The plot thickens...

Ever since Cleo escaped from outside the vet's clinic, I've developed a phobia of bringing my own pets to the clinic.  But what has to be done, just has to be done, so I bucked up courage and brought Tiger to Healing Rooms today. 

Tiger's limping is worrying me because since yesterday, he started limping on the fore leg.  Can a limp spread to another leg? 

But Tiger is relatively very much easier to manage than Cleo, so I managed to persuade (read: push) him to get into the carrier and off we went to the clinic amidst some distress calls in the car.  Healing Rooms is only a stone's throw from my house, so I wouldn't be so stressed out listening to Tiger's distress calls!

Here's Tiger inside the carrier waiting for his turn. 

The vet examined Tiger and gave me a totally different diagnosis.  He suspects it is a viral infection caused by the Calicivirus, and this causes "shifting lameness". 

Spot on!  That would explain why the lameness has shifted from the left hind leg to the left fore leg now, and in fact, the vet saw the the right hind leg is affected as well. 

And since it is viral, there isn't much to do except to let the body's own immunity fight it off, but for MY peace of mind, I could give Tiger some immune booster. 

Then, I alerted the vet to the stubborn sore behind Tiger's ear (which Bobby often licks).  I had myself ruled out the dreadful sporotrichosis because it seems to heal and then recur, and this has been going on for months. 

But we weren't going to take chances, so I asked the vet to examine a smear under the microscope, just for MY peace of mind. 

As I waited with bated breath, the vet came back and said it wasn't sporo. 

Phew!

So what is it then? 

Well...it could be many things, we'd just have to observe and see.  Meanwhile, he wasn't in favour of the Neomycin cream that I had got from the hospital because these creams can have an effect on the kidneys, so he advised me to use iodine instead, just as an antiseptic. 

What I like about this vet is that he would minimise the use of medication as far as possible.  He prefers the natural healing process to take place if the wound or ailment is not life-threatening.

Then, I told the vet all about Cleo's great escape last week, and I proceeded to show him photographs of Cleo's skin problem.

Here's another photo I managed to take today, of the other side of her body:

You see, it's just balding, that's all.  It doesn't look like a serious condition.

The vet says it appears to be flea dermatitis, and his advice is to "just leave it alone".  The treatment for this condition is highly toxic, and he prefers not to administer it.  Otherwise, the medication itself might lead to kidney problems later, which would be life-threatening.

So, that's that....and I brought Tiger home amidst his usual distress calls in the car.

P.S.  While waiting for the vet, I had another case to attend to....read on.