heating and is a cold, damp and miserable building site really. He's off back home for the winter, and who can blame him?
Poor Alfie! Poor pocket book. Last time Baby Mo [pug] went to the vet, in May, annual checkup, it cost almost $1000.oo! [about 750.oo pounds]. That did include meds for his eyes and ears and a teeth checkup but not xrays, rabies vaccine--but still. I had to go into my savings to pay.
ReplyDeleteYour cake sounds so good!
Yes, I must be glad I have managed to really raise the level of my current account, so didn't need to use a credit card. Gosh, that is a lot for an annual checkup etc for Mo, but we hae no choice in these matters do we? At least we don't need rabies jabs in UK.
DeleteAs for the cake - I swiftly opened it to put a piece of foil over to stop it scorching and it decided it would SINK in the middle. Ah well, it will still taste good.
Taking good care of our cats [as in flea/tick meds. pan/leuk vaccinations] is daunting in price, to say nothing of a crisis when antibiotics must be given. Then there's the spay/neuter fees to prevent a feline population explosion!
ReplyDeleteGiving oral meds to a cat is a risky business--even the normally mild-mannered ones tend to freak out, bite and scratch.
I only do them a couple of times a year because I think that putting such toxins into their bodies is not ideal. I would never do it every month like some people do. Alfie has been quite low maintenance over the years, so I shan't deny him help when he does need it. The painkillers have made a big difference so I am glad he isn't so sore now, and on the mend. I have liquid Synulax for the pain which I mix with his food, so hopefully he will take it as I bought some sachets which are gravy based. I will leave the flea treatments until Tam's here at the weekend and can hold the victims in place!
DeleteAren't vets expensive, as Dad used to say you never see a poor vet. I've just ordered Sheva's worm and flea treatment, pay £15 a month, but she also gets twice yearly check ups and her jabs for that. Will have to find a new vet and set up a new payment plan again, do have some recommendations. I managed to hide her worm tablet in her food but the flea treatment is a 2 person job as she hates it. Really fed up with this wet weather, our garden is like a bog and its so depressing. I had a nice interest payment land in my account today, am going to put it towards something for the 'new' house or garden. Hugs Xx
ReplyDeleteToo darn true - and our vet isn't even owned by one of the Hedge Funds either. With 4 cats, insurance is going to be beyond my remit. Like you, I find the flea treatment is a joint effort! Sorry your garden is looking depressing. I am trying not to look to closely at mine either. Glad you had some nice interest into your account. We can all do with that.
DeleteREALLY REALLY hoping you get a moving date SOON. Perhaps you could put your bonus towards a Hitman for the other Solicitor?!!! A sort of sign off the paperwork or else :)
I'll swap you your vet bill for my solicitor bill.
ReplyDeleteNah - think I'll stick!!
DeleteGiven the rain we've already been having I don't think a Winter spent in a damp cottage with no heating would appeal to me either!
ReplyDeleteWell, it is basically a building site - has a roof and walls, but the room they have been cob walling is damp and has the window open all the time to try and dry it off. Not very welcoming.
DeleteOuch that is quite the vet bill.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
Well yes, I should have got the wormers etc next month or last month and then it wouldn't have hurt so much. Ah well, it's done now, and I don't owe them a penny.
DeleteVet bills are high here as well, but needs must and Alfie is better for the meds. He's a very pretty cat! Why is your neighbor's friend staying in an unheated cottage and not with the neighbor? I'm sure you've explained but I've forgotten!
ReplyDeleteHe is a lot more comfortable now with the painkillers. Well, the guy who owns the cottage is living in his little hand-made shepherd's hut, which has a wood burner. His friend is in the cottage, up in the attic room, which isn't heated. Shall we say, it's a bit basic!
DeleteAlfie's a very handsome fella! Glad to hear he's on the mend.
ReplyDeleteVet bills on New Zealand are horrendous too. After a four figure bill for surgery to remove a G-string she'd eaten as a puppy, our son got an insurance for their Goldie! Over the years it paid for two ruptures 'knee' ligaments and the physio afterwards and heaps of medication for bits and bobs. Expensive, but worth it.
ReplyDeleteMorning BB. Reading about poor Alfie makes me extra grateful for our free NHS, especially as I’ve just finished a course of antibiotics for a nasty hand injury caused by a vicious deep rose thorn. I nursed it for 10 days with sudocrem and CBD cream hoping it would get better but it continued throbbing and inflamed and when I phoned our GP practice I got a same day appt with a nurse practitioner. I think it makes a difference having ‘carer’ on your notes. She was as perplexed as me by the resultant infection (she was a young woman from the Welsh valleys!) and prescribed a week of a/b and two weeks of naproxen for pain and one week later it is much better, although I am going back next week for a check up. Are flea and worm treatments compulsory nowadays for domestic pets? Have to say I have never used either. Going to Petersfield museum this evening for a talk on ET by Mathew Hollis, author of “All Roads lead to France”. It’s a lovely golden autumn morning here - I adore the low golden light at this time and it is highlighting the burnishing leaves of the acers, magnolia and red oak, as well as the grasses, the white aster summer’s farewell and all the pops of pink from nerine, sedum, geranium sanguineurm (magenta pink flowers) and cyclamen hederifolium. Meanwhile down in the kitchen garden the purple podded French beans and autumn raspberries are producing abundantly and red dahlia bishop of Llandaff is flowering above the now-germinated green manure I sowed only a couple of weeks ago. Happy with all that. Hope you can get out in your garden if the weather is conducive. Sarah x
ReplyDeleteYes, vets don't come cheap do they. Ginger is the only one out of all our animals who has never had to see a vet. But the dogs have all cost us lots over the years, not that we begrudge them a penny ... we just sob quietly into the bank account all the way home.
ReplyDeletePeople complain about vet bills but they are wonderful in my eyes, I was always happy to pay when my animals were ill. Hope Alfie is better soon
ReplyDeleteJust a note to say October by ET has been read on Radio 3 as the Friday poem. It was read by Andrew Sachs (Manuel in Fawlty Towers). First Known when Lost transcribed this poem on October 10 2010 and that blog post led to an interesting exchange with a reader about the friendship between ET and Paul Nash during the war when both were in the Map Dept. Mathew Hollis’ talk last night was mesmerising. His voice was so measured and he read from many letters and showed how the first poems developed using ET’s notebooks and showed lots of photographs. An excellent evening. Arrived home to a power cut and the starriest night sky. Power came on at 1.45 this morning (S did not sleep a wink all night) so having a quiet morning before I start my bookshop shift this afternoon. I am covering for holidays this week and enjoying being back. Sarah x
ReplyDeleteMissing your posts - hope you're all ok. Sending a hug, Barbara x
ReplyDeleteHope all is well with you, you haven't posted lately? Usually you let us know when you'll be out of touch. [sorry if I'm butting in, no need to post this!]
ReplyDeleteMissing your regular posts hope everything is okay.
ReplyDeleteJane