Product Description

One puff adder; one antelope; one crocodile. These were the animals on the sick list with which Oliver Graham-Jones was presented on his first day as veterinary officer of London Zoo. It was 1950, and the care of wild animals in zoos was in its infancy. Previously sick animals had been placed in the care of their keepers, kept from public view, and if they didn't respond to traditional medications allowed to pass quietly away. But Oliver was to change all this. A pioneer of many of the techniques now used by vets around the world, he was instrumental in building the first animal hospital, and in moving London Zoo away from its Victorian past into the high-tech world of modern veterinary medicine. In Zoo Tails, he tells us about some of the animals he cared for: what it felt like when he was faced with an escaped bear or an injured elephant; and what he did when called upon to perform a colostomy on a python, or when he was asked to fit one of the ravens in the Tower of London with a wooden leg. If a dangerous animal escaped or required urgent medical attention, Oliver Graham-Jones was always on hand, ready for any eventuality. Frequently describing himself as quaking with fear, he comes across as humane, skilful and most of all incredibly brave. If you are a lover of animals in any shape or form, and My Family and Other Animals was an essential part of your childhood reading, then Zoo Tails is for you. Filled with wonderfully funny stories (with titles like Chased by a Gorilla or A Leopard in the Cabinet Room) which are told with appealingly self-deprecating humour, Zoo Tails deserves to become a classic in animal literature.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2044221 in Books
• Published on: 2002-04
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 208 pages

From the Publisher
“One puff adder, one antelope, one crocodile.” This was the list of sick animals presented to Oliver Graham–Jones on his first day as chief veterinarian at London Zoo. It was 1951, and the care of zoo animals was in its infancy. Sick animals had previously been placed in the hands of their keepers and kept from public view, but Graham–Jones was about to change all that. A pioneer of many of the techniques now used by vets around the world, he was instrumental in building the first animal hospital and bringing London Zoo into the modern world of veterinary medicine. Zoo Tails is filled with his most memorable experiences, from performing a colostomy on a python to fitting a raven with a wooden leg. As funny as it is fascinating, this is a book for animal lovers everywhere. Founder of the British Veterinary Zoological Society, Oliver Graham–Jones is widely regarded as Britain’s most distinguished vet.

From the Back Cover
One Puff Adder One antelope One crocodile

This was the list of sick animals presented to Oliver Graham-Jones on his first day as veterinary officer at London Zoo.

It was 1951, and the care of wild animals in zoos was in its infancy. Previously, sick animals had been placed in the hands of their keepers and kept from public view. But Oliver Graham-Jones was to change all this. A pioneer of many of the techniques now used by vets around the worl, he was instrumental in building the first animal hospital and moving London Zoo away from its Victorian past into the high-tech world of modern vetinary medicine.

If a dangerous animal escaped or required urgent medical attention, Oliver was always on hand ready for any eventuality. In Zoo Tails, he tells us about some of the extraordinary animals he looked after: how he anaesthetized, and was chased by, a gorilla; captured an angry polar bear in thick fog; performed a colostomy on a python; and fitted a raven in the Tower of London with a wooden leg.

Filled with wonderfully funny stories, told with delightfully self-deprecating humour, this is a book that will appeal to lovers of animals great and small.

'"Zoo Tails" will raise many a smile and, along the way, a greater appreciation of what it is to play doctor to the most exotic collection of patients in the world.' Desmond Morris

About the Author
In 1951 Oliver Graham-Jones became London Zoo's first inhouse veterinary officer and curator of mammals, and worked there for 15 years, before leaving to become a lecturer at the Royal Veterinary College. It took him seven years to write Zoo Tails. He now lives in Selsey, near Chichester, with his wife, Josephine.