Like I said, you don't get better sunsets than in St. Kitts. And if you think you do, you're wrong.
I never updated about the VIDA trip. For those of you who have never heard of VIDA (there are chapters everywhere, and not just vet schools), it's basically a club where we go around providing services to people in the community that are in financial need. Obviously, since we are a vet school, we provide vet services. It's through a vet on the island and he chooses families that he believes really care about their pets, but just can't afford routine care. So the clinic I participated in, we went around to a few houses and helped the families out! There was a lot of tick removal, flea treatment, and basic physical exams. I learned a TON, considering I've just started vet school and I haven't learned that much yet (in terms of actually caring for pets), so I was shown how to do an entire exam, including respiratory rates, pulse/heart rates (which are two different things. Did you know that?), palpation of internal organs (I haven't learned that in anatomy yet), drawing blood and doing various SNAP tests. I attempted a cephalic blood draw, but I was unsuccessful. But in my defense, a) I'm a first semester. I don't know anything yet and b) the dog I tried to draw blood on was in REALLY poor condition and his blood pressure was pretty darn low.
So anyway, I learned so much on this trip and overall, it was a great experience. It was a huge culture shock, though. In the US, people consider animals to be a family member, which is what I'm used to and of course, I think of PD and Leo as my babies. But here, it's totally different. The dogs are almost all outdoor dogs, which would be fine, except that a lot of owners decide that they don't even want to buy pet food for their animals. We saw one dog in TERRIBLE condition (like, Animal Cops bad) and we asked the owners when the last time he ate was and they said they didn't know. So we asked what kind of food he usually got, they said they weren't sure. Sometimes they gave him rice....What?! Sometimes? Rice?! So when we got the dog food out, he scarfed it down. It was so sad. And he was so glad just to get some attention. Then the family's "other" dog came hopping down the street, and I say hopping because THIS DOG HAS HAD A BROKEN LEG FOR ALMOST TWO WEEKS. Look, vets are understanding people. If you can't afford to fix the leg, surrender the dog to us and we'll fix it and you don't have to pay for it. But you can't just let a dog suffer with a broken leg for almost 2 weeks. Again, that dog was super sweet, but obviously in pain. So these are just examples of how some people treat their dogs here.
And let me say that not all dog owners on St. Kitts are that extreme. They do all pretty much leave their dogs outside and not many of them buy manufactured dog food. But the dogs typically stay around their houses and the owners make better homemade meals for them (throw in some vegetables and protein and it's not a big deal. At least the dog won't be starving). We went to another house where the owner had 3 dogs that were chained up outside (booooo) but at least they all had some shelter and the shelters and dogs were set up in the shade. He had bowls of food and clean water nearby each of them too. The dogs were all very friendly and looked well taken care of. I'm not crazy about leaving them outside (especially in the Caribbean heat), but this owner is at least taking steps to make sure they are comfortable.
Again, these are just cultural differences too. If these dogs/owners had grown up in the US, I'm sure that they would have been just as pampered as all of our dogs. It's just very different from what I'm used to. I do have to say, I'm glad that my babies were born in the US.
Look at that faaaaace.
Um...and that face. Well, I like him anyway.
Something else exciting! I got to go to a World Cup qualifying game! It was St. Kitts v. Canada, which was slightly more exciting than it would have been with other countries, because I have a connection to Canada. I drank a Carib, danced to steel drums, and got mashed in with all of the locals behind the goal. At one point, I separated from my friends and just pushed along with all of the other Kittitians. I felt like such a local, cheering for our country! There was no score, and I don't totally know what that means in terms of World Cup qualifiers (I think they get points for a win, a tie, or a lose but I'm not sure), but I had so much fun.
Not a great picture, but I WAS THERE. This is when I was jammin' with the locals. Never forget 11/11/11.
I'm in the process of looking for a car. So far I've driven two, I'm driving two more today, one more on Wednesday and another later in the week. I hope I find one that I like enough to buy. I'm sick of car hunting. The two I saw yesterday were pretty decent. The cars here are not nice, and I'm always going to pay more than I should for a car down here, but it's something I'll have to deal with. The first one was in fairly good condition, but I didn't love the way it drove (really touchy brakes and no power steering, which is different for me). The second car drove really well, but it had a few more problems than the first (and it cost $1500 more than the first). One that I'm seeing today sounds really good and it has a great price and the same goes for the one that I'm seeing on Wednesday. I really hope one of them works out.
Study time. See ya.
I LOVE PETER. He's so adorable... hopefully when I go home he's not gonna be looking like a baby ewok..
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