*Ring*Ring*

9pm

"Hi, this is Dr. Dawson, I got a call about your bull.  What's going on tonight?"

"I think my bull has tetanus."

<silence>

"Okay... why do you think he has tetanus?  What is he doing?"

"Well, my friend says he thinks he has tetanus."

"But what is he doing?"

"Well I don't know, I'm on the road.  But my friend thinks he has tetanus because he can't chew his food."

"I'm going to need a little more information.  Can you tell me more about him?"

"He's 6.  Or 7.  Maybe.  I led him in from the field this evening.  But he couldn't eat feed."

"Oh so you were with him earlier.  It doesn't sound like a typical case of tetanus, but it could be something like listeria.  Or another infection affecting his face nerves.  He probably should be started on high doses of antibiotics and anti-inflammatories."

"Well yeah, I was there early this afternoon.  That's when I saw that he couldn't eat.  So I called my friend and he says he thinks the bull has tetanus.  So about 2 hours ago I called Dr. M (doctor from another practice), and he said he would call me back in the morning."

"I can't tell you for sure what is wrong with him without examining him.  Is he caught up in the barn?  Do you have a chute?"

"Nope, no chute.  No stanchion either."

"You said you led him to the barn, is he halter broke?"

"Nope, never had a halter on.  He lets me come up to him and scratch his back though."

"So you have no chute and he is not halter broke.  Have you ever given him a shot?"

"Nope, but he's pretty gentle as long as you scratch his back."

"Things tend to change when you start poking animals with needles.  Just out of curiosity, what did Dr. M have to say about your bull?"

"He said a lot of fancy words that I can't remember.  There was one thing he said though... Lee-something.  Oh, I know.  That cantaloupe disease!"

"Listeria?  Yes I mentioned that as well.  I think the best thing would be for you to wait for Dr. M to call you in the morning.  Because I can't treat him if he's not restrained."

"You know, I think there may be some foul play involved.  I think someone came in the field and set out to hurt him.  And now he can't eat.  And my friend really thinks he has tetanus."

"I suppose anything is possible.  You have a good night sir."

Monkey Business

This is a grivet. Grivets are Old World monkeys from eastern Africa who weigh 6 to 9 pounds.


This is a Black and White Cobolus.  It is an Old World monkey from central Africa, and weighs in at 15 to 30 pounds.



What happens when these two primates have a disagreement and the monkey vet is unavailable?  They call their friendly large animal vet and ask her to come sew the little monkey's leg back together.  Seriously.