A Veterinary Life

Adrian Arnold has been a vet for more than 55 years during which time he has treated exotic animals at Whipsnade Zoo, removed a tumour from a dog that was larger than the patient, pinned the thigh bone of a kindergarten hamster and removed a growth from the mouth of an iguana. There are suspected cases of foot-and-mouth disease and rabies which are challenges in themselves. He has established two veterinary practices which now confine themselves largely to the standard range of pets but he has worked with farm livestock delivering calves by Caesarean while dealing with clients with every conceivable reason for being unable to pay their bills. Stick insects, goldfish and eagles all appear in the anecdotes of veterinary life - most of which have a lesson to teachHe has known success and tragedies in his professional and family life while enjoying the full-hearted support of his wife, Jen, and their children. A few celebrities come and go as there are times when the human client benefits more than the patient they brought to the surgery. while he meets The book carries on where James Heriot left off looking back at veterinary practice of the 60s and 70s right up to the 21st century. Nostalgia for a disappearing age merges into an analysis of modern veterinary medicine - from German V-1 rockets to today's cancer chemotherapy.Having moved from East Anglia to Somerset to be nearer the grandchildren, he still dispenses veterinary advice to the local community which invariably suggests a visit to the local vet,