vilakins | Jasmin update

Jasmin was able to come straight home with me after seeing the animal eye specialist, which pleased her greatly because I hadn't fed her in case she needed an operation. As it was, he just numbed the area and removed all the dead tissue and infection that was in the wound while I held her and looked away. I had no idea a little bump was that bad. She has antibiotic pills, anti-inflammatory liquid to mix in her food, and the ointment I was given yesterday at the vet. The good news is that the tear duct is unaffected and working fine. but bloody hell, the cost of that visit alone was more than two years of pet insurance premiums. I'm so insuring Jasmin and Ashley, and enquiring about Vic too; he's eight and might be more expensive.

I have to take her back on Wednesday and pray that she doesn't need sutures. If she does, it will be even more expensive, but she's young and healthy and I hope she'll heal up without them.

The eye guy looks just like John Clarke (NZ comedian who played Fred Dagg on TV when I was a kid, and now an Australian satirist) which I find very distracting, and he's based in a lovely Art Deco house with curved windows. He's a really nice guy and so gentle with the animals, but really, why would suturing, if she needs it, cost $600? [cries]

The annual Pasifika festival is on tomorrow, but I'm not sure if we're going. I could still give Jasmin her meds OK, but I think I'd rather be around home to keep an eye on her. Besides, the weather's cold and intermittently wet.

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I'm glad to hear she's OK - I hope everything goes well on Wednesday.

Man, so do I.

$600?! Yikes! OK, admittedly, I don't know exactly what the exchange rate is, but any way you slice it that seems like a lot for some freaking stitches!

Well, here's hoping she doesn't need them after all. And I'm glad things seem to be less awful than they might have been.

It's a lot more for us than it would be for you as we earn so much less here. I have no idea how he'd justify that, even though the sutures have to be on the inside of the lid. I didn't mind the bills for Tessa's ops so much because he did some very complex and delicate work on her.

Yeah, I really hope she heals up on her own.

It's a lot more for us than it would be for you as we earn so much less here.

Do you? I admit, I have no idea what the comparative pay scale is.

*is curious now, though*

*does some googling and currency conversion*

Yep, according to the all-knowing internet, the average US hourly wage is something like $39 in NZ currency, compared to something like $25 for NZ workers. I had no idea the difference was that big.

You at least have a government healthcare system for people, though, right? The problem for a lot of people here is that, never mind taking care of cats, your own medical or health insurance expenses can be financially crippling if you're unlucky.

And that's before tax, probably. Sigh. I would be delighted to earn the average wage. Sigh.

Health care isn't free, but emergency care can be. I pay for all doctor visits, but once my drugs go over a certain annual limit, they're completely free. Hospitalisation is free if you go to a public hospital, but I have surgical insurance which pays for a decent private one if I ever need it.

Vet bills cost... some of the treatments we had for our cats in their last years were definitely painful on the wallet :(

Sending Jasmin lots of karmic cuddles and get-well-without-sutures wishes...

Thanks. :-)

Ooh poor Jasmin I hope she doesn't need stitches too, not only for the expense but for the trauma she'll go through.

Absolutely, on both counts.

She was fine when I got her home though, scoffing her breakfast with gusto.

That's a relief, though, to know you caught it early and had it seen to properly.

I'm not sure that I did catch it early. The lump wasn't that obvious, but it was fairly infected. :-P

Fingers crossed for Jasmine still. It's a pity vet bills are so expensive... :(

I know. I feel so defeated about the crapness of life. But I can't not do the best for Jasmin, or any of them.

I'm so pleased for both you and Jasmin, and I hope the sutures aren't needed either. (Not just because of the expense, but also because sutures get itchy. Rusty occasionally chews at his legs where he was stitched for his leg operations. I know there's no way Jasmin could chew at her eye area, but I wouldn't want her scratching a phantom itch in the affected area for ages afterwards.)

The eye bloke looked like John Clarke? Damn, I have this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcU4t6zRAKg) running through my head now...

He looked almost exactly like that! It's so hard to cope with. ;-)

Tessa never had trouble with sutures, but yeah, all I need is for Jasmin to hurt her actual eye. As it is, she rubs it when I put the ointment on.

I hope she recovers without the sutures

[fervent;y] So do I. He said there was a good chance she will.

$600 what does he use gold thread?, You're paying him back for 3 or more years of poverty when he was learning to be a vet and the mortgage on that lovely house. I'm glad all went well at the vets though and here's hoping Jasmin doesn't need stitches.

I suppose it's because it's in her inner eyelid right by her eye, but yeah, I still can't justify it.

It already looks better than after the vet had a go at it, so here's hoping.

I am glad to hear it looks promising now. Wow, the price for suturing is horrible!
Insuring your cats sounds reasonable with the prices like that. If i had a pedigree, I would think of it too. I have to ask Marta if Kendy has an insurance, it is not common here.
Good luck, you and your lovely cats!

It wasn't common here for a long time either. I'd insure Ashley too, and probably Vic is a 9-year-old isn't too expensive, but Claudia has a chronic condition and there's no point.

And man, if it wasn't near her eye, it would have been so simple to deal with. Eyes are the killer, as I found with expensive but adored little Tessa.

Ask around. Dogs cost more than cats, and some breeds cost more because of their inbred characteristics.

Jasmin update

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