The morning times., 1896-09-06
For II
| Birds and
BY EDYTH STEEL.


hospital under very swell auspices, in
charge of the New York College OF Vet
Urinary Surgeons and School OF Compare
tive Medicine. The college is branch Of
the University OF New York, and they treat
any animal You please there that is not a
human being, from elephants to canary
birds.
The performing elepha nts that have start
ed at one, OF the variety theaters during
the last year had to be at the hospital for
week last fall, when they first landed in
the country. for, having been SO seasicl
| On the voyage, they were quite do1e up.
Their treatment was simple enough, for 1t
consisted only OF quart OF gin apiece
every day, but the hospital could give
them quarters better suited to their in
valid condition than they could get any
where else On the other hand. q canary
bird recently had one leg amputated there.
and went away hopping quite comfortably
on one foot. 1t seems bird bears losing
a leg better than most animal.
The hospital anu college occupy an en-
tire four story building, at 154 East Fifty
seventh street, New York city. The en-
trance looks a good deal like that of a
livery stable, except that there is one
corner rallied off that looks like a pbar-
macy; there are kept the medicines likely
To be needed quickly In an emergency
On The wall is a long typewriter paper,
laying down the strictest laws about the
care OF the surgical Instruments No in
strument must he laid down ON anything
but towels that have been antiseptically
treated IL exposed for any length of time
through delay in the operation They
must all be again washed in antiseptic
preparations. No hospital could be More
careful In all these respects
The doctor that took me around is cs-
pecially attached, in every sense, to the
horses, and he talked OF every one of his
patients Just as though he were speaking
OF man and brother. but he had one
pet name for all the borses He called
every one Baby as he talked to them.
Come, baby. come: you're getting all
right. aren't you? Turn here and speak
to the lady," be would say. and he de-
clared his opinion to be that two thirds
sense than their drivers.
We hear a good deal about physic.e1s
growing hardened, particularly in hospital
practice; but IL was clear to me that these
doctors of animals get softened by expert
ence. Animals have something the same
power to touch those who really get &C
quainted with them that children have,
and when you take care OF q sick one
you get acquainted with it in a very adj
vantageous way; 1t is apt to be so patient
and so intelligent.
why said the doctor, 1.-The way horses
and dogs will bear pain because the know
you are doing something for them makes
most human patients look ungrateful
Horses are the best OF all about understand
ing that you want them to keep still, but
the way dogs Will lick your hand when you
are hurting them terribly is very touching
All that is necessary is for them TO believe
you mean to do them good, and they catch
that idea very quickly
The dogs ward is on the third fleor-
in fact, any small animal is treated there.
unless it be a monkey or some such beast
from the tropics, requiring extra heat: in
that case room in which one OF the doc
tors keeps and breeds home monkeys of
his own can be used.
1t is perfectly wonderful how clean and
sweet is the whole place. The dogs are
kept In ironcages, much as you see them
at dog show, and the cats are provided
for in the same way. Some Of them are
apt to start up nervous barking as you
enter, but the doctor speaks to them and
pets them, and the n they seem relieved and
to see some one; any one ac-
quainted with dogs knows how bored
they can be, and these poor, sick fellows
show so much ennui II looks as if plilan-
thropists ought to eepd them the illust rated
papers and go in and read to them o.
OCCASIONALLY. Their fond owners would
spend a great deal Of time with them il
the authorities encouraged it. They say
patients too much particularly
those suffering from nervous diseases
Clearly IT is case for the ninistration of
strangers, since members of the family are
too agftating.
You'd think the pussy cats would be highly
nervous, being in the same room with the
dogs, but no, they don't mind itat all, under
perfectly that the dogs are shut
up and they are shut up and all is safe.
One thin. black kitty got up and came to
her bars and talked very fhteligently and
piteously to me, meowing and looking into
my face in that communicative way that is
the cleverest and most huma n of cat tricks.
Behind the ward stretches long tin
'oof that is rallied In and used as an ex-
,rcise ground. The patients with con-
tagious diseases are kept to themselves
n the ward and ON the playground.
l asked the doctor IL they ever had any
iops On mad and he said they bea r., cnongb
mont mad dogs INIT they never had had
INV experience with them He did No,
ionbt that son etimcs dogs do have "a bios
nut Thought not one dog IN ftfty Killed for
mad is really. 50. He said people stonl
n more danger from net birds than mad
Iogs-isn.t that surprising,