Chewed Slippers

I graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 2001. After spending several years at a large veterinary Hospital in the North East of England, I subsequently began locum work, working all over the country and taking my faithful doggies (about whom more later) with me. While I have spent most of my time in Small Animal general practice, I am now a consultant in dog and cat surgery, holding the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons postgraduate Certificate in Small Animal Surgery.

Since October 2008, I have been working as a Research Scholar at the University of Cambridge Veterinary School. My project, funded by The Wellcome Trust, is on cruciate ligament disease, one of the commonest reasons for orthopaedic surgery in both animals and humans.

A committee member of the Association of Veterinary Soft Tissue Surgeons, I am also a member of the British Veterinary Orthopaedic Association, the American Association of Rehabilitation Veterinarians and the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management.

I am a devoted father to two rescue dogs, Homer and Max, and one cat, Gordon.

Homer appeared as a poorly stray puppy when I was at vet school in Winter 2000. I took Homer home. Homer ate my carpet, digital camera, car seat, hand-brake and gear-stick. It was love. An extremely poorly puppy, Homer has the distinction of having been through every department of Edinburgh University’s Small Animal Hospital while I was a student there - meaning that I can well appreciate the anxieties of clients with sick animals. (For the record, Homer has had liver problems, bladder problems, vomiting and diarrhoea, skin allergies, hip dysplasia, eyelid problems, behavioural problems, neurological problems, a snapped Achilles tendon and several lumps… and there is more!) Sadly, I spoiled little Homer rotten and consequently I now own the world’s most demanding “Labraperson”. Homer shares many personality traits with Hyacinth Bucket and his star sign is Aries.

Max, being half Rottweiler and half Labrador, is commonly referred to as the Nottweiler. Max turned up at my workplace in 2003, needing a home. Despite weighing in at 45kg, Max is completely convinced that he is about the size of a Yorkshire Terrier, and likes climbing on top of his dad in the middle of the night. He is also clever enough to have worked out how to use the bedroom door, so there’s no escape. Max allows himself to be bullied by everyone – including Homer, cats and his friend Jess the Rabbit. Max has been a blood donor on several occasions and in this way has helped dad save several other doggies’ lives. In his spare time, Max has recently mastered use of the kitchen pedal-bin. If he was human, Max would be Frank Spencer.

Gordon the cat turned up last year when a member of the public found him in the back garden. Gordon is ancient and extremely thin, but is also the happiest cat in the world. Sadly, he has FIV (Cat “AIDS”) so he can’t live in contact with other cats – but he seems to quite enjoy bossing the dogs about and is more interested in eating and sleeping than going outdoors these days. We’re not sure about Gordon’s past life and misdemeanours, but if he could talk it’d be a long story…

I’m also a keen guitarist and have spent more of my life trying to be a rock star than my dear mum can really cope with!

Right, now that you know a little more about me, let the gory details about cruciate ligament disease and such like commence!

‘til the next blog post,

Tx

Tony Sarma BVM&S CertSAS MRCVS