The Vet

Kala was caught in two minds. The waves were getting more and more higher and seeing them beating against the shore wetting her right up to the waist, made her a little scared. It looked like the tide was going to still increase further. The cave on the shoreline beckoned with its promise of safety.

Her fear rose as the next wave struck her down into the water. She lifted herself up and ran towards the cave. Something caught her attention just before she entered. Some giant footmarks had been imprinted on the sand and it disappeared into the cave. It looked like some other human or creature had gone into the cave.

‘Do I venture into the cave? Or do I just wait here?’ she wondered.

Taking courage in her hands, she stepped guardedly into the cave. Expecting it to be dark, she was surprised to see it lighted up by a small lamp. Suddenly a hand seemed to brush against her. She let out a scream of fear. To her amazement, the creature was a chimpanzee and it was more scared than she was. Her scream had only increased its fear and it ran to the other corner.

Kala loved animals. She knew from experience as a veterinary surgeon, that a scared animal was more likely to attack than a normal one. She put her hand into her pocket and realized that the emergency tranquilizer injection that she had carried the previous day to treat an injured dog was there. Now, by the nature of her profession, Kala was loath to use the tranquilizer unless it was absolutely necessary. This chimp was not injured, nor was it in pain. It was just plain scared. She knew she had nothing to lose. So she decided to use all her experience to calm the chimpanzee. She gave a smile and made purring noises. The chimpanzee stared at her. Slowly she stepped towards the chimp and stroked his head as one would stroke a pet dog. Gradually he calmed down and showed his teeth. Kala laughed aloud, elated that she had been able to calm the animal without using the tranquilizer.