The Fascinating World of Asian Civet Cats: From Surgery to Coffee

Today’s patients are unlike any I’ve encountered before. They resemble a curious blend of raccoons, dogs, and cats, but they are actually two types of Asian Civets: Rocket, an Asian Palm Civet from Java, and Chewy, a Sumatran White Masked Palm Civet. These unique creatures have been rescued from failed adoptions and the controversial Kopi Luwak coffee trade. Join me as we delve into their world, from surgery to the intriguing origins of civet coffee… and yes these boys are in visiting the vet for castration today!

The Civet Patients

1. Rocket: The Javanese Explorer

• Rocket, our Java-based Asian Palm Civet, exudes an air of mystery. He’s not mean; he’s just profoundly wary of humans. His distinctive appearance and cautious demeanor set him apart from typical patients.

• Sedation is administered orally while Rocket remains in his cage, minimizing stress for both him and our veterinary staff. Unfortunately, the medicine doesn’t taste like strawberries or bananas—Chewy’s favorite flavors!

2. Chewy: The Sumatran Barking Civet!

• Chewy, the Sumatran White Masked Palm Civet, is less cooperative. His barking protests reveal that he’s not fully sedated. A quick injection is needed to ensure a smooth procedure.

• Civets like Chewy have become popular pets during the pandemic, leading to a surge in breeders across Indonesia. However, they’re expensive to care for, and many end up abandoned or released in non-native habitats.

Surgery and Recovery

1. Prepping Rocket

• Rocket’s front leg is clipped, allowing us to place an IV line for fluid support and medication during surgery. He’s then shaved and prepped for anesthesia.

• A heat pad keeps Rocket warm during the procedure, while close monitoring ensures his safety.

2. Chewy’s Surgical Adventure

• Chewy’s surgery also goes smoothly, his breathing and heart rate are monitored closely during the procedure.  He has impressively large teeth!

• After surgery, both civets receive pain relief and wake up gradually. Chewy rests in his familiar cage, feeling secure.

The Curious Case of Civet Coffee and Exotic perfumes!

• Kopi Luwak: Also known as civet coffee, this Indonesian delicacy is one of the world’s most expensive brews.

• Origins: Civets play a crucial role in its production. They consume coffee cherries, digest the outer layer, and excrete the beans. These beans are then collected, cleaned, and roasted.

• Ethical Concerns: Historically, wild civets were the source of these beans. However, intensive farming methods now confine civets to cages, where they’re force-fed coffee cherries.

• Civet Musk: Rocket is a stinky boy! But did you know that Civet musk was a highly prized ingredient in perfumes?!  It used to be traded with Zanzibar, Egypt and India!

• Ethical Concerns: Synthetic musk has replaced civet musk in perfumes due to ethical considerations.

From surgery tables to coffee plantations, civets continue to captivate our curiosity. As we care for Rocket and Chewy, we’re reminded of our responsibility to protect all species of animals and ensure their welfare!

Make sure you watch the full story on You Tube, they are fascinating animals!

What is the most unusual pet you have ever seen! Dr Alison has never seen a Civet Cat before!

A Day in the Life of a Vet on the Gili Islands

Animal Rescues, Cute Kittens, and Cat-astrophes!

Welcome to the Gili Islands: Where Cats Rule

The Gili Islands in Indonesia are a tiny archipelago, accessible only by boat, where cats roam the sandy streets. Dr. Alison, a slightly cat-crazy veterinarian from New Zealand, and her intrepid husband Graham, assist the local vet clinic, Luni Lombok, an animal charity dedicated to caring for the strays and street cats. Together, they make a difference for all the animals on islands where a cat ambulance and public transport are unlike anything you’ve seen before!

Today, we’re on Gili Meno, one island away from the Luni Lombok vet clinic. The cats here need care too, so we’ve brought cages, tables, surgical supplies, and medications for a week-long pop-up clinic.

TNR Clinic: Managing a Stray Population

Hundreds of cats on Gili Meno face overpopulation without neutering. Our TNR (trap neuter return) clinic is a humane solution. A team of cat catchers brings cats to the clinic in cages on the back of bicycles! Each cat, whether a friendly ‘Cupcake’ or a grumpy ‘Chili’, is desexed and also receives vaccinations, and treatment for wounds or parasites. We ensure all surgical patients are comfortable and manage any complications.

After a busy morning desexing more than 14 cats, we enjoy lunch from a local warung, delivered by bike. We then check some kittens who face concerns about panleukopenia, a contagious virus causing vomiting and diarrhea. Vaccination is crucial, as seen in New Zealand, where this disease is rare thanks to widespread vaccination practices.

Patient Stories: Siro and Moritz

We meet Siro, a white cat with a severe skin infection, and later, his best friend Moritz. Siro, diagnosed with Feline Orofacial Pain Syndrome, was in such distress with a condition causing him to continuously claw at his face. Now he begins treatment for a better life and makes a miraculous recovery. His musical purr and antics chasing Moritz around the clinic was a truly heartwarming thing to be a part of. He has even become the new clinic manager, after being adopted by the Luni Lombok clinic who wanted to ensure he had ongoing treatment and care. Now he just needs to grow back the fur we had to shave!!

