Having a Fur Family in the Foreign Service

It's no surprise given the title of this blog that my three Tabbies are as important to me as any other family member. We've been together since they were six weeks old; two are littermates and one was from a box in front of the grocery store. In the past two years, we've moved them to four new homes on two continents. They've endured a six-day road trip in the back of the car with a different hotel room at the end of each long day. All this, and they will each turn 15 in the coming months. 

Is this an ideal life for cats, or for pets in general? No, it's not. Cats prefer routine and a consistent environment. Many don't do well with change and often their stress isn't outwardly apparent. The stop eating, stop drinking, stop using the litter box or go where they oughtn't. They can become prone to anxieties, infections or illness.  Given all this, can they still thrive in such a lifestyle? Yes.

So if we love our pets so much, why would we subject them to all the moving and the trauma of travel? Because for animals that are long-time family members, I believe they love us equally, and would prefer to be with us, their trusted caregivers, than left behind. Having said that, there are some cats and dogs whose personalities are simply not a match for the FS life, and it is kinder to leave them in the US with a new "forever home" where they will transition only once instead of every two years. I'm mostly speaking of cats who are accustomed to having outside time and get very anxious/angry being kept inside. Or high-energy dogs who would make themselves and everyone around them miserable living in a high-rise apartment in Shanghai, or while their owners spend 10 months in a one-bedroom apartment while learning Arabic at FSI. Or perhaps very elderly pets whose  health has become frail and the stress of travel could potentially put them over the edge. In cases such as these, family, friends or rescue shelters would be the better option, as hard as that could be at first for all involved. 

A new FSO I know recently shared this photo of their family's older dog and their young son. He captioned the picture, "This is why we stuck you in a box under the airplane and carried you half-way around the world." The family gave me permission to use this picture, which to me encapsulates exactly why we bring our animals to the places we do instead of leaving them behind. 

The love in the boy's eyes for his dog, and in her eyes for him is not just anthropomorphic nonsense; it's real. Our animals are capable of the same attachments and bonds as we are to each other, and while the travel and adjustment time is certainly not ideal for them, in the end - I'd never trade their presence in our ever-changing lives. 

Our Tabbies have done a remarkable job at adjusting, especially given their age and the fact that we haven't had a full two years in one spot yet. The first move was the hardest adjustment, especially since they'd lived in our same house since I brought them home as kittens. The Oakwood apartment had no yard, no familiar smells and that lady with the cat grinding machine came in once a week unannounced to clean up the place. There were many days spent under the bed, with me coaxing them out only for meals, or me just giving up and sliding the bowl in front of the hidden noses. By the second time they arrived at Oakwood, they recognized the building, the apartment layout, the balcony, and there was no under-the-bed silliness. Arriving in Juarez after the long drive, they explored the new house eagerly, claimed the best sunny spots immediately and within a few days were wanting to explore our enclosed back yard. 

Daphne decides which guest room she prefers

Favorite beds were claimed instantly

But we're not just relying on their good natures and luck to make these moves successful, I also spend a LOT of time and energy attending to their health and comfort. To summarize this:

