Anna Birch – Call the Vet

The true-life misadventures of a rural vet.

Anna Birch is a vet, a farmer’s wife, and a mother of three, with a deep affinity for her native Dorset and its landscapes, animals and people.

This autobiographical book is both a vet’s memoirs and a love letter to the countryside, told with a wry, warm and knowledgeable voice.

It opens with two stomach-churning calvings, flashes back to a disastrous job interview, and takes in a whirlwind romance with local Wildlife Trust worker Rob.  On the way Anna grows as a vet and falls in love with Dorset, and we come to know a cast of eccentric and engaging country people and their animals.

There are amusing animal stories galore, but also deftly-handled material on serious, moving topics such as euthanasia, farm animal welfare and vet suicide.