vet day, not as bad as I feared

Took Fifi to the vet yesterday for her yearly check and the rabies shot. She knows the car now, she hates it, but she accepts it. The problem was the waiting room. Two dogs and a very loud parrot, and Fifi on my lap with her tail wrapped around my wrist like a rope. I was more nervous than her, honestly. The vet in Santitham is a young woman who speaks good English and does not rush. She weighed Fifi, looked at her teeth and her ears, and found a small lump on the side of her neck. She said it is probably a harmless fatty lump but she wanted to check it with a needle. Fifi did not like the needle, but she held still for me. I gave her a treat and her favorite lick mat afterward, and that was enough. The results came back two hours later, all clean. The lump is fine. We will watch it once a year. Fifi was sleeping on the sofa when I got home and she did not talk to me for the rest of the evening. Typical cat. I am 72 and I still get anxious with these things. My late wife always handled the vet visits and I am learning. It is slowly getting easier, and Pepsi was very confused that Fifi came home looking tired. She sat next to her for an hour, which is unusual for her. Lesson: bring the carrier every time, even when the cat is calm. And ask for the lick mat before the visit, not after.