Ch 20A Triumph of Surgery

A Triumph of Surgery

Author: James Herriot (pen name of James Alfred Wight), the famous British veterinary surgeon and writer

Introduction

"A Triumph of Surgery" is a humorous story taken from James Herriot's collection of stories about his life as a veterinary surgeon in the Yorkshire countryside. The story shows how excessive love and pampering can actually harm a pet. Mrs Pumphrey, a rich lady, loves her small dog Tricki so much that she overfeeds him and makes him seriously ill. The narrator, a vet, cures the dog without any medicine or surgery — simply through discipline, exercise and a controlled diet. The title is ironic, because there is no real surgery in the story at all.

Detailed Summary

The narrator, Mr Herriot, is shocked one day to see Tricki, a small dog, being taken for a walk by his rich mistress, Mrs Pumphrey. Tricki has become hugely fat, like a bloated sausage with a leg at each corner. His eyes are red and rheumy, his tongue lolls out, and he looks listless and tired. Mrs Pumphrey explains that Tricki seemed to have no energy, so she gave him extra food like malt, cod-liver oil and a bowl of Horlicks at night to make him strong — in addition to cream cakes and chocolates, which she cannot deny him because "he loves them so much".

Herriot warns her seriously that if Tricki's food is not cut down at once and if he is not given more exercise, the dog will soon be really ill. Mrs Pumphrey tries to follow the advice for a while, but her love makes her weak and she soon returns to overfeeding him. Within a few days Tricki collapses. He refuses food, vomits frequently, and spends his time lying on the rug, panting. Mrs Pumphrey, distraught and tearful, telephones Herriot, who tells her that Tricki must be hospitalised at his surgery for about a fortnight to be kept under observation.

Mrs Pumphrey almost swoons at the idea of parting from her darling, but she agrees because the dog's condition is serious. Tricki is carried to the vet's car on a cushion, along with his day bed, night bed, favourite cushions, toys, rubber rings, breakfast bowl, lunch bowl and supper bowl. At the surgery, Herriot gives Tricki no food — only plenty of water — for two days. He gives him no medical treatment of any kind.

Slowly Tricki begins to show interest in his surroundings and in the other dogs of the household — Joe the greyhound and his friends. On the third day he starts licking at the empty food bowls, and soon he is fighting with the other dogs for his share of food and joining them in their mad, headlong rushes around the garden. He discovers the joys of being bowled over, tramped on and squashed — the rough-and-tumble of ordinary dog life.

Meanwhile Mrs Pumphrey rings the surgery a dozen times a day for news. When she hears that Tricki is convalescing, she starts sending eggs to build up his strength, then bottles of wine to enrich his blood, and finally brandy for his weak heart. Herriot and his partners thoroughly enjoy these luxuries themselves — the vet begins to think of Tricki's stay as a highly enjoyable period, with eggs at breakfast and wine and brandy shared out among the staff.

After a fortnight, Tricki has been transformed into a hard-muscled, lithe animal. When Mrs Pumphrey arrives to collect him, Tricki leaps into her arms and then into the car, and she cries out with tears in her eyes, "Oh, Mr Herriot, how can I ever thank you? This is a triumph of surgery!" The humour lies in the fact that the vet did nothing except stop the pampering.

Themes

• Excessive, blind love and pampering can be harmful — even for pets.
• Discipline, exercise and a balanced diet are the real medicine for a healthy life.
• Irony and humour — the "surgery" of the title never actually happens.
• Common sense triumphs over sentimentality.
• Animals thrive in natural surroundings and the company of their own kind.

Character Sketches

Mrs Pumphrey

Mrs Pumphrey is a rich, generous and emotional lady who loves her pet dog Tricki excessively. Her love, however, is unwise: she overfeeds him with cream cakes, chocolates, malt and Horlicks, keeps servants like Hodgkin to attend to him, and cannot say no to him. She is soft-hearted and easily worried — she weeps when Tricki falls ill and telephones the surgery constantly. Though her pampering nearly kills Tricki, her generosity (eggs, wine, brandy) shows her essentially kind nature. She represents pet owners whose misdirected affection harms the very creature they love.

Mr Herriot (the narrator)

Mr Herriot is a sensible, experienced and tactful veterinary surgeon. He is honest enough to warn Mrs Pumphrey plainly about Tricki's diet, and shrewd enough to see that only removing the dog from her care will save him. He is practical — he cures Tricki with no medicine at all, only diet control and exercise. He also has a delightful sense of humour and is a little "tempted" to keep Tricki longer as he enjoys the wine and brandy sent for the dog. He is professional, kind to animals and wise in handling emotional clients.

Tricki

Tricki is Mrs Pumphrey's small pet dog. He is greedy about food and never refuses anything, which — combined with his mistress's pampering — makes him obese, listless and finally seriously ill. At heart he is a friendly, spirited little dog: at the surgery he quickly makes friends with the other dogs, rediscovers play and competition, and is transformed into a lithe, hard-muscled animal.

Important Word Meanings