Shih-Tzu-Bichon Frieze cross. Came to us as a rejected #Christmas present for some little girls who preferred to pull his hair to any other sport. Smart, intelligent, wary, always smiling, but speaks with his eyes. It took several years of patience to gain his confidence.
We found in#Mexico, at least where we were, that dog’s haircuts were often given by veterinarians. So, it was for this reason that we established a relationship with My Medico Veterinario Mexicano. He specialized in speaking Spanish, while I was attempting to learn Spanish the hard way – by reading the daily newspaper accompanied by a dictionary and a few texts. It made for interesting exchanges.
His clinic in unlike anything we had ever encountered. It was on a very busy ‘lateral’ [ a one-way road that runs parallel to the main, two-way street ]. Like all business establishments in the area it is fronted in its off hours by a steel curtain. The side walk to the entrance is a multilevel challenge regardless of which direction taken to access it. Inside, about a meter to the right, is a stack of dog food. Equally distant, is a glass top counter in which some medical supplies can be seen. Behind it, beyond a space, a stack of shelves with shampoos, vitamins, and such sundry articles are visible through a smudged glass. To the left of the counter is doorway into another room.
This room, slightly bigger than the reception area, contains a full sized desk with an aging computor on top, two stainless steel tables on casters, some shelving on which sits a small microwave, and a sliding door behind which are shelves. Behind this room, one can see a shower and bath.
All of these things must be viewed in the context of a high humidity and very warm climate – these two create a high maintenance climate, which often is not conceded to.
Kikko began to hide – in small places, in dark places, and lie very still and quiet. My wife discovered that he had a lump on his tail. Should your hand come anywhere near the lump, he yelped and ran away.
We took him to our Medico Veterinario Mexicano, as we were spending the winters in Mexico. He felt Kikko’s body and tail, placed his stethoscope at various places on his body. In his rapid fire Spanish, [we understood parts of it because of our bilingual background] he indicated that it was a fat globule that had grown on his tail.
The perplexed look on my face indicated that I was not a believer, and, was as much afraid of the cost of the treatment.
“Don’ worry. It is a simple operation. He will remain with me for one day after the operation. It is only a fat globule.”
I suggested, “Why don’t we use a needle and suck out the fat?”
“Because the cause of the problem would remain, and, it would grow again. Do not worry about the cost. It will not cost much.”
As I told my wife as we drove back to our house, he never did tell us how much it would cost. The operation would be two days later.
When we came to pick up our wee charge after surgery, we found Kikko in a somber attitude and a bandage around his tail. Our Medico Veterinario Mexicano showed my wife how to change the bandage – two times a day – and wrap a piece of Aloe Vera in the bandage with the fleshy part against the suture. It would require that Kikko come back for two more visits. The first to assure the wound was healing, and, the second to remove the stitches.
Kikko responded very quickly to the healing process with the fresh aloe vera plant.
In total, the charges were well under five hundred pesos – in those days, it took ten pesos to equal one of our dollars.
gtl10n 