Country Mouse on vets

Organised dog fighting in Britain has been banned since the 19th century. It is a vile pastime that still has not been wholly eradicated. Disorganised dog fighting happens every day. It’s what some dogs do. They argue like human beings, but, devoid of the ability to reason, such altercations often end up in a fight. We had a scrap last weekend, and for once, it wasn’t a terrier’s fault. A pointer took a serious dislike to our senior Lucas terrier, Lucy. The result is that, after a trip to the vet, Lucy looks like a canine Vincent Van Gogh, with one bandaged ear. It was strange, as the two dogs have known each other for years, and normally get along fine.

What was remarkable is the level of service that you receive from a vet relative to the NHS. The vet was outstanding. Vets are on call at all hours. They’ll come out to your house if needs be, results from blood tests are given back to you on the same day, and you can usually get an appointment on the day you choose. Perhaps we should put a vet in charge of our health service?