The Vet at Noah's Ark: Stories of Survival from an Inner-City Animal Hospital

by Doug Mader, Kevin T. Fitzgerald (Foreword by)

Overview

A veterinarian’s fight for his patients and staff lays bare the power of the human-animal bond.

As one of the few exotic animal experts in California during his time running Noah’s Ark Veterinary Hospital, Dr. Doug Mader was just as likely to be treating a lion as a house cat. In The Vet at Noah’s Ark, his amazing protection of animals–from cats and dogs to emus, skunks, snakes, foxes, monkeys, and a host of other exotic animals—is recounted with all the thrill of an ER medical drama. And not only must Dr. Mader fight to protect the vulnerable animals in his care, but also his human staff navigating the social unrest of Los Angeles in the early 1990s. This beloved, multi-award winning volume from a veterinary hero often praised as a modern day James Herriot is a captivating tribute to our animal friends and the true stories of a doctor who goes above and beyond to protect them.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781954641822
Publisher:	Apollo Publishers
Publication date:	03/05/2024
Pages:	400
Sales rank:	861,120
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Dr. Doug Mader is a triple board-certified veterinary specialist and has been a veterinarian for over three decades. He is an internationally recognized speaker, has written three best-selling medical textbooks and numerous book chapters and scientific publications, and has had long-standing pet columns in the Long Beach Press Telegram, Reptiles magazine, and the Key West Citizen. Dr. Mader is the recipient of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Award, the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine Alumni Achievement Award, and the Fred L. Frye Lifetime Achievement Award for Veterinary Medicine, and is a six-time winner of the North American Veterinary Community Speaker of the Year award and a four-time winner of the Western Veterinary Conference Educator of the Year award. He is also a fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine in the UK. Dr. Mader practiced in California for many years, but today lives and works in the Florida Keys.

Read an Excerpt

I said my perfunctory good mornings to the receptionist staff as I started my morning lap around the hospital before heading to the conference room. When I arrived in the treatment room I was alarmed to see the Karens, Peter, and Stacey huddling over a patient on the table. Off in the corner of the room, his face wrought with dread, stood Toad.

“What’s going on?” I asked, scanning the scene. I nodded in Toad’s direction. His eyes were uncharacteristically anxious, reddened.

“What’s wrong with Barney?” I asked again, trying to peer through the mass of bodies surrounding the table. The old dog was prone, his eyes half shut. Not even a twitch from his usual happy tail.

“His skin is falling off,” Toad stated, without emotion. His voice was calm, but I sensed an urgency that I had not heard since Barney first came in sick. It was obvious that Toad had not shaven. Pronounced shadows under his eyes darkened his rotund face. Despite the coolness in the treatment area, a patina of sweat dampened Toad’s frowning forehead.

Clients are not trained in medical description. I have learned years ago not to take what they say too literally. What appears to them a catastrophic emergency is more often than not just a routine medical problem. In contrast, the true emergencies are often ignored until it’s too late (like an eye that has popped out and the owner wants to wait to see if it will go back in on its own). So when Toad described Barney’s skin as falling off, I was not convinced this was actually the case.

Curious and concerned, I stepped forward and my staff parted like the Red Sea. There before me lay our chubby basset. I was astonished to see that Toad’s description was not far from the truth. As I got closer, Barney stood up, his long, sway back accented by his large, droopy jowls. He glanced up at me with pained, bloodshot eyes, obviously not wanting to move his head or turn his neck. “What’s his temperature?” I asked no one in particular.

Table of Contents

• Prologue

• Preface

• The Karens

• September: Randy and the Sticky Buns

• October: Cheryl Knows Best

• November: Mort the Conqueror

• December: Brenna and the Skunk

• January: Big Mac

• February: Tanya and the Snake

• March: Raoul at the Ferret Club

• April: Greta Can’t Get a Break

• May: Don’t Mess with Sophie

• June: Rolling the Tortoise

• July: Grant and Chloe “Have a Thing”

• August 1992: The Big Test

  Epilogue

Editorial Reviews

James Herriot set high standards for veterinarians sharing their personal journeys, but this memoir by veterinarian Mader holds its own. . . .  Verdict: An engrossing read for animal lovers.” —Library Journal

“Dogs, cats, emus, skunks, snakes, foxes, and monkeys: All are welcome at Noah’s Ark Veterinary Hospital in inner city LA, where the book recounts the daily travails of Dr. Mader and staff during a single year. . . . Required reading.” —New York Post

“James Herriot set high standards with his incredible storytelling prowess a half century ago. For the first time in over 50 years, American veterinarian Dr. Doug Mader has matched the task. . . . Prepare to shed a tear or two, but most of all, be ready to celebrate the magic of the human-animal bond.” —Key West Citizen

“Doug is so fearless and dedicated. He’s also a damn good storyteller, as readers of this memoir will find out.”
—Carl Hiaasen, New York Times best-selling author of Bad Monkey, Skinny Dip, and Squeeze Me

“Prepare to be moved and to even shed a tear or two as you meet an unforgettable parade of characters: mice, tortoises, parrots, snakes, emus, and the odd ferret. Through it all, Dr. Mader’s love for and devotion to his patients, and his quirky staff who become family, provide hilarity and heartbreak—and proof of the unbreakable human-animal bond.”
—Melissa Jo Peltier, executive producer of Dog Whisperer and New York Times best-selling coauthor of Cesar’s Way, How to Raise the Perfect Dog, and Be The Pack Leader

“Dr. Mader does a fantastic job representing the life of a passionate and devoted veterinarian. You will laugh, cry, and be captivated as he navigates uncertainty and risk with courage and dedication.”
—Dr. Linda Bender, author of Animal Wisdom: Learning from the Spiritual Lives of Animals

“Of course veterinarians love animals, but the best veterinarians love people as well. Doug Mader’s understanding and love of all life comes across in this solid read.”
—Dr. Kevin T. Fitzgerald, veterinarian on Animal Planet’s Emergency Vets and E-Vet Interns

“Dr. Mader’s storytelling is as amazing as the patients he treats. The Vet at Noah's Ark is not only a great story, but also lets the reader walk in his shoes as he struggles with the daily challenges of operating a busy animal hospital, all while navigating the dangers of living and working in the inner city.”
—Dr. Sally Haddock, author of The Making of a Woman Vet

“If your soul is tired or you’re burned out from doom and gloom books and just want to read a modern day James Herriot sequel, this book is for you.” —Dr. Karen Becker, New York Times best-selling author of The Forever Dog

From the Publisher

05/01/2022

James Herriot set high standards for veterinarians sharing their personal journeys, but this memoir by veterinarian Mader holds its own; told over the course of a year in Los Angeles in the midst of the Rodney King beating and subsequent riots, it matches humor with heartbreak. Each chapter introduces a new intern to the animal hospital for the month. Clients and their beloved pets (including a dealer and his guinea pig) serve as recurring characters or simple anecdotes as the author and his team solve mysterious ailments and grapple with ethical issues, such as illegally owned ferrets. Readers who love animals will appreciate the book, although they should be prepared for tough scenes, especially where it portrays the cruelty of humans to animals, and humans to humans; the graphic detail can be upsetting, plus there's some harsh language. Beyond the emotional issues, some readers might find it difficult to follow the book due to its many storylines and extraneous information. VERDICT An engrossing read for animal lovers.—Elissa Cooper

Library Journal