Our ginger cat (named ‘Ginger’ because we thought it was an unusual name!!) suffers from Milary dermatitis which is basically the same as human dermatitis.
Although in most cases this is brought on by fleas, it would appear that his is probably an allergy as he hasn’t got any. As it always comes on in late Spring, grass, pollen or some other outdoor issue seems the cause.

However, a trip to the Vet is usually called for about this time for some remedy.

Financial fear of going to the Vets must be on a par with the Dentist. You drive in the Car Park and half expect someone to open your car door for you and charge a tenner for doing so.
They don’t of course, the tenner for parking is hidden in the bill at the end!!

So you go in, announce yourself and find you will be called in after Rodney the Cocker Spaniel and Susan the Russian Hamster.
With a bit of luck, Rodney is about 14 years old and past caring about cats and Gingers not feeling hungry enough to try bumping his body through the Basket door for a quick mid-morning snack.

A bit like Hospital Waiting Rooms, the Vets have many leaflets about various ailments within the animal and bird world. With nothing better to do, you take a bit of time out and read them.
This can be dangerous, because you will often relate some terrible Parrot illness to something you have, check yourself for wings and start saying ‘Pieces of Eight’ to the horror of those sitting around you.

A quick stroll round the various products sends you into deep thought as to who on earth buys them, more so as to who can afford to.

On this visit we were again asked if we’d like to have Ginger allergy scanned. It’s not fleas because he hasn’t got any, it can’t be food because it’s not all the year, if it’s grass try keeping him off it and if it’s something the Farmers putting on his fields there’ll be an EEC ruling for it!

We settle on the 20 pills and the request to go back in 10 days to see how things are.

Upon completion of the consultation you walk nervously up to the Receptionist and ask for the Bill. “It hasn’t quite come through yet” is the usual reply which only prelongs the agony.
You know (and they more than likely do as well) that your response will be “Blimey” and sure enough, after the “£29.60” it is!

Most of it of course is the car parking and the A4 sheet of paper (with used for the flea check.)

Oh well, better than the £269 after the fight with over the Lane’s White Alsation and the £145 on the tests for which the results came in two days after one of our previous cats passed away.

You can of course take out Pet Insurance but most of these usually have in small print somewhere that it only applies to animals with less than four legs, or pets which don’t bark, meow, chirp or have hair on them.

Oh well, a fact of life and I respect the work done by Vets, but I do wonder who designs the Benchmark costs, someone with a sense of humour – a large swimming pool and the latest Porsche!

I think I’ll come back as a Cat.