So I took Sasha back to the vet for his follow-up (and postponed rabies shot), and to my surprise, the vet tech picks up his carrier and heads toward the exam room. "Are you sure you don't need me?" I ask, because I always go, even when it's just a shot. "No, it's fine," says the tech.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA... Okay, this is where I should have insisted, but I tend to yield to professionals who are supposed to know their business. I let her go.

Half an hour later, a disheveled tech brings back the carrier. Unearthly Balrog growling and hissing drown out the barking dogs, and the carrier jerks back and forth as His Fluffyness flings himself against the sides in a demonic frenzy.

"He's...a little angry," says the tech, hastily setting the carrier down. "He, uh, tore a claw; it's hanging on the carrier door, see?"

"Yes, I see," I say, fighting persnickety with everything in me.

"Do we usually have trouble with him?" She starts flipping frantically through Sasha's chart.

"No, no trouble at all," I say, feeling the persnickety rise, "But I always go in with him."

"Oh. We had to give him an injected de-wormer rather than an oral."

"Yes, I imagine you did," I say. I can't vouch for my non-persnicketyness at this point.

Tech hands me my meds, my bill for $186, and disappears. I bend down to look Sasha in the eye. He flattens his ears and hisses like a velociraptor. I can hear his big fluffy tail thrashing from side to side.

"Put a lid on it," I say.

Sasha utters a truly impressive YOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWLLLLLLLLL, which makes the Irish Setter next to us cower.

He continues to vocalize his displeasure and move his carrier about through sheer force of his righteous wrath while I pay the bill.

"You have dishonored our House, sir," I tell him, and then I grab the carrier and skedaddle.

The office staff were laughing, but I think that poor setter is traumatized for life. I imagine that vet tech is, too.

Himself is still sulking, but hopefully that's the last visit to the vet for a while. It's certainly the last time he deals with medical personnel without me.

CATS.