Sun, 24 Jan

Sun 24 Jan: ..... ok this was a day to be remembered ... normal late morning weekend chores, then Eddi and i went for the same breakfast as yesterday. i'm happy with this place. we sat next to a couple that were meeting with the 'wedding planner' ... well, it was a guy who was setting up arrangements for their wedding. then we stopped at the hardware store to buy some more screws to finish my door. Madi was still cleaning when i decided i needed to snorkel at The Split ... i haven't done that yet, and i've been here 2weeks ... just as i was leaving, ..... a couple arrived at the gate. Bonnie and Mike, they were from Canada and with a group that was doing kayaking and rafting in Belize. before they left Canada, Bonnie had just joined a volunteer group in Canada that Madi had here last March to do neutering. the group had told Bonnie about their work in Caye Caulker, since she coincidentally was going to be vacationing in Caye Caulker, she stopped by to say hi and see how Madi was doing. of course, i asked her ... are you a vet? ... she said yes !!!! hummmm.... fatal mistake for her! .... long story short, she agreed to neuter 3 of our males that are giving us the most problems. As she and Madi were setting up surgery, another couple arrived; Connie and Bob, they are from Nebraska. Connie works with a animal foster program there and Bob is a handyman that Madi was looking forward to having him here to build another enclosure. they had been here before, and were expected ... some time ... but not particularly today! so she joined us in the 'operating room' ... this is 'third world' ..... it did not go smoothly. for our first attempt, we chose Andy, whom i've named '#1 Sex Offender'; because he is always on top of George and has him by the neck. George is also a male, a bit younger, and the sweetest little cat. it's so pathetic ... here is Andy on top of him, biting his neck, and he just looks up at me with this innocent little face and his little pink nose, like ... 'help me?' i can't resist a photo of George here: anyway, they attempted to put Andy 'under' ...but he wouldn't go down. they had a chart, left by another vet, with the dosage on it, but it wasn't specific enough; and without getting technical, he didn't get enough. so the decision was made to leave him alone, and try to do Angel, the other male. he took the anesthetic and the procedure began ... but it wasn't enough, and he started to come out of it just as she was finishing 'one nut' :) caution: not for the faint of heart ... especially if you are a 'male' :) so they switched gears and needed to give him more sedative. at this point, there were too many people in there, it was hot, sweaty and you could cut the tension in the air with a knife. it was getting late and it was time for the other cats to be fed. so, i took it upon myself to enlist the help of Eddi, and we stepped up to the challenge of doing the feeding ... alone! single-handedly ... well, double-handedly, we feed all the cats ourselves. there were a few dropped bowls and it wasn't pretty, but we got it done ... correctly ... that's our story and we're sticking with it. back in the 'operating room', they got Angel 'done', and decided to call it quits for the day. he is coming around now. everyone is very happy, ... with the exception of maybe Angel ..... Andy, of course, lives another couple weeks as the 'sex offender', and is feeling quite smug. then Madi and i went out with Connie and Bob, ... back to my favorite place, ....Rose's ! Connie and Bob split the biggest lobster i have ever seen ! i had Grouper, it was good; but i wanted lobster, but we were late, and they only had huges ones left for $$$$$