Born in rural Worcestershire in 1950, from an early age David Harwood learned about keeping animals before going on to study veterinary medicine at London's Royal Veterinary College. Once qualified, he became established as a farm animal vet, working throughout Southwest England. In this book, David tells his own story of working his way through veterinary school in the late 1960's, then working in farm practices (with plenty of anecdotes of rural characters, both human and non-human), as well as a vivid account of the demands, challenges, and thrills of an extraordinary veterinary life full of incidents (along with life and death moments). Besides the usual livestock caseload, he later came into contact with more unusual patients, such as ostriches, giraffes, ...and snails. While telling his story, David provides plenty of information on livestock diseases and conditions which will be of interest to fellow vets and livestock keepers, while also offering plenty of tips and tricks for aspiring vets to pick up along the way. Working as a UK government Veterinary Investigator, David provides a fascinating account of the CSI-style detective work needed to uncover the causes of illness and death in farm animals, often tracing these back to the farm environment or the animal's own behavior to determine the cause. He gained a unique insider's view of farm animal health issues during the outbreaks of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (mad cow disease), foot-and-mouth disease, and avian influenza (bird flu). David Harwood provides an honest and open appraisal of UK official ministry practices during a time of increasing officialdom and challenges, and he describes encounters with farmers while making decisions affecting their lives and livelihoods. [Subject: Memoir, Veterinary Science]

As textbooks go, this is one of the few that I may actually choose to read in a spare moment, not just when madly researching what could possibly be the problem when I get called to a goat farm. It contains interesting information on the background of goat farming, goat behaviour, nutrition and husbandry in the introductory section... This hardback, logically presented book will live on a handy shelf to be used on a regular basis. - Pam Brown, mixed practice vet at Alnorthumbria Vets, Wooler, in Veterinary Record, 27 April 2019 Key features: Covers both goat medicine and surgery Covers basic anatomy, commons breeds and husbandry Includes new and emerging diseases Goats are one of the most widely kept domestic animals globally, mainly as a result of the relative ease with which they can be kept and the obvious benefits provided to those who keep them. Goat Medicine and Surgery describes the key diseases that can have an impact on goat health and welfare worldwide, providing information on diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, management and control. Covers basic anatomy, common breeds and husbandry. Divided into chapters covering each body system Offers the common differential diagnoses, followed by the specific diagnosis and recommended treatments Covers a wide range of disorders, including new and emerging diseases Modern goat keeping gives us a full spectrum of activity from nomadic tribes moving with their animals, to the range-keeping in Australia, to units fattening goat kids for meat and to intensive goat dairy production systems. Alongside these production systems are those in which goats are kept in small numbers as a hobby, as pets and at public attractions. This book deals with the diseases and challenges impacting all kinds of goats and their owners. It will be invaluable to veterinarians in practice and training, animal scientists and agricultural advisors, as well as scientists interested in animal welfare.

As textbooks go, this is one of the few that I may actually choose to read in a spare moment, not just when madly researching what could possibly be the problem when I get called to a goat farm. It contains interesting information on the background of goat farming, goat behaviour, nutrition and husbandry in the introductory section... This hardback, logically presented book will live on a handy shelf to be used on a regular basis. - Pam Brown, mixed practice vet at Alnorthumbria Vets, Wooler, in Veterinary Record, 27 April 2019 Key features: Covers both goat medicine and surgery Covers basic anatomy, commons breeds and husbandry Includes new and emerging diseases Goats are one of the most widely kept domestic animals globally, mainly as a result of the relative ease with which they can be kept and the obvious benefits provided to those who keep them. Goat Medicine and Surgery describes the key diseases that can have an impact on goat health and welfare worldwide, providing information on diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, management and control. Covers basic anatomy, common breeds and husbandry. Divided into chapters covering each body system Offers the common differential diagnoses, followed by the specific diagnosis and recommended treatments Covers a wide range of disorders, including new and emerging diseases Modern goat keeping gives us a full spectrum of activity from nomadic tribes moving with their animals, to the range-keeping in Australia, to units fattening goat kids for meat and to intensive goat dairy production systems. Alongside these production systems are those in which goats are kept in small numbers as a hobby, as pets and at public attractions. This book deals with the diseases and challenges impacting all kinds of goats and their owners. It will be invaluable to veterinarians in practice and training, animal scientists and agricultural advisors, as well as scientists interested in animal welfare.