The New Era - All about Sweet Home since 1929

Neurology, the study and treatment of disorders of the nervous system, in early-1970s veterinary medicine always seemed like a waste of time to me. In school, we seemed to spend untold hours learning...

EDITOR'S NOTE: The following column contains anatomical language. "I wish Dr. Ball was here," I thought to myself as I drove my left arm deeper into the rectum of this old, fat cow. Dr. Ball was the...

Coos County's Broadbent School in the fall of 1952 had grown to its largest enrollment ever with nearly 80 students in eight grades.  The school board had discovered that the upper part of Catching...

It was the fall of 1980. As a newly elected school board member, I'd been asked before to attend a volleyball game and was starting to feel guilty about not getting to one. "Doc, I'm telling you: You...

“Joleen, are you still feeding that feral tomcat out the back door?” I asked. “I don’t think he is really feral,” she replied. “I am going to catch him one of these days.” “Catch him,...

Nessie, a small, straw-colored Cairn terrier, came out from under the feed rack, shaking her head vigorously as the small rat hung limply from her mouth. “That’s the way to get ‘em,” Ayers hol...

"Company D, Private Drake speaking. Can I help you?" Bill answered the phone on a snowy Christmas Eve in 1965. He and I were pulling CQ (charge of quarters) duty for Company D, a duty company for...

"Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute." Einstein's quote came to mind every fall in Sweet Home. The...

Louie and Virginia had been clients from the very early days of my Sweet Home practice. Louie was a tall, lanky guy who had worked hard for most of his life. Virginia was the sweet side of the couple...

“Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute.” Einstein’s quote came to mind every fall in Sweet Home....

"Dr. Larsen, I visited my therapist today, and she told me to find what motivates me and run with it," Vicki Lindley said. "She said, 'If that happens to be cats, then do cats.' I am going to start a...

I looked at the large black tumor on Dr. Walker’s old gray mare as I wrapped the tail. It was a good thing the horse was gentle. There were no facilities, and I was at considerable risk standing...

We had just finished dinner and were supervising the girls as they cleaned up the dinner table when the telephone rang. Good evening, Doc,” said Sandi’s voice on the other end of the line. “I ho...

Walking down the fifth fairway at Pineway Golf Course, I was relieved that I could see the ball. “At least, I am not in the ditch,” I said to Jim Mechals as we parted toward our respective balls....

"Doc, I think I have a calf that needs a little repair." Larry Coulter's voice came through the phone receiver. "What is the problem, Larry?" I asked. "One of the hind legs is not working quite...

The rain was heavy and it was hard to see in the darkness. I was glad that I had put my rain pants and boots on when I left the house. I pulled on my raincoat as I stepped out of the truck. I was wet...

Johnnie Miller was waiting at the old barn when I pulled off the road. I stopped in front of the structure. "I have her in the far side of the barn," Johnnie said, with some excitement in his voice. H...

Ida was sitting in our waiting room, beside her daughter, waiting patiently with Kitty nestled in her lap. Ida was my oldest client, a tiny, frail old lady with snow-white hair. She lived by herself,...

Editor's note: This article contains some explicit biological terminology. It was a late spring day with mostly blue sky, but some heavy dark clouds. Walt was waiting when Ruth and I pulled into his...

"Hi Doc, I'm glad you could come this morning," Harry said as he stepped out of the mobile home into the morning mist. "I have a couple of new calves with diarrhea. They are still up and around, but...

It was the end of a busy afternoon and I leaned into the reception desk to check on what remained of the day. "I'm beat. How close to being done are we?" I asked. "You poor man," replied Sandy, my...

“Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute.” Einstein’s quote came to mind every fall in Sweet Home....

I always told folks that if they wanted to get a veterinarian to treat Salmon Disease in their dog, don’t go to Kansas. Likewise, if you’re going to get a veterinarian to treat a snake bite,...

We hurried across the cow bridge at the upper end of Uncle Dutch’s farm. We were in a hurry because we planned to hunt up to the Bartlett farm this afternoon. This would require us to cross Catching...

Mr. Campbell had been bringing his little Yorkshire terrier into the clinic ever since I had opened for business a couple of years prior. This Saturday, he came through the door empty-handed, or so...