Vacation turned veterinary adventure

When I bumped into an old friend while taking a ferry from Townsville, Australia, to Magnetic Island ("Maggie," as the locals call it), it was a wonderful surprise. Dr. Caroline Mann was my supervising veterinarian at an animal hospital in Australia nearly 10 years ago.

We spent the windy ride catching up. Dr. Caroline was still enjoying island life on Maggie and working as a veterinarian on the mainland. She'd also started a free veterinary clinic for the pets of the Aboriginal residents on nearby Palm Island.

I was honored when Dr. Caroline invited me to stay at her island house for the weekend. As we drove in Dr. Caroline's Volkswagen bus, Dr. Caroline avoided running over startled wallabies jumping across the winding road. We joked that at least if she hit one, she'd probably be able to fix it.

I was greeted by yet another surprise when I made my way onto the enclosed patio at the front of Dr. Caroline's house. He was just standing there, as handsome as he ever was. Moo Cow, the black-and-white Staffordshire bull terrier, was one of the first "Staffys" I'd ever met when I first moved to Townsville, and he made me fall deeply in love with the breed. Moo Cow wiggled his way over to me for a scratch, and I marveled that this was the same dog I had played fetch on the beach with 10 years earlier.

An unexpected offer

A few days later I was back in Townsville staying with friends when Dr. Caroline called to ask, "How would you like to work with me tomorrow?"

I immediately said yes. I was so excited, I almost didn't hear Dr. Caroline say, "I can't pay you but I can get you a free airline ticket to work, if that's alright with you."

Did she say airline ticket? Dr. Caroline explained that we would spend the day on Palm Island and return on the last flight leaving the island at 3 p.m. As payment for my help, Dr. Caroline would bring her famous vegetarian lasagna for us to share for lunch. A free airline ticket to a tropical island, an unplanned adventure and the veterinarian brings me lunch? How could I resist?

Flying to work

After touchdown on the island I marveled at the white sandy beaches lined with palm trees as we drove to the clinic. I can't say that I had any expectations of what the clinic would look like, but when we arrived there, it wasn't at all like anything I would have imagined. The building was an abandoned jailhouse. There were few solid walls and no glass windows—they were made of simple but strong wire. Although the interior could have been described as "urban rustic," it seemed well-equipped to handle run-of-the mill exams and surgeries.

There was an anesthetic machine, oxygen tanks, surgical light, a sink with running water, a large inventory of bandaging materials, IVs, lines and bags of fluids. Dr. Caroline explained that her twice-monthly visit was the only veterinary care available on the island. If someone's pet became ill or injured any other day of the week, the owner would have to take a two-hour ferry ride to a veterinary hospital in Townsville.

Dr. Caroline had warned me that because the clinic was run on a shoestring budget, we didn't have any diagnostic tools besides our eyes, hands, stethoscopes and a microscope. Dr. Caroline also cautioned that I may have to assist in the euthanasia of a pet that could have been easily treated if the injury or illness had only occurred on a different day or in a different place than Palm Island.

What little I knew about Palm Island I'd learned when I went to a talk given by famed United States horse trainer, Monty Roberts. Mr. Roberts had been asked by the Australian RSPCA, the equivalent to the Humane Society of America, to help with animal cruelty that had been directed towards feral horses that lived on the island. At that time, thanks to the 1999 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records, the island was best known for being the most violent place on earth outside of a war zone.

Pets and their people

As the Aboriginal residents began to bring in their pets for new injuries or illnesses and recheck exams, it was obvious these folks loved their animals. Several residents dropped in just to say hello or give Dr. Caroline an update on one of their pets or even the pet of a relative or neighbor. Some dropped in to pay off a previous balance for the deworming medications that were sold at cost.

The day included one fractured humerus, one ovariohysterectomy, one demodectic mange dog and three parvovirus pups on IVs, to name just a few. It was nearing 3 p.m. as we cleaned up, and Dr. Caroline warned me we'd probably have to run for it.

We arrived at the airport terminal, grabbed our backpacks and ran inside. Dr. Caroline asked if we'd made it on time. The girl behind the counter looked at the digital clock and said, "Yeah. You're alright, mate!"

As we flew over the sea, just miles from the Great Barrier Reef, I reflected on my day. I found the people of Palm Island kindhearted towards their pets and respectful of both the veterinarian's suggested treatment plans and her limited time on the island. But mostly they were grateful that they had a veterinarian to help make their pets better. I can't count how many thank-yous I heard that day.

In one afternoon I learned that people who love their pets are the same the world over, regardless of age, culture or socioeconomic stature. I also saw how one veterinarian can make a difference. A bonus: She makes the best vegetarian lasagna I've ever tasted.

Susan Logan, BS, CVT, lives in Gilbert, Ariz. When she's not writing or spending time with her two- and four-legged children, she teaches animal anatomy and physiology.