• Pay attention to their small behavior changes, such as how much they're eating, drinking and using the litter box. During our trip, they each ate and drank fine, but the latter category was often neglected, and I feared they'd become uncomfortably constipated (sorry, but it's true) or start bladder infections for not urinating enough. To solve this, we kept their own familiar litter box and type of litter available 24/7. I bought a small can of unflavored pumpkin puree and added a teaspoon to their food each day to get things moving, shall we say. They also got their favorite food flavors, and I added what I refer to as the "special sauce" to the top of their wet food each meal to entice them. It's a powdered probiotic called FortiFlora that looks and smells like beef bouillon and makes their food dee-lish, apparently. Or, for reluctant eaters, some tuna or just tuna water on their food can help (but I don't suggest tuna as their main meal - use sparingly). On day five of our trip, at a lunch stop, I noticed that for the first time, someone had used the in-car litter box while the car was in motion. I was so happy and proud, you'd have thought they each had little caps and gowns and diplomas in paw! But by keeping their systems as regular as possible, you can help eliminate the possible health problems that stressful moves can cause.
• Find a way to get high quality food wherever you're posted! This may mean allotting a big chunk of your consumables allowance weight to kibble and cans, or researching what you can buy online in Tajikistan, Tanzania or Turkey. Even as close as we are here in Mexico, quality pet food (and litter!) is surprisingly scarce, so I dutifully cross over to Texas each week to hit PetSmart. In Bogota, I used Amazon or Pet Food Direct, and took advantage of the free shipping that is often offered and the kitties never went without their favorite food. It takes planning, but it's definitely worth it. Oh, and carrying cases of cans and 30 lb bags of kibble home in the van from the Embassy mail room is just an added bonus! 
• Plan for your arrival to be well-stocked. Leaving for a new post is a complicated affair, but be sure to think about what you'll need when you arrive in your new digs from the airport, with carriers in hand. Three times now, I've sent a box of supplies to myself in advance, to be received by my social sponsor. The box always contains at least a week's worth of food, a small bag of litter and a disposable cardboard litter box and scooper. I usually throw in a few favorite toys, a favorite used and hairy cat bed, a brush and cat nip, so that when we unpack our own bags, the cats also get their familiar things to help them settle in. I have to go to work in the morning, but the pets will be in the apartment alone for the first time. 
• Locate the best vet and emergency clinic you can in your new city. Unfortunately, I've had to take advantage of this already, and am thankful that we were living in a modern city of 8 million residents with a state-of-the-art veterinary facility for when Dodger suddenly went into anaphylactic shock after an injection one day. Naturally, having this type of place ten minutes away isn't always going to be the case, so I recommend finding what resources are available and even carrying a pet emergency kit and some type of instruction book. Should we be sent to deepest, darkest somewhere - I want to know how to treat a scorpion sting, a snake bite, give an injection, or treat dehydration etc... to help them out if needed. 
• Keep their routine as regular as possible in the new surroundings. The Tabbies have regular mealtimes and the same dishes. Their water is replaced and the bowl cleaned every morning. They have scratchers so they don't destroy embassy furniture and I keep their claws trimmed. 

In the end, it is worth it to have our pets with us. If we had young children, as my friend in the first picture does, I'm certain that the pets would help the kids feel at home in their new place, too. While the parent(s) go off to work, the kids still have their companions and vice-versa. As I write this, I have the original laptop, Toby, vying for his rightful spot on my thighs, and Dodger is on the table at my elbow. (Cats are so helpful with typing!) They have their new yard, the back of a new sofa to lounge across, stairs for the fist time to help them keep active and all sorts of new birds to watch. For as long as they're healthy and able, the Tabbies will always be our EFMs (Eligible Furry Members).

The Tabbies Speak Out

The Tabbies have requested a moment to speak about their views of their new home, and seeing as this blog is named after them - we thought it only fair. I promised to transcribe their thoughts, and perhaps add an explanatory comment or two.

Things we like about being wherever we are, which frankly, we're not too sure about:
(I've showed them the map; it's right there on the wall, but they kept saying, "What's South? What's America? What's 'not Washington'?")

