Pony Jumpers 7- Seventh Place by Kate Lattey

Author:Kate Lattey [Lattey, Kate]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: YA, E
Published: 2016-05-31T04:00:00+00:00

* * *

“He’s not looking much better, is he?”

Lesley was observing Buck critically as I held him on the back lawn. His sides were tucked up and his breathing was still laboured.

“No.” I was direct with her. The sun beat down on our heads as she opened her veterinary kit and pulled out a bright pink stethoscope. I was glad Dad wasn’t here to see it. I didn’t think he’d be impressed.

“So how is the old man?”

I blinked, confused. “My dad?”

Lesley raised her eyebrows. “I meant the pony.”

“Oh.” I felt my face flush, and I spoke quickly to try and avoid further embarrassment. “Lethargic. Not as interested in food as he is usually, although he ate his bran mash this morning.”

“Pooping normally?”

I nodded. “Not as much as usual, but yeah, otherwise.”

“Has he been drinking?” She slipped the stethoscope buds into her ears, then turned back to me with a grin. “And I’m still asking about the pony.”

I couldn’t help a slight smile at that one. “Yes, a little.” I’d topped his water bucket up that morning, but he hadn’t exactly drained it overnight.

“Okay.” She nudged Buck’s left foreleg forward a little, then positioned the end of the stethoscope just behind his elbow. I stood quietly, waiting, as she listened, counting off the seconds on her wristwatch as she did. I watched Buck’s sides heave in and out as he breathed, occasionally swatting flies listlessly with his tail.

“Forty-eight beats per minute,” she said, removing the stethoscope from her ears and stepping back from my pony.

“That’s high,” I replied with a frown. “And his respiration rate is twenty four, which is high too.”

Lesley looked surprised. “Were you counting?”

I nodded. “I was watching his sides move, and counted while you did. Fifteen seconds, right? Then multiply by four.”

“Correct.” She seemed impressed, but I was too worried about Buck to care. “Don’t panic too much, okay? It’s not ideal, but we expected the heart and respiration to be up, considering his condition. And I’ve seen worse.”

I wasn’t sure that was too comforting, but I nodded. She placed the stethoscope higher, listening carefully to his lungs for a few seconds at a time.

“Bit of wheezing going on, but that’s expected too, given what we can see from the outside.” She laid a hand over Buck’s side, watching the expansion and contraction of his ribcage. “I’ll give him an injection to try and settle things down. Looks like a respiratory infection, which is treatable, although it might limit his future endeavours.”

“I don’t care about that,” I told her. “I just want him to feel better.”

“Good to know.” Lesley moved to Buck’s hind end and prepared to take his temperature again. “He’s a show jumper, is he?”

I nodded. “One of the best.”

She smiled. “He’s certainly very well looked after.” She inserted the thermometer and looked around the garden, one arm resting casually on Buck’s rump. “Nice place you’ve got here. What are those, petunias?”

I followed her gaze instinctively, then shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“I think they are. My mother’s mad keen on gardening,” Lesley confessed.

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