Reflections at Sunset

As the day ends, we reflect on the fulfillment of helping Gili Meno’s cats. Volunteering creates a significant impact on the lives of animals and people, fostering lifelong friendships.

Vet Around The World is on a mission to bring veterinary care to pets (and people) who struggle to access a vet because of limited finances or resources.

YOU Can Help Too…simply head to our You Tube channel and watch some videos, we are trying to build our channel so that we ear enough money from our videos to continue volunteering for animal charities. Even more help is to like, and subscribe and comment on the videos!

Subscribe to our newsletter, and follow our You Tube channel for more adventures - you do not want to miss the upcoming Gili Trewangan episode where we care for a kitten injured by a falling coconut, and encounter some strange looking creatures that seem to be half badger and half cat…

Dr. Alison, a slightly cat-crazy veterinarian from New Zealand, and her intrepid husband Graham, assist the local vet clinic, Luni Lombok, an animal charity dedicated to caring for the strays and street cats. Together, they make a difference for all the animals on islands where a cat ambulance and public transport are unlike anything you’ve seen before!

It’s a Dog’s Life!

Tutukaka Adventures with Suzie

Running on the beach, exploring the countryside, chasing balls, getting muddy in the mangroves and going on fishing expeditions. Does that sound like the best ever dog life?!

Meet Suzie, the Whangarei Rescue Dog that we love to bits!

She lives in Tutukaka, a beautiful part of the coastline of the North Island of New Zealand. We are lucky enough to get to stay with Suzie when her owners want to travel. She knows us well, and greets us when we arrive with her ball in her mouth, wagging her tail and ready to join in on what ever adventure is planned for the day.

This week’s adventure included a road trip to Whananaki. Suzie jumped in the car as soon as the door was open, we checked we had her favorite ball, a dog lead, the requisite poop bags and we were off. We followed the winding gravel road from the turn off at Sandy Bay (oopsie, time to wash the car when we get home!).

Our first stop was Whananaki South beach - a beautiful sandy bay with miles of space for Suzie to run and play, and she ran and ran for that ball until she was panting hard with her tongue hanging out! So back in the car to catch her breath while we drove on to the longest footbridge in the Southern hemisphere….

The Whananaki Footbridge

The 395 metre footbridge was originally built by locals in 1947 to span the estuary between Whananaki North (where the school is) and Whananaki South. Prior to this bridge being built, the school teacher had to row across the estuary twice a day, ferrying the kids to and from school! The bridge also forms part of the Te Araroa Trail, a continuous 3,000 km walking track stretching from Cape Reinga in the North, to Bluff in the South. We loved walking part of the local history, watching the herons wading in the tide, and we treated ourselves to an icecream from the local dairy. Suzie had a minor drama, dropping her ball off the center of the bridge - which was waaay too high for us to be able to climb down and rescue it. She was so determined to get her ball back she jumped off the bridge at the end, and then swam the estuary back to the middle and managed to locate her precious ball. Well done Suzie!

On the way back across the bridge to the car, Graham decided the mangroves looked a promising spot for some oysters, so we took our shoes off, rolled up our trousers and waded in to the mud. You only find oysters if the mud is oozing between your toes and up to your ankles. Suzie didn’t care, the muddier the better. Unfortunately we had no luck with the oysters, so we dried Suzie off, and made plans for a fishing expedition closer to home.

As you can see from the pictures - the fishing expedition was more successful than the oyster hunt. We can follow a trail from Suzie’s home down to a rocky beach which is a perfect spot for fishing. We caught a snapper large enough to keep - Suzie was very excited to see it’s flapping tail, and she made sure the seagulls were not allowed to get too close! We then wandered our way home to cook it up with Fog Dog beer batter, and made a side salad to go with it. A successful end to a wonderful doggy day out.

Suzie is tired, too tired to play...

..... oh wait, no she is not!

We hope you loved this vet “tail” of adventures with our 4 legged friend, and we hope that you will follow us on our upcoming adventures full of animal encounters! We have a challenge for you too, see below….

Where is Suzie?

Your challenge for today is to spot Suzie in this photo!

I think the ball is a giveaway….

A Wild Night of Doggy Mischief

Meet Fred and George,

the playful Jack Russell Terriers

James Herriot would be proud…

It was a stormy night in Tauranga, with gale force winds creating havoc everywhere. The winds scattered huge polystyrene blocks from a house construction site across a farm, and also dislodged a small block of rat poison from a high up shelf.....

And guess who found the tasty treat? Two naughty terriers! Luckily, their owner also saw the broken up bait block and rushed Fred and George to the vet clinic straight away.

Rat poison is very dangerous for dogs, it can make them bleed to death inside. Some dogs need blood transfusions and intensive care to survive. Luckily rat poison doesn't cause trouble immediately, but after a few days it can cause fatal internal bleeding by interfering with the blood clotting system. At this early stage, both George and Fred were fine, happy and proud of their adventure. But we didn't know which one had eaten the poison…..