• The weather is pretty good for those of us with luxurious coats. Not too hot (like that last place we were where we had to have that machine in the wall buzzing all day to keep us cool!) and not too cold and we haven't had to get wet going outside. Okay, we haven't been able to go outside at all, but at least we're staying dry and clean. These are very important qualities in a new home.
• We have an entire bathroom just for us! Dad even mentioned something about just filling up the entire shower stall with sand and calling it a litter box, which would be really cool and sooo spacious! The sand we have must be the fanciest in the world; well, that's what Mom keeps saying, and she adds, "It better be at $2 per pound!" She even mentioned something about, "For these prices, we should recycle it!" We're certain she's kidding - that would just be gross.
• The food we have is also the best in the world because it comes straight from the Amazon jungle. It's so exotic! (I don't have the heart to tell them the food is the same they've always had, and it's actually from Amazon.com....)
• Dodger: We have this huge shower that I jump into and drink from every morning! And, it washes all the dirt off my paws - really! You can see for yourself how clean my paws are now because I leave my wet, dirty prints in the shower and on the bathroom floor, and sometimes I even jump on the bed to get the last of it all dried off on the comforter. There's so much less cleaning work for me now!
• Toby: And I love having three shower stalls to pee in now! Did you know that cat urine cleans tile grout, too? And Mom just turns on the water and washes it all down, which saves on that fancy litter. I'm ecologically-minded, for sure.
• Dodger: You did WHAT in my shower?
• Daphne: I don't have to share my couch space anymore as we finally have armchairs for each of us AND a couch. This living is befitting a lady of my age and status.

Okay, we have to mention a few things that we're not quite used to yet:

• Dodger: There's a lot more thunder and lightning down here, which is just not cool.
• Daphne: And there are these huge birds, bigger than eagles, that fly in circles over the hills near our window. When I see those birds, I know the only safe place is under the bed. I'm no fool!
• All: These wood floors make our toys go so fast across the room! And when we run around the corners, well, it's really hard to get traction (...and really funny...).
• Toby: The couches are tall enough that we can retrieve our own toys! I can even get UNDER the couch now and sneak up on my sister (...also really funny...).
• Mom keeps promising that our tower and scratcher will arrive soon. Something about being in a warehouse for months already - it seems to make her sort of mad to talk about it. 

We'd love to hear from our other FS cat friends: Boots, Mugsy, Bill - anyone?

Thank you for listening; this is the end of our tale.

Colombian Curiosities

This is my third weekend in my new country (and continent for that matter), and I’ve been noticing a few curiosities I’d like to share. It’s specifically these differences between countries that give them their flavor, so please don’t take my noticing these oddities as my belief that they’re wrong or silly, just different and therefore interesting.

Going shopping

·         Weekend trips to the supermarket have brought a few things to my attention. First, upon driving into the large parking garage my neighbors and I (they offered to take me shopping) are met by security guards and their explosive-sniffing dog. We stop the car, open the doors and trunk and the dog gives a quick sniff-search before we’re allowed into the garage. This reminds me that despite the lovely neighborhoods, clean streets and friendly people – this still is a danger post.

·         Paying with a credit card? At check-out they will ask you how many payments you want to make for this purchase. Or, if you’re me, they’ll say something and look expectantly at you as you try to fathom what the heck they want and why aren’t they satisfied with the smile and nod. If you have a local credit card, you can designate that your $60 purchase (for example) should be split into three payments over the next three months. You can then go into the next store, buy $45 of stuff and have that split over six payments. Sounds like an accounting nightmare to me, but what do I know? Word of advice: if you have an American credit card, just say “una” when the nice cashier asks you something and won’t proceed until you answer. Again, thanks to my friends for ‘splaining that to me!

Must Love Dogs – or – Gata Non-Grata

This is a dog-friendly country, not so if you have chosen feline friends. I would like to offer some proof:

·         Dog fincas (farms): A coworker (and many others, apparently) sends her dog four days per week to a dog finca. A man with a van comes to her apartment in the morning to pick up “Bella” and deliver her to a farm in the nearby countryside where she gets to frolic outside with other city-dogs. There is a farm house where each dog has their own little area to come inside, complete with their own particular food. At the end of the day, the well-exercised dogs jump back into their van (again, divided with separate compartments) and are delivered back to their city homes. My friend told me of one dog that is so accustomed to this routine that when he’s let out of his apartment by the maid, she rings for the elevator, he goes in, she selects the floor, he takes it to the ground level, exits, and the doorman opens the door for him where he then jumps into his van to go to the doggie farm. Repeat in reverse at the end of the day. For this full-service operation, four days a week costs just $125/month.  

