MS Jerry L Simmons DVM

Rabies Positive: An Animal Doctor's Memoirs MS Jerry L Simmons DVM

This book is about veterinary medicine, animal health and animal and human behavior, from stellar to deplorable, and many of my experiences during a 50-year career as a practicing veterinarian. A reader will find truthful accounts of my "up close and personal" work with rabies including a dog that coughed directly into my face while I examined it, and another case in which I shared my bedroom with a rabid dog.

Then you will read about the horse with a running W brand on his hip that was known to be a man-killer in Mexico, and how I was faced with the daunting task of passing a stomach tube on him to treat his colic and genuinely feared for my life. As this horse aged he never got over his fear of and hatred for adults, but he absolutely loved children. And there was the basset hound from which I removed a curious foreign body in its stomach.

Other stories include my delivering twin calves and twin foals, all within the first three weeks of starting my new practice. And the pet shop owner who wanted euthanasia for a litter of perfectly healthy puppies. And euthanasia, my least favorite part of practice and how I finally came to grips with taking a life.

You will smile, laugh and maybe even shed a tear. You will know a lot more about veterinarians and how challenging and satisfying a career in veterinary medicine can be.