Kennel Cough cooties.

This is Max

Max, my 2 year old Rottie, started coughing and hacking, every now and then some phlem comes up. At first, I thought he had something stuck in his throat being that he had just shreded another one of his stuffed animals.

I looked as best as I could down his throat but there wasn’t immediate evidence of a problem. I then reached in hoping I could feel and possibly extract the problem or at least get a really good gag out of him to help spit something out but no such luck. A while later, I remembered when I was growing up I had a black lab who was chocking on a bone, my grandmother dislodged the bone with cooking oil. Cooking oil? Yuk! Good idea though…so, I tried almond oil instead. Nope, that too didn’t work. By now I’m thinking, well here goes another expensive visit to the Vet…I love my dog, but money is tight so I had to explore other options first.

Feeling a bit helpless, I went online in search of answers…all research pointed to Kennel cough. I’m having trouble accepting that as he is the only dog in my home plus I still think he might have swallowed something accidentally while joyfully shredding his toy that caused the irritatation in his throat.

If it were to be Kennel cough, it’s pretty much like the commom cold/flu that eventually clears up within a couple of weeks. Some posts did recommend antibiotics while others pointed to natural / homeopathic remedies (like PetAlive KC Defense Formula or Echinacea) and yet others suggested administering Robitussin DM 1/4 teaspoon per every 5 pounds (for minor cases).

Well this could very well be a doggie cold. Max’s episodes surface when he is excited, especially later in the afternoon when the kids come home from school. I have Robitussin, so I’m thinking I’ll start here.

Max! Oh Maaaaaaaaaax, come here.

The People in Costa Rica

I kept hearing how kind and wonderful the folks are in Costa Rica.

Very kind people

Having been raised in Mexico, I imagined there was a strong similarity where family is priority, you always feel welcome (mi casa es su casa), and they’ll even give you the shirts off their backs if they really like you. No doubt Mexico is terribly exploited weighing heavily on the hearts and lives of the people. Most do what they can to survive and others live a little too well. Just like many of us are trying now in the US with our current situation. It’s easy to see the effects on our attitudes caused by financial hardship. Survival instincts kick in. Some take it well finding creative ways to pull through, others fall into deep depression resorting to the easy way out by taking their lives. Most just try to hang in.

You are probably wondering what do Mexicans and folks in the US have to do with Costa Rican’s (Tico’s). I’m just trying to establish the effects of our environment and surroundings in our behavior. The people in Costa Rica are well taken care of by the government. It is my understanding that from education to healthcare they have the fundamentals of life secured. They live modestly, within their means. It is this type of environment that influences their warm and welcoming nature.

The greatest surprise was how clean Costa Rica was in most areas we visited. No vacant, half built buildings, abandoned homes and garbage piles on the streets. We hardly saw any skinny, scrawny dogs running around. And, the people were so clean and well groomed. They smelled as if they just walked out of the shower. Even children were surprisingly clean. When we were going to take the ferry to Puntarenas, there was this little girl, she must have been about a year old. She was wearing a little yellow dress with white flowers, had her thin hair up in a mini-bun, she was wearing gold jewelry, stud earrings, necklace and bracelet and cute little white sandals. She was adorable. She was walking to her mother and had to step down a small step. It was a little high for her, when she stepped down she lost her balance and ended on her bum. Her mother called out “get up, you’re going to get dirty!” The little girl shot right up and started dusting herself off. Clean…that was the biggest impression I got from Tico’s and Costa Rica, very clean.

We went out for a walk one day along a windy, dirt road up in the hills near the town of Carmona. Most of the properties were several acre lots, every now and again we’d come across a small home where somebody would be sitting in the front porch. As we passed by they waved and said hello. On the way back we started a conversation with one of the farmers, next thing we’re sitting on the porch enjoying a pleasant conversation drinking coconut water and they’re handing us fruit from their trees. They wouldn’t take no for an answer. It was just a wonderful experience, everything I was told to expect.

Almost everybody we encountered spoke at least some English; many spoke it very well. Everything I heard about the people in Costa Rica is true. Tico’s are genuinely warm hearted and the friendliest people you will ever meet.

Costa Rica Ferry Ride

I highly recommend taking the ferry ride in Costa Rica at least once.

The Ferry

The ferry is a great way to take a break from driving and staying on track to get to your destination. It is my understanding that Costa Rica recently acquired 2 ferry’s. The one we went on was very nice with a huge section for cars, at the mid enclosed level you could purchase snacks/drinks and hangout and on the upper-open level is all open so you get the best view of the surroundings and fresh air. The ferry even had a disco/karaoke bar (closed during the day).

The ride was only an hour long from Playa Naranjo to Puntarenas. If we would have taken the road, we would have had to deal with morning traffic which we decided to pass on that. Once we arrived to Puntarenas, it was quick and easy to get back on the main road to our destination, San Jose. We did stop at a beach restaurant where we enjoyed a wonderful lunch.

About food…we did encounter many unexpected surprises when ordering several dishes. I’ll save that for another post.

• Check out this ferry video: Ferry Video
• View ferry schedule and more info: Ferry Schedule

Driving in Costa Rica

Now this can be a very stressful experience for many drivers. Coming from the US you see signs for everything and anything everywhere. Road signs are no doubt easily identified. Granted, every here and there you might end up in a neighborhood where signs are a little difficult to make out but eventually you do find them. We decided that in our first Costa Rica adventure we would rent a car for the convenience of getting around…hmmm, yeah convenience.

