15 Nov 2024: I said "hello" to a slim uniformed road sweeper outside the Lentor MRT Station, as I walked past her at 9.30am, trying to fulfill my 5,000 steps exercise daily. The Senior in her late 60s tilted her hat and greeted me.
"What was your previous job?" I asked. "I was a PA in a company arranging bulk carriers to export iron ore from Russia to other countries."
The PA (Personal Assistant) to the boss is a very important management position as she handles a lot of administrative matters which take a lot of time.
"My boss could make at least $40,000 per carrier exporting iron ore for Russia." It sounded a lot of profit to me.
"Were you retrenched as Russia is still at war with Ukraine?"
"Russia is still at war. Business was difficult. My boss had cancer but has recovered after chemotherapy. His children didn't want to take over. So he decided to close the company."
I was surprised as a PA would be earning more than a road sweeper. She lost her job partly owing to the Russian-Ukraine war.
I wrIte this article for Andy Wang as I was updating my merchant ship images with the help of Andy. Many times, a related topic like "The PA is a road sweeper" connects my ship photography to make it alive to me as a veterinarian.
Singapore
is home to many species of squirrels,
with the Plantain Squirrel being the most common. The
Plantain Squirrel has a long bushy tail and can be easily
distinguished by the black and white stripes along the sides of its
body
But several are in
danger of becoming extinct in Singapore, namely, the Cream-coloured
Giant Squirrel, Shrew-faced Ground Squirrel, Red Giant Flying
Squirrel and Red-cheeked Flying Squirrel.
Squirrels'
favorite natural foods are hickory
nuts, pecans, black walnuts and acorns.
Their favorite feeder food is black oil sunflower seeds, their
least favorite feeder food is thistle seed.
Video of the Plantain squirrel taken by Mr Chan Jin Lee at East Coast Carpark F2 on 14 Nov 2024.
PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS: Manual mode for the Brown-throated sunbird.
This Brown-throated sunbird (Antreptes malacensis) is also
known as Plain-throated sunbird. It appeared suddenly as I was
already in Manual mode and my Canon camera was on a tripod.
No
time to waste as it flew off fast. I focused on the eye and took 6
shots. Only one is good enough to see the eye. Canon R5 focuses well
on eyes, as shown in this case. .
Free-roaming outside the Aviary of Bird Paradise in Penguin Cove
area. This species rarely stay for more than 30 seconds for
photography. Best to use TV Mode and focus on eye, handheld camera.
Canon R5, Manual Mode, 105mm, 1/80 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200.
Tripod. 11 Nov 2024. 11 am.
The thing Nate hated about rehab was the long
periods of silence, or meditation, as Sergio called them……(pg 68).
…worrying about the future. This conversation with Josh was one he’d
played out many times.
But the smart retorts and quick comebacks failed
him under pressure. Almost four months of virtual solitude had dulled
his reflexes. He could manage to look pitiful and that was all. ‘Come
on, Josh. You can’t just kick me out.’
------------------
Mystery on County Road - 48 Hours video. 20 Nov 2024.
1. What started out as a holiday trip turned out to be an all-night vigil. 2. Under the ruse that they saw the truck. 3. Cricoid fracture - prosecution insisted that it was caused by Todd. 4. He staged it and killed his wife.
5. His faith did not waver. 6. His most damaging testimony was telling the police he was going to visit a 3rd person to replace the windshield. Just like the others, the person said he never called Todd to change the windshield.
7. Mum's cousin spoke out against against Todd and read a letter signed by several cousins. Daughter claimed she was estranged from the mother. 8. The jury was just out for 9 hours before they reached the verdict. 3 months later, everyone was back in the courtroom.
Always carry your camera while on a tour bus.
I took this shot of the rarely seen Xiaomi sports car with styling
cues from Porsche, when it turned towards my bus in Yunmeng County,
China.
Xiaomi SU7 electric car by Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi.
Yunmeng County. China.
VET
CASE STUDY: An old Shih Tzu shivers and stops eating on 10 Nov 22.
Why?
Dr
Sing Kong Yuen, BVMS (Glasgow).
On
10 Nov 2022, this over 15-year-old male, NOT NEUTERED Shih Tzu stopped eating and
shivered. The video showed my physical examination procedures.
Significant findings were enlargement of the "prostate + bladder area" and large
swelling of one scrotal sac.
