Heal the beasts A jaunt through the curious history of the veterinary arts
Book - 2025
"This history of veterinary medicine provides an abundance of bizarre, funny, surprising, and heartwarming anecdotes. Heal the Beasts chronicles human efforts to treat animal illnesses from 14,000 BCE to today. How and why did humans begin to treat sick and injured animals? And how did those practices, and the associated attitudes, evolve from prehistory to the present day? To answer these questions, Dr. Schott shares stories of 22 different animal healers and veterinarians from across eras and continents, examining the always fascinating, often unexpected, and sometimes hilarious veterinary methods employed by these people and their colleagues. But at the heart of the tale lies the evolution of the human-animal bond, which has been mo...re cyclical than linear. In many ways, we are returning to the outlook of our distant ancestors after a centuries-long detour through a more utilitarian approach. James Herriot will be familiar to many people, but most of the other featured vets will be new. They range from Palakapya, who treated fighting elephants in India almost 3,000 years ago, to Dr. Louis Camuti, who had the first feline house call practice anywhere, tending to the cats of celebrities in mid-twentieth century Manhattan. Along the way, we see every kind of person trying to heal every kind of creature, from dogs, cows, horses, and cats to canaries, gorillas, and even dragons. Whether you have a passion for animals, the history of the medical sciences, or just quirky history, this light-hearted exploration of the empathetic relationship between man and beast will entertain and delight."--
- Subjects
- Published
-
Toronto, Ontario, Canada :
ECW Press
[2025]
- Language
- English
- Main Author
- Physical Description
- x, 217 pages, 24 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color) ; 23 cm
Issued also in electronic formats - Bibliography
- Includes bibliographical references.
- ISBN
- 9781770417830
- Preface
- Chapter 1. Waterloo
- Chapter 2. The Old Woman
- Chapter 3. Ubar
- Chapter 4. Palakapya
- Chapter 5. Vegetius
- Chapter 6. Oswald
- Chapter 7. Fébus
- Chapter 8. FitzHerbert
- Chapter 9. Lancisi
- Chapter 10. Sinopa
- Chapter 11. Bourgelat
- Chapter 12. Clark
- Chapter 13. Erxleben
- Chapter 14. Moorcroft
- Chapter 15. Blaine
- Chapter 16. Smith
- Chapter 17. Galtier
- Chapter 18. McGrath
- Chapter 19. Colebourn
- Chapter 20. Wight
- Chapter 21. Camuti
- Chapter 22. Blood
- Chapter 23. Kalema-Zikusoka
- Epilogue
- Acknowledgements
- Sources and Further Reading