·         Mobile dog-grooming services: See exhibit A. This van was parked outside my apartment the other day. Yes, there is a Golden Retriever inside receiving his beauty treatment before being taken back up the elevator clean and fluffy to his owners.

Exhibit A

·         Costs of cat supplies:

Clumping cat litter – when you can find it – costs about $2/lb. I spent $42 on cat litter yesterday, plus the taxi fare to and from the store I found where they actually sell it. Heaven forbid you should need one of those Hill’s Science Diet recipe canned foods for Puss. Depending on the recipe, they run $2-6 per can (and I mean for the tuna fish-sized cans!)  Scratching posts? Sure, I saw them in the store. Plan to shell out about $75.

Public bathrooms:

·         I was saved last-second by my friends from an unfortunate learning experience, so let this be a word of caution: if the restrooms have toilet-paper dispensers outside of the stalls – use them, because it means there aren’t any inside the stalls. And if they have seat-cover dispensers, it probably means you’re just going to be sitting on the rim!

Taxis:

·         To call a taxi you should use a land-line, from which the automated dispatch service will automatically recognize your address, you press 1 to confirm, and then they give you the license plate of the cab that’s being dispatched and a “codigo” (secret code) to tell the driver to confirm that you’re actually the person who called. He punches that into his meter and away you go. Apparently it’s far more dangerous for driver and customer alike to just hail one from the street. I would never have figured this out on my own had it not been for a coworker explaining the process.

Bottom line: coming to a new country you’re going to make some social faux-pas. You’re going to stare blankly at cashiers; you’re going to do things wrong and no doubt people are going to laugh at you (hopefully after you leave). I’m getting used to asking friends or coworkers about anything new I undertake in case there’s some odd custom or habit I’d never have predicted. I’m sure there will be more to add to this list as the months unfold.

Toby Shows Off

Subtitle: I think my cat has been reading my new wall map

Identification:
Me - me
Toby - Housecat with too much time on his paws

So, I heard you tell one of your friends that you still don't believe my full understanding of what's going on, and you think I'm just sitting on the bed all day. But you're wrong. I do listen, and when you're away at that place you go everyday, I've been busy. Ease off with that scooper for a sec and just LOOK at what I've done for you:



Wow! That's pretty accurate Tobe. I apologize for underestimating not only your English comprehension, but your map-reading skills and - quite frankly - your aim. Let's just compare and see what our readers have to say:

 Just tell them to please notice that I've rather specifically "pointed out" Bogota, too.

Well you sure did, but you did so by peeing on our future home, Tobe. I don't think that's very good manners to our hosts.

They will recognize and appreciate fine art when they see it.

I'm tired of trying to please you; I'm going back to bed.

The Great Toby's Bid List Predictions:

Some folks look at tea leaves; some throw bones; some use a crystal ball or Tarot cards.

Me? I use cat litter. Courtesy of The Great Toby, I have received a divine prediction that my posting will be in:

Africa!

We received our bid lists today, and sure enough, there were three countries on the African continent listed. There were also two in China, four in Spanish-speaking countries, two islands, one fancy-schmancy Euro city where they like to waltz and a country that usually kicks our butts in women's gymnastics. I'm not totally comfortable with how much we're allowed to say, so I'll leave it at this for now. But I believe that Toby's undeniable prediction may prevail. One classmate looked at the picture and turned it sideways, saying perhaps it was Australia, but then changed his mind when he realized that Toby intentionally put it in portrait perspective. Which then prompted another classmate to add that she believed it would be in Saharan Africa, because after all - he wrote it in sand.

That's all for now; I've got lots of homework and further prognosticating to do.

Feeling better and getting more excited!