The
dog did not show any sign of pain on abdominal palpation of the
above-mentioned prostate + bladder area and scrotal sac.
More
information is needed from abdominal X-rays which confirm several
bladder stones. Kidney stones were also present. The scrotal swelling
could be testicular growth or torsion and the owner was advised to
get his dog neutered. He did not accept my advice.
(Two
weeks later, the scrotal swelling was much larger. Neuter showed
testicular torsion of the enlarged testicle. The dog recovered from
neuter and was normal for some months.
No
urine test was done as urine was not collected. The tentative
diagnosis was urinary tract infection due to urinary and bladder
stones irritating the inside of the urinary system. There could be
pain causing shivers.
In
conclusion, X-rays and other laboratory tests are needed to confirm
the tentative diagnosis of urinary stones or enlarged prostate via physical examination.
FOLLOW-UP
The dog
recovered after a course of antibiotics and commenced eating. Two
weeks later, the scrotal swelling had increased considerably. The
owner accepted my advice to neuter the dog. The scrotal swelling was
due to testicular torsion leading to large swelling of one testicle.
The old dog lived a normal life for some 12 months. Acute testicular torsion is an emergency condition. Without neuter to remove the twisted testicles, he could have had died from bleeding and shock of testicular torsion.
The 15-year-old male
not-neutered Shih Tzu "shivers" and stopped eating. He did
not have fever, lethargy, vomiting, diarrhoea or problem with
urination.
He had a swollen scrotum on one side, possibly
testicular tumour or torsion. I advised the owner to get the dog
neutered.
He was not keen to do so as that would change his
energetic personality which included biting family members who
irritated him. He even bit the mother-in-law. After medication for
pain and antibitoics, he recovered his appetite, so there was no
reason to neuter him.
However, his scrotal swelling became
bigger as evident by a video the owner sent me. He accepted my advice
to get the dog neutered.
The dog would have died from
bleeding and shock as the twisted testicular blood vessels would
strangulate blood flow to the testes.
After neuter, the dog
lived normally for around a year, but the urinary infections from
kidney and bladder stones caused him kidney failure - weight loss, no
appetite and vomiting.
The owner (a retiree in his 60s) and
his family decided on euthanasia for his beloved companion.
The
now married daughter was still in school when she was presented this
dog for passing her Primary Six Leaving Examinations.
Euthanasia
was a very sad occasion for me and the family who said goodbye to
him. I was the one who gave him the puppy vaccination more than a
decade ago and now the owners wanted me to perform the euthanasia.
29 OCT 2024. Jianghan
Road Pedestrian Street located in the central area of Hankou, Wuhan,
Hubei, China is known as the longest pedestrian street in China and
the "Best Pedestrian Street in the World".
VET CASE STUDY: 4 Nov 2024: A
large encapsulated abscess in a guinea pig. Part 1.
HISTORY
On 3 Nov 2024, I received a WhatsApp from a lady guinea
pig owner:
"Hi Dr Sing. A friend gave me your contact. May I
ask if you see guinea pigs?"
"We do treat guinea
pigs," I texted back. "What happened to your pet?"
She
sent a photo and video with the text" "My vet tech has come
to help to flush the wound."
I would meet her at 10 am at
Toa Payoh vets on 4 Nov to consult as it is very important for the
vet to physically examine the patient with the owner.
She sent me the following images and videos showing the 5-year-old guinea pig has an excellent appetite and is healthy. Her poos are of normal size and amount. Hence the pet is fit for anaesthesia and surgery to be done today. There will be less chance of dying from anaesthesia in a healthy guinea pig.
Vet Case Study 2024: Encapsulated abscess in a guinea pig. Part 2. Operated by Dr Daniel Sing on 4 Nov 2024 at Toa Payoh Vets and went home on the same day. Guinea pig is Okay and has a ravenous appetite. Stool pellets are smaller in size 24 hours post operation.
This customised tour of Wuhan included cultural visits to Wong Clan Association sites and sight-seeing of tourist attractions was memorable and well organised by Ms Jane Loo of Experience Tours Services (S) Pte Ltd. The group consisted mainly elderly tourists from Singapore.
Jane ensured that the Seniors who were slow in walking were well looked after and safe. The weather was generally sunny for duration of the tour. The food was good. I would say that all members got along well with each other.
Keep up the good services. I share two photos for Jane and hope she will also share them with Sugar who was an excellent story teller who made the long bus journeys interesting and educational.