We arrived at the airport around 7 pm picked up our vehicle and about an hour later we were ready to head to our hotel. The Hertz rep was very nice and gave us the easy directions to our hotel and even highlighted it on the map.  We made it out of Hertz, got to the main highway and drove the distance instructed. All was seemingly simple until we tried to confirm we made the right turn…there weren’t signs anywhere, I mean ANYWHERE! We continued driving for several kilometers hoping we would see a sign with street names on it. It didn’t help that it was late at night and lighting poor. After a while we decided it was time to call on the Tico’s for a little help. Ha ha, nice they are indeed as directions we did receive. We stopped a few people over several miles of going round searching for landmarks we never did find. I tried really hard to remain positive and point out cool things we came across but the tension was definitely heavy in the car. Finally we pulled into the second gas station saw a cab driver and requested he lead us to our hotel. Finally, we checked into our hotel (20 minute drive from Hertz) about 3 hours later.

We hoped it was going to be easier during the day time but San Jose was way too busy and without signs the map didn’t do us much good. Another challenge was that most roads went in a single direction, except the main roads. Finally we decided to just focus on the direction we were headed (west) and made sure to keep it that way. It worked.

Outside of San Jose, some of the main intersections (especially by the airport) were extremely confusing. Just getting out of town on the right path again took us some time as we were expecting to see signs to confirm were were on the right track.

Driving in Costa Rica can certainly be extremely challenging when you have no idea what you are up against. Getting back into, once we got the hang of the landscape and did recognize some landmarks, it was much easier (and quicker) to get around.

After our experience, I would never recommend getting a rental at night; but definitely get one if you want the freedom to come and go as you please. Get a cab, pay attention, ask questions and take notes (they’ll come in handy). Know that you will always be given directions (they may not be right but you will get them). The roads are fairly good too. I’ll talk more about that on another post.

Costa Rica’s roads

We were impressed by the roads in Costa Rica.

Roads Less Traveled

Prior to going to CR, I did a bit of research to get an idea of what to expect. We were ready for ankle deep pot holes, narrow 2 way roads (fit for one) and deep cliffs alongside. Not the case at all. At least not in the areas we were in.

We drove around in the town of San Jose then headed north to the Nicoya Peninsula, once there, we headed to the small village of Carmona. We also visited a little town on the Pacific side. It was a long and twisted dirt road up and down several mountains. Some curves were 180 degrees. It got pretty hairy when passing other vehicles (luckily it wasn’t frequent). On another trip we went from Carmona to Naranjo to take the ferry back to the mainland. The roads were paved for the most part with a small 12 km stretch of dirt road.

Most of the roads in town and all the way to Carmona were perfect. We encountered few dirt road stretches from Carmona to the beach and even fewer from Carmona to Naranjo.

The ferry ride to the mainland was a great experience. I’ll elaborate on that on another day.

Peace!

April Fool’s Pet Tragedy

I was in bed restless, finally decided I would just get out of bed and look up some stuff on the computer. As I sat down

on my desk all 3 of my kitties ran over to visit with me. I caressed them all and started surfing the net.

Britt playing with Geckos

A moment later one of them left and shortly after I heard what sounded like a burst of air, like a balloon deflating. The burst started loud then quickly fainted. It occurred to me that maybe Max had a serious gas problem. I shook my head and went back to surfing. Not too long after, I heard that noise again. It was quite loud. It couldn’t have been Max. I got up, walked to the living room and noticed the door was open on the Gecko’s cage and one of the cats jumped out. I was mortified. Turned on the lights and ran over to the cage on the other side of the couch. As I made my way to the cage, I saw on the ground two plump, perfectly healthy Gecko tails. I freaked out. I grabbed the cats, spanked them and tossed them in the garage. I frantically began searching for the Geckos.

I had five Geckos in the cage. I’ve had most since my oldest was 6 years old; he’s 19 now. The oldest Gecko has been with us about 13 years and the rest 9 to 12 years. We have a history; they are part of my family.

The first thing I did was go back to the cage to see if there were any Geckos left. Thank goodness two of them were there. I checked them, they were scared but they were ok. I felt horrible. I locked their door and began searching for the other three. I looked everywhere, I couldn’t find them. It finally hit me that they may be in the garage. In a panic, I ran to the garage and sure enough, two mangled bodies laid on the blue speckled, colored concrete next to the Foosball table. It was two of the younger, but healthier ones. I was so upset. I grabbed each cat shoving the Geckos bodies in their faces, expressing how angry I was at them. But I was still missing one. I went back to the cage and once again searched for the missing Gecko and there she was. My oldest Gecko was hiding under the tree trunk. I was very surprised she was still alive, her sight is poor, I have to hand feed her to keep her healthy. She has a distinct marking on the tip of her nose, a check mark.

I feel terrible. I failed my defensless Geckos. Somehow their door must have not been closed correctly. I should always double check their door. The cats are cats, they did what is natural. I laid in bed a while before coming downstairs, I wish I would have had a stronger sense to save them.

Charles Barkley picks on Barney

Awe man this Charles Barkley clip is funny: http://ping.fm/Juhev