This colourful tale of a country vet in her first year, is
also Anna Birch's memoir of how she met her husband. She's
taken on a job at a practice in Dorset, a deeply rural
part
of south England. Now all she needs is for farmers and
home-makers to CALL THE VET. Maybe the calving season
isn't the most glamorous job for a young lady, but Anna
doesn't care since she's saving the lives of cows. Who,
it
turns out, aren't particularly grateful. The owner of the
Labrador which has eaten slug pellets is a lot more
thankful.
Anna's progress through education had been less than
textbook as her father was in the Army so the family moved
a lot. She liked metalwork and wanted to take biology in
order to be a vet. Guidance teachers told her she'd have
to
make do with needlework and home economics. At university
she took psychology and trained lab rats, discovering how
much she enjoyed working with animals. Greatly helped by
another student she applied for grants to change degree to
veterinary and applied to colleges. A hugely practical
person, she loved the outdoors.
After a hearty welcome at her new practice from the
established vets, a Land Rover and substantial breakfast
being provided, Anna's first task turned out to involve a
hamster. The larger animals soon required her services
though and the mixed practice never left her idle. The
small circle in the village took some getting used to;
everyone knew her Land Rover, how fast it was driving and
who her passenger might be, while she got warned that a
certain client had wandering hands.
Amid the good fellowship and occasional humour, we see
some
sobering situations: the administration that takes over
when a cow is found positive for TB; the high suicide rate
among vets; the wanderlust that cannot be given in to
because the practice allows so little free time. Vets may
be highly trained but they are only human, and personal
struggles on top of severe job pressures are a lot to cope
with. Anna Birch has done a good job of presenting this
dual sided work. There's also a fascinating aside when she
volunteered for canine disease control in Ethiopia.
CALL
THE VET is not recommended for anyone squeamish or for
young readers, but for prospective vet students it should
be compulsory reading.
A charming and funny memoir following a young female vet's
adventures and misadventures in rural Dorset. The perfect
read for fans of James Herriot, Cathy Woodman and
Countryfile.
When fresh-faced, newly qualified vet Anna arrives in
the seemingly sleepy Dorset village of Ebbourne, little does
she know that this tiny rural community is about to change
her life... Straight in at the deep end, Anna faces two
tricky calvings, an emergency call-out to a frightened mare,
lots of mad cats (and mad cat women) and one enormous dog
with an injured leg and a threatening bark. Spirited and
determined, Anna quickly finds her feet and falls in love
with rural life, including Ebbourne's eccentric characters
and their animals. Disasters, dramas, farmers and friendship
-- and not to mention a whirlwind romance with a local
Wildlife Trust worker -- this warm and witty memoir offers a
window into what working with animals and country life is
really all about.
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