 |
| Volumes 1 and 2 of the Village Vet books. |
I broke the news to Sandy that Pedro had a growth inside his abdomen and was bleeding.‘Is cancer?’ Sandy didn’t need charades for that one.‘Probably, ‘ I replied, before attaching all the caveats that scientists like to apply – we couldn’t be sure unless we performed biopsies, looked for evidence that it might have spread. In essence, though, it was walking like a duck and quacking like a duck so it wasn’t likely to be a budgie. I used a lot of words, but I am pretty sure Sandy only understood one, and that was ‘cancer’. (from Village Vets, ABC books)
What’s your favourite veterinary book? I don’t mean
textbooks – though I certainly have favourites there. I am talking veterinary biography,
a genre made famous by Alf Wight (better known as James Herriot).
There are an increasing range of titles to choose from,
and I must confess these books are a guilty pleasure of mine. I love reading
about the cases, client interactions and challenges of colleagues in the
profession.
Anthony Bennett and James Carroll, best known for the TV
series The Village Vets, teamed up
with Mark Whittaker to write a couple of books about their cases, and these are
a brilliant read. “Village Vets” and “Calving Straps and Zombie Cats” are two
great reads, published by ABC books.
At this point I should declare that I went to uni with
Anthony and James, but I don’t think I am biased. The books are fascinating and
entertaining, as well as very moving. Anthony and James are honest about poor
as well as good case outcomes. There is one chapter in the first book, Village
Vets, where Anthony documents a calving with a devastating outcome and his
subsequent meltdown. They write about being on call in mixed practice, a
physically, mentally and emotionally demanding experience. And they talk about
some remarkable cases – a cat that was revived after being deceased for almost
twenty minutes. A triplet calving. A field colic surgery.
In an age where our media seems to want to project a
certain image of veterinarians, these books are refreshing. The cases are
described in a way that provides enough detail to be of interest to vets, yet
accessible enough for someone who doesn’t perform calvings or surgeries for a living.
And peppered throughout are observations and insights I found myself nodding
vigorously about (in fact a few times I was moved to text the authors, which
they probably found a bit weird – sorry about that, it’s hard to curb one’s
enthusiasm).
I definitely recommend these books to anyone with an
interest in veterinary careers or mixed practice. (You might also like OutbackVets).
And I’m hoping that the Village Vets write a few more
books – in between their on-call shifts, working days, practice management
duties, volunteering, filming and family-raising.
