“It’s Darling,” they said. “She’s sick.”
“What’s the matter with her?”
“Mack says it’s distemper.”
“I’m no veterinarian,” said Doc. “I don’t know how to treat these things.”
Hazel said, “Well, couldn’t you just take a look at her? She’s sick as hell.”
They stood in a circle while Doc examined Darling. He looked at her eyeballs and her gums and felt in her ear for fever. He ran his finger over the ribs that stuck out like spokes and at the poor spine. “She won’t eat?” he asked.
“Not a thing,” said Mack.
“You’ll have to force feed her – strong soup and eggs and cod liver oil.”
They thought he was cold and professional. He went back to his tide charts and his stew.
But Mack and the boys had something to do now. They boiled meat until it was as strong as whiskey. They put cod liver oil far back on her tongue so that some of it got down her. They held up her head and made a little funnel of her chops and poured the cool soup in. She had to swallow or drown. Every two hours they fed her and gave her water. Before they had slept in shifts – now no one slept. They sat silently and waited for Darling’s crisis.
It came early that morning. The boys sat in their chairs half asleep and Mack was awake and his eyes were on the puppy. He saw her ears flip twice, and her chest heave. With infinite weakness she climbed slowly to her spindly legs, dragged herself to the door, took four laps of water and collapsed on the floor.
Mack shouted the others awake. He danced heavily. All the boys shouted at one another. (…)
By nine o’clock Darling had eaten a raw egg and half a pint of whipped cream by herself. By noon she was visibly putting on weight. In a day she romped a little and by the end of the week she was a well dog.
John Steinbeck, "Cannery row"
Anounced tragedy turns into happiness. Puppies and all. Love it, love it, love it. I miss my Ngozi. She is a swell dog.
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