EPTmoney with euro, not in the Bulgarian currency.
Last evening I was on my shift at the veterinary ambulatory that my dad owns.
I was watching WECG and just waiting for the clock to hit 7:30 pm. That's the time
I leave for home. At around 6:30 pm a guy walks in, his hands covered in blood to his
elbows. He carried a shepherd dog. The dog was bleeding from his right front paw.
So I cleaned the wound, I examined the dog, asked some questions about how the dog got cut. And I said "Well, the best course is to sedate the dog, apply some local anesthetic and some surgical sutures and he's going to be just fine. And some antibiotics for a week.". He asked me how much will it cost, I answered it should be around 20 to 30 euro, plus the examination and the antibiotic shot for the day, all would be like 40 euro.
There's this funny thing with my profession where you just know when someone really cares for his pet and when someone is like “meh, this animal is just a burden to me.”. This client was from the first type. He wasn't dressed particularly well, kind of looked like a drunk. But the looks those people give their animals... it's touching. Looks like they actually feel the animal's pain. It's probably the look people use when they see their children. Have to ask the wife it that's how I look at our daughter when she is sick. I could see he wants to do the best thing for his dog but he just can't afford it.
So he thought for a while and then asked “Is there any other way, doc?”. I answered “I can just give him antibiotic shot and dress the wound. The bleeding will stop much slower. Also, if the dog is active, say during the night, the bleeding might get worse and it might become a critical condition.”. After all, he decided to go for the latter option, I understood he doesn't have the money. I dressed the wound, did the injection, then I cleaned the bloody floor and I had to see another patient. The guy with the shepherd said he'd wait outside for a friend to come and bring him some money, which was fine with me. I mean even if he'd left I wouldn't be sad I didn't get paid.
By the time the friend came, the dressing that I made was soaked with blood. I just hate to see animals suffer, I can't stand it, I don't know. I mean I cry to movies where animals or children suffer, when it's grown ass people I don't care. With them grown ass people it's their choices that get them into trouble. Not so with animals or kids.
So I went and I told him “Fuck that, get that dog inside, I will prepare the sedation drug and get some surgical sutures. Come on, don't just stand there, you're going to help me.”. I then proceeded to sedate the dog, while waiting for the drug to kick in we talked for a while. His music taste was like mine, I was listening to some bad ass Serbian metal band called Pero Defformero and he asked "What is this shit? It's fucking awesome?". He wasn't the most eloquent client I've had but I liked him. His friend arrived too, turned out it's another customer of mine, she said she'd cover the cost.
And out of nowhere the dog dude asks me “So, how is Christina?”. He meant my wife, he told me he knew her from the time she used to hang out with a bunch of people from the neighborhood when she was in high school. And he's seen her at my job a year ago or something. I told him she is fine, we're raising our daughter and blah blah. And suddenly I felt somehow close to him. I also told him he should've told me from the start that he'd known her, not beat around the bush. I guess he was proud and didn't want to look like a beggar or something.
All in all, the wound was treated, I gave him antibiotic tablets for a week, told him we have to remove the sutures in two weeks. The girl then asked me how much is the bill. I gave it a thought and I asked for 20 euro total and we wished each other a good evening.
When I was alone, I was happy I decided to treat the dog even before I knew I'd get paid. After all, this feeling of having alleviated some suffering is what drives people to be doctors, it's not the monetary gain. At least I think so. Or I want to think so. I know for me it is. I've also helped some stray wild animals and I felt the exact same way – fulfilled and satisfied with the decision.
Have a great day. Or night. Depending when you read this.
