La Habana

Hola Todos.

I'm in Havana where the temperature at 8:00pm was 88F.

I have my first meeting with Amparo set for tomorrow morning.

The arrival at Jose Marti Airport was smooth as can be with the Letter of Introduction supplied by the Consejo Veterinario de Cuba.

With 50 plus pounds of supplies including anesthetic for 100 spay procedures the letter was a blessing.
I was also over weight with my baggage but caught a break.

To be continued...

I Feel Good!!!!!!!!

Skeeter had a visit to the Vet on Friday. The purpose was to take some blood and test for liver and kidney function among other things. She amazed me by walking willingly into the office and sniffing around. The previous visits seemed to not have left an impression upon her. Well the lightbulb did go on an she headed for the door where she curled up into a tight ball. The Vet was unable to coax her into walking so Skeeter was picked up and taken to a exam room.

While I was in the waiting room I picked up a brochure about a program called Pet Safe.
As the brochure states “Established in 2003 by the Ontario Veterinary Medical Association (OVMA) it assists women leaving abusive partners by providing temporary housing for their pets.”

Skeeter spent a few minutes in the back and then came that sound. You know the one, claws attempting to dig in and get traction on a tiled floor. The Vet reported that Skeeter was a little trooper, as usual, and that we should have the results later that afternoon.

Well the news was all good. The final step will be an antigen test in three months to see if there is any evidence of heartworms.

Many thanks to all at the Loyalsit Veterinary Hospital and Skeeter's primary Dr. Lara Sylvester. The caring and compassion of the team at Loyalist is second to none.

Thank you.

Helping Hand From Ireland

photo by T.Shewchuk

Thanks go out to Annette and Gary of Dublin, Ireland. Recently I received a report from Annette of their visit with Amparo in Havana. Amparo is the head of the Dulce Maria Loynaz group in Cuba.
It is very nice to hear feedback from those that care and take the time to help with the work in Havana.

Her is an excerpt from Annette’s email -
"Well, we purchased some tablets  and brought them to Amparo’s apartment. She seems like a wonderful woman, and she made us feel very welcome, inviting us to join her on her balcony where she explained all about the project and the current situation.  
It was a very worthwhile experience and we are very glad to have made a tiny contribution – we were a bit disheartened by the dogs we saw in the street.
We hope to return to Cuba next year and will contact you again beforehand. We have also passed on the message to a friend who is travelling in September."
 
I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Many thanks

La Habana in July!!

photo by:T. Shewchuk

It has been a busy time around the homestead.

Skeeter is doing great except for woofing her cookies at 3:00AM this morning. As a matter of fact she is doing so well that I have booked my next trip to Cuba for July 24 - August 2.
As per normal I will spend the majority of my time in Havana.This trip I will however be traveling to Trinidad Cuba for two nights. My side trip will allow me the opportunity to reconnect with a local Vet I met with briefly in 2006. He is greatly respected amongst the towns people. Treating cats, dogs, horses and cattle, Vets in these small towns are relied on sometimes for peoples livelihoods.

Seeing that the Vet does not have email access, I have been communicating with him through the Casa owner where I will be staying. Julio Muñoz runs a Casa Particulare in Trinidad, Cuba. He is a photographer and runs a highly recommended hostal.

Sad news regarding Julio, he lost one of his horses recently to colic. I will be making sure that I deliver some supplies for the equines in town.