Annie is expected to be found wandering in the forest one night soon, running around crazed in her pajamas with an axe, seeking to behead a few roosters that become quite active and loud at about 4 AM.  By the way, Annie is a pacifist vegetarian.  Welcome to the jungle!  At least the dogs were relatively quiet last night. 

Yesterday we met our goal of sterilizing 15 animals.  This may not seem like much, but remember we only have 3 veterinarians at work.  And it is also important to remember how many animals will never be born as a result of just 15 surgeries.  The numbers will continue to increase.  I stopped short in my task of “field reporting” when we “lost” a dog.  The dog was small and a real cutie.  She appeared in good health, but died after we administered the medication to put her to sleep.  We administer medication based on weight.  There is risk in all surgeries, of course, but this is the kind of occurrence that hurts, frustrates, and can cause damage to a program like ours where we have to convince people of the benefits of this surgery in the first place.

Most likely the dog had a pre-existing condition such as heartworms that contributed to her death.  I have never seen CPR performed on an animal before, and I commend Liz and Annie frequent attempts to revive the dog.  I kept thinking about the episodes of “Grey’s Anatomy” in which Meredith Grey nearly died.  Her colleagues refused to give up, and miraculously she was revived (of course, we all knew the title character wouldn’t be killed off!).

I insisted that I be the one to deliver the dog to its owners, but my employee Wilfredo insisted on accompanying me.  I carried the little dog wrapped in a towel.  Her body was still warm and soft.  With Sydney’s death fresh in my mind, I fought back tears.  Wilfredo and I discussed how important it was for me to be strong and not cry in front of the owners.  I wanted to go myself to introduce myself and demonstrate that we didn’t take the event lightly.  I was also petrified as to how the owner’s would react.  To my amazement (and relief), they accepted the news without shedding a tear.  Wilfredo asked if the dog had been suffering from any illness, and they stated that the dog had stumbled and fallen down a few times recently.  On the way back Wilfredo explained to me that most people in Peru don’t have the same bond with their pets as in other countries.  Sydney was like a human to me.  We shared a bed and many wonderful years of memories.  She traveled with me.  The family was sad, don´t get me wrong.  But they didn’t cry or ask many questions or place blame.

We had one of their other pets as well, the mother of the deceased dog.  They also sent us home with a cat, warning us that the cat was a “tiger” that might escape the kennel we had with us.  Wilfredo assured them the kennel was secure, but on the way home, the cat managed to escape and took off into a wooded area!  I called and searched for the cat.  Wilfredo went back for the owners hoping the cat might come to them when called.  We couldn’t find the cat, but knew it would make its way home.  At the end of the day the family returned for their other dog.  In a freak incident the dog had been put in a kennel without the proper paperwork.  Nobody ever performed surgery on her!  The family promised to return on Saturday the 16^th for our next clinic at Cabo Lopez.

I told Wilfredo that the family must think we are completely incompetent, and he agreed.  I hope my father reads this, as he will surely laugh.  We used to discuss that everything in our family business would go smoothly, but every once in a while there would be ONE customer where EVERYTHING seemed to go wrong. 

During the walk to the family´s home it had started to rain, and by the time we got back to Cabo Lopez it was pouring and we were completely soaked!  In handing over the poor little dog to the family, I became aware that it had been infested with fleas, which were now covering both my arms!  When we got home I had some kind of anxiety attack (or I don’t know what else to call it).  I found a flea in my hair and then started itching uncontrollably all over my body.  I was miserable and wanted a shower, but the plumber was working on the showers, so I had to wait for hours.  During this time I itched uncontrollably all over my body.  I imagined all sorts of little insects crawling all over me.  I even convinced myself the hotel mattress I slept on June 8, my final night with Sydney, had given me crabs!  When I finally got to take a shower it felt so good. I scrubbed and scrubbed and scrubbed.  I changed clothes several times, changed all my bedding, etc.  I feel better now, but my volunteers found it rather funny to find a woman living in the jungle that is so insect-phobic!!

June 12, 2007

As stated briefly above, Annie and Liz worked at the Veterinary Clinic today.  This was on the original schedule, and we had been “saving” some of our more difficult clients in order to get Annie and Liz´s opinions.

Notes from Annie:

The clinic in Iquitos is as you would expect in the UK. There is a consulting room and a surgery and kennel area for pets. It is very neat and this is thanks to Bethjane who is really an exceptional veterinary technician. She is one of those unique technicians that is very organized and neat and has the great ability to preempt your needs. Despite the language barrier we manage to communicate and we are having fun learning Spanish although it definitely has a medical bias! I now know the Spanish words for scalpel, swab, drape, gloves etc.

Tuesday was a great day to see Iquitos and get accustomed to the clinic. We met Nancy an American lady living in the jungle and examined her cat. Jingla (?) has had a long term skin condition. Vets are the same the world over and Esther has approached the case as Liz or I would which was I am sure reassuring for Nancy and Molly. It did make me smile that even in these conditions she had considered a food trial for food related skin allergies. Esther is a great vet by any standard; she is a very patient gentle and confident surgeon.

Tuesday was a very big day for Molly as her new boat arrived. The boat was kindly donated by Molly’s parents and I am sure she will upload photos. It is a great boat and has made a huge difference for Molly. Molly’s home is now in the jungle and the roads are often impassable due to the rain so the boat is really a necessity for Amazon Cares continued work.

It was a great ride home Tuesday night. The sky was clear and because it is so flat on the river and surrounding jungle, sitting on the boat and looking up the sky is so vast it really feels like you are in a big blue and green bubble. The ride was interesting because Molly was learning to drive. She did very well and now drives the boat single-handed.

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Liz and Esther performed a fracture repair on Tuesday morning it was a good opportunity for Esther to learn the techniques. The surgery went very well but we are concerned regarding the likelihood of the surgery being successful. The complex fracture really needed an external fixator (a contraption outside the leg) but due to a lack of facilities a basic pinning is all we could perform. In this environment this is more than most dogs would get. Esther is aware that she may have to amputate the leg later and I am sure Molly will keep you updated.

The most amusing event on Tuesday was a stray dog we encountered on the street. Molly offered the dog some leftover pizza we had from lunch and the dog pulled a face fit for any child faced with spinach! It did make us all laugh that a dog that lives on the streets could be so fussy!