Ruminations of a Yorkshire Vet

Julian Norton chooses an extract from his latest book

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Over the last nine years, my professional life has been more exciting and less predictable than a typical veterinarian’s. I’ve been involved in a returning TV series, The Yorkshire Vet on Channel 5 and I continue to write books. I’ve moved jobs, to continue my passion for independent practice, which has brought huge turmoil and plenty of challenges.

Below is a story from Ruminations of a Yorkshire Vet – a new collection of my anecdotes and covers some of the time I spent in the quaint and historic town of Boroughbridge. The practice where I worked during this time was just as traditional as the town and it had “Herriot” charm in abundance.

EARLY INTERVENTION AND GOOD HANDLING FOR A DAIRY COW

Tom had been busy with his usual farming jobs, but as the day progressed, he had become increasingly worried about one of his cows. She was off her food and off her milk. By six o’clock she was looking really poorly, so he decided to call the vet.

Evening surgery had just finished, so I grabbed what extra equipment I thought I might need- not just for Tom’s cow, but for the rest of the night ahead as well. It is impossible to predict what a night on call might bring, so it is best to be prepared.

The signs that Tom reported over the phone sounded serious, but it was hard to tell what the problem might be. All poorly cows go off their food and, quite quickly, look very sick. However, the fact that Tom was sufficiently worried to call me out in the evening was evidence enough that she was in a bad way.

And in a bad way she certainly was. The poor cow looked sick even from the far end of the collecting yard, where I parked my car. Her ears were droopy and so was her demeanour.