The Taxi Driver’s Mum

When we suggest neutering a male dog the reaction from the majority of men is very predictable. A sharp intake of breath, the crossing of legs, a glazed look and a very noticeable shake of the head. This contrasts with the male attitude to neutering a female dog. It appears that the overwhelming majority of men have no problems with neutering the females. A rather hypocritical attitude. This reaction is common worldwide and the reaction of ladies is fairly predictable as well. Ladies generally have no problem with neutering regardless of gender and take a far more pragmatic approach to dealing with this issue.

There are exemptions to the rule and this can be found in the attitudes of some of the elderly ladies in Greece where I now live.

Some older ladies in Greece still take the view that the role of ladies is to marry, produce children, cook and look after the home. This contrasts with the attitude of the modern young Greek woman that is far more focused on a career, travelling and insisting that prospective husbands have an attitude that is more in keeping with the 21^st century. Unfortunately, this approach to the role of the female can also be found in the attitudes toward animals as well. This conversation took place between me and a taxi driver who spoke excellent English. His mother had adopted a poodle type dog from the local shelter and a condition of the agreement is that the dog is neutered as soon as a veterinary surgeon is available to carry out the procedure. In order to conform to Greek law, the dog would be microchipped.

It transpired that the elderly lady was now reluctant for the operation to take place as it would make it impossible for her to have puppies. She would be unable to be fulfilled!!

No ill effects

Now we all know that dogs that do not have puppies don’t suffer any ill effects whatsoever, for example, all guide dogs (seeing-eye dogs)  are all neutered. Unfortunately in the old fashioned culture, the removal of the ability to reproduce by choice was difficult to accept for an elderly Greek grandmother.

Fortunately, the taxi driver was a wise man and used the microchip to get his mother to attend the neutering session. The conversation went like this…

“My mother is unhappy that Agora won’t be able to have puppies but I have explained to her that if Agora is neutered she will get a microchip that is unique and will make her identifiable if she gets lost. My children have been instrumental in persuading their grandmother of the benefits of this modern technology. But unfortunately, she really doesn’t understand and will need a demonstration if you wouldn’t mind. We have tried to explain that it is inside the dog’s body but she thinks that if that is the case how will anybody see it.” With a smile, he added. “My mother doesn’t understand English”

“No problem, after the operation and she is recovering I will show your mother.” At the designated hour I administered the pre-med injection which made her sleepy, carried her into the operating room, the anaesthetic was given, the surgical procedure was done and the microchip inserted.

With Agora recovering from the anaesthetic I returned her to the old lady who had seen the small white dressing that adorned her abdomen and received her with much wringing of hands and not a few tears. After the old lady had composed herself I ceremoniously removed the scanner from its case and hovered it above the dog’s neck. The expected beep was heard and I showed the screen to the taxi driver’s mum. The microchip number was clearly displayed and with her son acting as an interpreter I explained that this number now belonged to her dog and that no matter where Agora was could be identified by all rescue agencies, local authorities, police and anyone who had a scanner. I patiently answered her questions.

The Questions (and Answers)

“How long will it last?”   “All her life.”

“Will it wash out when she has a bath?”  “No.”

“Does it hurt?” “No.”

“Can it fall out?”  “No.”

I left the pair of them to watch over Agora while I continued to carry out my duties only to be beckoned over by the very embarrassed taxi driver.

“I am so sorry but when you have a moment could you show mum again. She is not convinced it won’t fall out.”

I returned with the scanner and showed the concerned lady that all was well. There were more questions.

“Will it get hot when Agora is in the sun?”  “No.”

“Will it stay in the same place or will it move?”  “Well yes in a tiny minority of cases it is possible for it to move but not very far.”

“If it moves will it drop out?”  “No.”

“Where exactly is it? Is it in her heart?”  “No, it is under the skin.”

“If it is there why doesn’t she have a lump?”    “It is so small it’s almost invisible. It is no bigger than a grain of rice”

Finally, the lady appeared to be satisfied by my response and I informed the taxi driver that after another 10 minutes they could take Agora home.

Busy day at the veterinarians

I continued with my work which on this particular day was very busy. In a perfect world, we only did dogs and cats on separate days but on this particular day, we had a mix of cats and dogs. This stretches everybody, the anaesthetics are different and it reduces the time between patients. There is no respite. The day, therefore, was decidedly busy so I was surprised to see 40 minutes later the taxi driver and his mum still there 30 minutes after I had said they could leave. The taxi driver caught my eye and spread his hands in despair, from the look in his eye and the mute appeal I knew what was expected of me.

I had, however, one last chance to convince the old lady. I approached the veterinary surgeon on duty, explained the problem and asked for her assistance. As it was lunchtime the vet needed to take a break, have lunch and change her operating clothing.

It must be noted that where I live Doctors are almost God’s.

We approached the pair of them and Agora who was now wide awake and wanting to play.

“Ok,” I said to the long-suffering taxi driver. “You translate.”

Introducing the vet as the Animal Doctor, I said. “She will explain.”

The old lady stared with total reverence.

With the veterinary surgeon still wearing her old operating gown plus hair cap, complete with plastic disposable apron, she dramatically removed her surgical gloves, she looked straight at the taxi driver’s mum with a beaming smile and said.

“I personally put the microchip in to your little dog, it is there for life, it won’t wash out, it doesn’t……..