Wednesday, October 28, 2009

How to Give a Cat A Pill

Since posting the piece about giving Maxxy his pills, a friend has sent us some advice. I thought I should pass this on so here it is...

How to Give a Cat A Pill


1. Pick up cat and cradle it in the crook of your left arm as if holding a baby.
Position right forefinger and thumb on either side of cat's mouth and gently apply pressure to cheeks while holding pill in right hand. As cat opens mouth, pop pill into mouth.

Allow cat to close mouth and swallow.

2. Retrieve pill from floor and cat from behind sofa.

Cradle cat in left arm and repeat process.

3. Retrieve cat from bedroom, and throw soggy pill away.

4. Take new pill from foil wrap, cradle cat in left arm, holding rear paws tightly with left hand. Force jaws open and push pill to back of mouth with right forefinger.

Hold mouth shut for a count of ten.

5. Retrieve pill from goldfish bowl and cat from top of wardrobe. Call spouse from garden.

6. Kneel on floor with cat wedged firmly between knees, hold front and rear paws. Ignore low growls emitted by cat. Get spouse to hold head firmly with one hand while forcing wooden ruler into mouth. Drop pill down ruler and rub cat's throat vigorously.



7. Retrieve cat from curtain rail, get another pill from foil wrap. Make note to buy new ruler and repair curtains. Carefully sweep shattered figurines and vases from hearth and set to one side for gluing later.

8. Wrap cat in large towel and get spouse to lie on cat with head just visible from below armpit.

Put pill in end of drinking straw, force mouth open with pencil and blow down drinking straw.


9. Check label to make sure pill not harmful to humans, drink 1 beer to take taste away. Apply Band-Aid to spouse's forearm and remove blood from carpet with cold water and soap.

10. Retrieve cat from neighbour's shed. Get another pill. Open another beer. Place cat in cupboard, and close door onto neck, to leave head showing.

Force mouth open with dessert spoon. Flick pill down throat with elastic band.

11. Fetch screwdriver from garage and put cupboard door back on hinges. Drink beer. Fetch bottle of scotch. Pour shot, drink. Apply cold compress to cheek and check records for date of last tetanus shot.

Apply whiskey compress to cheek to disinfect. Toss back another shot. Throw tee shirt away and fetch new one from bedroom.

12. Call fire department to retrieve the damn cat from across the road. Apologise to neighbour who crashed into fence while swerving to avoid cat. Take last pill from foil wrap.

13. Tie the little *&#%^'s front paws to rear paws with garden twine and bind tightly to leg of dining table, find heavy-duty pruning gloves from shed.… Push pill into mouth followed by large piece of filet steak. Be rough about it. Hold head vertically and pour 2 pints of water down throat to wash pill down.


14. Consume remainder of scotch. Get spouse to drive you to the emergency room, sit quietly while doctor stitches fingers and forearm and removes pill remnants from right eye. Call furniture shop on way home to order new table.

15. Arrange for RSPCA to collect mutant cat from hell and call local pet shop to see if they have any hamsters.


How To Give A Dog A Pill


1. Wrap it in bacon.

2. Toss it in the air.


Easy peasy!!!

Sunday, October 25, 2009

A day at the races!

You have no doubt heard of Silverstone, Le Mans and the Nürbürgring. Well this weekend, having been to these other venues during the season, the Renault World series came to Alcañiz, or to be precise, Motorland, which is just outside Alcañiz. Quite a catchy name isn't it?

To see any photo full size, click left on it.

It was so packed out and there were no seating places left in the tribuna, the stand, although we got a good view from the top of the paddock building and saw what was happening just after the home straight as the cars roared off over the hilltop and then returned on the long straight and rounded the hairpin to go up the home straight again.


Also in the photos are not only the formula Renault 3.5 series cars blazing around the track but the many lorries which brought them there. There were people from far and wide and of all ages. Babies had wisely been given earplugs to wear as the noise from the cars was extremely loud.


For more information about the event, click HERE.
It was certainly a day out with a difference.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Maxxy, 12/5/02-13/10/09

We noticed that one of our 2 cats, Maxxy, wasn't well on Monday 5 October and took him to our vetinary practice in Alcañiz that afternoon. After much testing and eventually some x-rays, Olga, the vet, decided that his abdominal organs were not in the correct place and had found their way through the diaphragm into his lung cavity. She immediately contacted another vet in Zaragoza who could carry out an operation to correct this situation.

Click left on any picture to see it full size.

We took Maxxy to Zaragoza for his operation the following day. He was diagnosed with a torn diaphragm as half of his intestines, liver, etc, were in his thorax and his lungs were deflated. This was the result, according to the vet, of an accident such as being hit by a car or being kicked but that is very unlikely around here, so maybe he jumped from too great a height somewhere.


He had the operation where all of his organs were put back in the correct place and his diaphragm was sewn up and we collected him on Thursday. We took him to our vets in Alcañiz for injections on Friday and then on Saturday fed him through a syringe and tried to give him his pills but he was so upset by this that he bit me on the hand very hard! (I am recovering!) This is the only time he has ever done this and I had no idea that a cat could bite so hard!


On Sunday he seemed so low that Margaret phoned the vet and we took him back to our vets in Alcañiz where he was put in an oxygen chamber, given his vacinations again and a feeder drip into his paw. On Monday, a holiday here, Margaret phoned the vet and they said he was OK and eating well.


However, on Tuesday the vet phoned to say that Maxxy had stopped breathing and had died that morning as they were preparing him for further x-rays. The postmortem revealed that he had liquid in the lung and heart cavity and this had stopped his heart. We collected his body yesterday evening and buried him in the garden this morning.

He had a great life here as he had total freedom to come and go as he pleased enjoying the countryside and his favourite pastime of hunting yet always knowing what time his meals were being provided by us. He will be sadly missed.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

We've been awarded!

Not much has happened this last month.

Work is gradually progressing on the improvement of the road into Torre del Compte. However, it currently is no longer a "road" - more like a rough track now that the tarmac from the existing road, where it still exists, has been dug up and the new bits, where the bends have been straightened, are being driven on before being finally surfaced. It will be a big improvement when it is completed.

We have enrolled for the Spanish language classes again in Valderrobres but these don't start until after the 13th of October.

I have given 2 of the 4 drawing classes I have offered to do in the village school on Saturday afternoons. Although the classes are for people who can't draw, of which there are many, there is only a handful of people turn up for the classes. Next Saturday there will be no class as it is a holiday weekend to celebrate La Virgen del Pilar. To find out more about Pilar, click HERE.

When I came to check on the blog this morning I found a comment added to the last entry, for the fiesta in August, saying that we had been given an award by The Daily Reviewer of Spanish blogs - here it is below, so thanks to all the people who have looked at the blog and those who submitted it and voted for it. We hope you enjoyed your visit and will return on a fairly regular basis.