Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1901-07-15

owner of a suffering bird may call her.
As she is known and in demand from
the Great Lakes to the Gulf and from
good share OF her time in travelling
Although primarily surgeon, Miss
Pope is also an expert on bird diseases.
Her patrons say that without feeling a
parrots pulse or inviting a recital of
its symptoms, she can diagnose the NAL
ady which has puzzled every other doctor
and preseribes a treatment that is sure
TO cure.
1t naturally follows from her success
that Miss Pope considers bird doctoring
world and birds the most gratifying class
of patients conceivable. 49,
=" IL Is difficult matter TO draw Miss
Pope away from her work long enonsn
even to talk of it, but she consented
20 chat for few minutes the other day
in the interval between two serious oper-
atoms.
She did not hesitate 10 recommend her
profession as an eminently suitable one
for any woman.
There's that much talked of mater
nal instinct. you know, in all of us.
laughed Miss Pope. Doubtless you have
seen country women rescue a manned or
aiiing chicken and keep it behind the
kitchen stove for weeks, watching and
feeding and dosing i, according to some
ms ,inciive method. Now. the chicken
usually gets well and the woman has
really enjoyed tending it. So my work
is simply an extension of this practice
I'm not often called to tend to chickens
of course, because they are. | am afraid,
not considered worth the price of a doe
tors fee. bat there are all manner of
fancy poultry that demand my services
in the course OF year.
The chief requisite for bird doctorinc
is. | should say, the deicacy of touch
that every surgeon has TO acquire sooner
or later At first it takes the most ex-
traordinary patience to operate on such
tiny bones and muscles in such tiny bod
les. but after while the delicate fussi-
ness becomes pleasure rather than
fri.4 .,sz0.
that easy cases do not interest me much
now, except in so far as am GLAD
TO relieve the sIfferings of the bird. The
more difficult case is the better ! en-
joy IT,"
are they difficult TO manage as pa
tients?'
Il do not find them so. as a rule al
though now and then | come across an
obstinate old parrot that | have to take
measures with. But OF course in al
most every operation we use anesthetics
precisely as in the case of human beings.
and the only difficulty consists in sooth-
ing the sick bird before and after the
treatment. / have learned by long ex-
perlence just what soothes and what dis
turbs them. and. of course, Il sick bird
is far more easily soothed than well
one.
And though it may sound fantastic,
, | really believe most of my little pa
tents realize that | am trying to relieve
them. and that they make it as easy
for me as they can. | have thought
| detected signs Of real affection ana
gratitude in a convalesccnt bird. They
ar, curnuSly intelligent little beings ana
far more Intelligent than is generally
supposed. Doctor them a little and you
NO | % not find my work a. great
strain. There is nothing OF the ex-
haustion of a sick room. you know. or
any all night ana all day cases or any
q TIC most trying features Of physi-
doors 50 much / really think il is bene-
ficial rather than otherwise.