“My God, where did you learn to handle cows like that, Doc?” Jack gasped as I hauled my OB bag and bucket over the fence.“It just comes from growing up around them,” I said. “I get surprised by one every once in a while, but most of the time, I know what they are going to do before they do it.”In these real-life stories from forty years of veterinary practice in a small community in western Oregon, Dr. David E. Larsen captures the essence of daily life as a solo veterinary practice before the days of emergency clinics on every corner and specialty help within reach.Dave Larsen writes with equal respect and dedication about the animals he treats, all sizes, from bulls to mice, and of the life and death decisions their owners must make. He draws on the vast experience of his training, and applies the art of veterinary care that were taught to him by colleagues, many times lessening the tension in serious situations with subtle humor and providing needed education to grateful clients.