Vet in Harness Read online

"Good boy, Magnus,' I said ingratiatingly as I advanced towards him.

  The little dog eyed the bandage unwinkingly until it was almost touching

  his nose then, with a surprising outburst of ferocity, he made a

  snarling leap at my hand. I felt the draught on my fingers as a row of

  sparkling teeth snapped shut half an inch away, but as he turned to have

  another go my free hand clamped on the scruff of his neck.

  "Right, Mr Beckwith,' I said calmly, "I have him now. Just pass me that

  bandage again and I won't be long.'

  But the young man had had enough. "Not me!' he gasped. "I'm off!' He

  turned the door handle and I heard his feet scurrying along the passage.

  Ah well, I thought, it was probably best. With boss dogs my primary move

  was usually to get the owner out of the way. It was surprising how

  quickly these tough guys calmed down when they found themselves alone

  with a no-nonsense stranger who knew how to handle them. I could recite

  a list who were raving tearaways in their own homes but apologetic

  tail-waggers once they crossed the surgery threshold. And they were all

  bigger than Magnus.

  Retaining my firm grip on his neck I unwound another foot of bandage and

  as he fought furiously, mouth gaping, lips retracted like a scaled-down

  Siberian wolf, I slipped the loop over his nose, tightened it and tied

  the knot behind his 34z vel zn rlarness ears. His mouth was' now clamped

  shut and just to make sure, I applied a second bandage so that he was

  well and truly trussed.

  This was when they usually packed in and I looked confidently at the dog

  for signs of submission. But above the encircling white coils the eyes

  glared furiously and from within the little frame an enraged growling

  issued, rising and falling like the distant droning of a thousand bees.

  Sometimes a stern word or two had the effect of showing them who was

  boss.

  "Magnus!' I barked at him. "That's enough! Behave yourself.' I gave his

  neck a shake to make it clear that I wasn't kidding but the only

  response was a sidelong squint of pure defiance from the slightly

  bulging eyes.

  I lifted the clippers. "All right,' I said wearily, 'if you won't have

  it one way you'll have it the other.' And I tucked him under one arm,

  seized a paw and began to clip.

  He couldn't do a thing about it. He fought and wriggled but I had him as

  in a vice. And as I methodically trimmed the overgrown nails, wrathful

  bubbles escaped on either side of the bandage along with his

  splutterings. If dogs could swear I was getting the biggest cursing in

  history.

  I did my job with particular care, taking pains to keep well away from

  the sensitive core of the claw so that he felt nothing, but it made no

  difference. The indignity of being mastered for once in his life was

  insupportable.

  Towards the conclusion of the operation I began to change my tone. I had

  found in the past that once dominance has been established it is quite

  easy to work up a friendly relationship, so I started to introduce a

  wheedling note.

  "Good little chap,' I cooed. "That wasn't so bad, was it?'

  I laid down the clippers and stroked his head as a few more resentful

  bubbles forced their way round the bandage. "All right, Magnus, we'll

  take your muzzle off now.' I began to loosen the knot. "You'll feel a

  lot better then, won't you?'

  So often it happened that when I finally removed the restraint the dog

  would apparently decide to let bygones be bygones and in some cases

  would even lick my hand. But not so with Magnus. As the last turn of

  bandage fell from his nose he made another very creditable attempt to

  bite me.

  "All right, Mr Beckwith,' I called along the passage, 'you can come and

  get him now.'

  My final memory Of the visit was of the little dog turning at the top of

  the surgery steps and - ne a last dirty look befor, his master led him

  down the street.

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  must .. .' I heard a half sob at the end of the line. "He must have been

  caught there all this time.'

  "Oh, I'm sorry! Is it very bad?'

  "Yes it is.' Mrs Hammond was the wife of one of the local bank managers

  and a capable, sensible woman. There was a pause and I imagined her

  determinedly gaining control of herself. When she spoke her voice was

  calm.

  "Yes, I'm afraid it looks as though he'll have to have his foot

  amputated.'

  "Oh, I'm terribly sorry to hear that.' But I wasn't really surprised. A

  limb compressed in one of those barbarous instruments for forty-eight

  hours would be in a critical state. These traps are now mercifully

  illegal but in those days they often provided me with the kind of jobs I

  didn't want and the kind of decisions I hated to make. Did you take a

  limb from an uncomprehending animal to keep it alive or did you bring

  down the merciful but final curtain of euthanasia? I was responsible for

  the fact that there were several three-legged dogs and cats running

  around Darrowby and though they seemed happy enough and their owners

  still had the pleasure of their pets, the thing, for me, was clouded

  with sorrow.

  Anyway, I would do what had to be done.

  "Bring him straight round, Mrs Hammond,' I said.

  Rock was a big dog but he was the lean type of Setter and seemed very

  light as I lifted him on to the surgery table. As my arms encircled the

  unresisting body I could feel the rib cage sharply ridged under the

  skin.

  "He's lost a lot of weight,' I said.

  His mistress nodded. "It's a long time to go without food. He ate

  ravenously when he came in, despite his pain.'

  I put a hand beneath the dog's elbow and gently lifted the leg. The

  vicious teeth of the trap had been clamped on the radius and ulna but

  what worried me was the grossly swollen state of the foot. It was at

  least twice its normal size.

  "What do you think, Mr Herriot?' Mrs Hammond's hands twisted anxiously

  at the handbag which every woman seemed to bring to the surgery

  irrespective of the circumstances.

  I stroked the dog's head. Under the light, the rich sheen of the coat

  glowed red and gold. "This terrific swelling of the foot. It's partly