Dangerous Work 2011

The client (who I had only met previously with his cats) is an expert on cheese manufacture and was to be the keynote speaker at a conference on cheese in Melbourne. He wished to take some samples with him but the Australian customs needed to see a veterinary certificate saying they were prepared in a manner that minimized disease risk. Now I wasn’t sure that I was sufficiently qualified to certify cheese so I phoned the local animal health office who assured me I was assigned to panel 1 e) and therefore able to carry out the task.  The day before his flight the client brought the cheese to the surgery securely enclosed in a plastic cool bag. I opened the lid with some trepidation to find a dozen pieces of cheese of various sorts wrapped as they would be for sale in a supermarket. They appeared docile and I was able to handle them without the need for a muzzle. After a small hitch in finding out the registration numbers of the premises where the milk had been pasteurized I was able to complete, sign and stamp the certificate, in triplicate, and send the cheeses on there way without a single bite or scratch. Some samples were left with us for post-mortem, testing and disposal in a way that complied with clinical waste regulations. (They tasted very nice.)            All in all the most difficult job I’ve had to do since I had to sterilize some wild and aggressive fishing rods prior to the owner’s holiday in Iceland