….so we had to make them throw up the poison. How do you do that? Vets have a special Magic Trick called Apomorphine - just put a little bit under an eyelid, and it makes the dog feel sick and puke everything in their stomach. James Herriot would be proud!

So who was the culprit? Which dog needs treatment?  It could easily be both of them, so we had to make both dogs vomit.

Was it Fred or George?!

Well, 5 minutes after being given apomorphine, Fred just sicked up his breakfast and went to sulk in the corner, feeling very sorry for himself.  I am so sorry Fred, but we had to do it!

But George, oh boy, he vomited up a lot of blue green poison. And more. And more. And more! He had snacked on enough poison to kill a dog much bigger than him. Getting rid of it from his stomach was a good first step, but some of it might have already got into his system. So we needed more treatment.

 First, we made him swallow a big syringe full of activated charcoal - a nasty black stuff that gets everywhere! George was amazing, he took it like a champ, even though it was gross. The charcoal should stop any leftover poison in his stomach from getting absorbed. His poo will be black for a few days, never mind.

Secondly, we started him on vitamin K injections and tablets; this is what fixes the damage that rat poison does to the blood clotting. We had to start it before he started bleeding internally.

Thirdly, we did a blood test after two weeks of daily vitamin K treatment, to make sure he is all clear. Yes, the poisons effects can last that long!

But the good news for George is that we caught it early, so we hope to prevent any bleeding problems altogether. Fred and George can now go back to being curious little terriers!

It is important rat bait is stored well out of reach of any curious animals. Preferably secured in a way it cannot be blown off a shelf or carried off by rats. It is also very important that pets are seen by your vet as soon as possible if there is any chance that they might have eaten rat poison.

Tell your dog-loving friends about this story - you might save a life!

It is important rat bait is stored well out of reach of any curious animals.

It is also very important that pets are seen by your vet as soon as possible if there is any chance that they might have eaten rat poison.

We hope you loved this vet “tail” of doggy mischief, and we hope that you will follow us on our upcoming adventures full of animal encounters!

Doktor Blong Dog

Working as a Veterinarian (doktor blong dog) in multicultural Vanuatu is guaranteed to provide all sorts of entertainment, especially given my French is rusty, my Chinese non-existent, and the local Ni Van staff were laughingly teaching me Bislama.  I was the only vet on the island for three weeks, while the regular vets were on leave.  As you can imagine I have many stories to tell about this adventure!

My husband Graham accompanied me on this island adventure, and so I put his ship’s medic training to good use over Christmas, when I had no support staff available to help….

A puppy gets checked at the Vanuatu Vet Clinic -photo credit to the Vanuatu Vet Clinic

I was a little hesitant when presented with a dog fight victim that had a proptosed globe – yes its eyeball was not where it should be!  Graham stepped up admirably, acting as my assistant, theatre nurse and anaesthetist while we sutured with dog’s eyeball back into place.

Many of the patients I saw belonged to the expat community, who were able to pay for medications and treatments for their pets.  The concept of ownership is very different in the Ni Van communities – dogs are loosely attached to the communities in which they live, but often do not have one owner who can take care of their health and welfare.  Poorer villages struggle to have enough resources to meet family needs, let alone pay for the care of a dog, so while living on a tropical island sounds like heaven, the street dogs of Vanuatu have a hard life.  Scavenging rice, coconuts or food scraps while dodging being hit by cars on the often-busy roads.  Contending with burdens of parasite no Kiwi dog has ever seen…. pot-bellied with tapeworms, short of breath from Heartworm, and ear canals packed tight with ticks feasting on their blood.

Is it really a dog’s life, living on the beach?

One local dog was brought in because it was having trouble walking.  It was very weak on its back legs and needed assistance even to stand.  This dog was a victim of fish poisoning – it had eaten offal of reef fish containing ciguatoxins.  These toxins are produced by microscopic organisms that get consumed by reef fish.  The only treatment available is supportive care and nursing.  Sometimes the poisoning is so severe it causes paralysis, coma or death.

Luckily the Vet Clinic works closely with SAM’S Animal welfare, to ensure the local dogs have access to parasite treatments, desexing and medical care.  Local families would arrive at the clinic, where I could examine their pets and medications would often be provided free of charge, or in return for whatever donation the family could afford.  SAM’S also helps with fostering and adoption of unwanted or stray animals. They do a great job!

The Vanuatu Vet Clinic

Aside from the veterinary stories and the knowledge that we had done something to help animals and communities, we were also left with many fond memories.  New Year’s Eve fireworks and dancing on the waterfront, and giving high-fives out the window of our car to all the locals we passed as we did a New Year’s Day circumnavigation of the island.  There were even not-so-fond memories; 6-inch-long centipedes that seem to travel at lightning speeds across the kitchen floor!

Vanuatu is a beautiful country with beautiful, friendly people.  If you are visiting the country, do consider helping the animals of Vanuatu with a donation of money or supplies to SAM’S. Follow this link to their website:

Sams Animal Welfare Vanuatu | Supporting Animals In Vanuatu

Beautiful Vanuatu!

Thank you for taking the time to read this veterinary story of ours - we hope you enjoyed it and hope you will follow along on our future adventures!