CBR14Bingo: Elephant (there are a bunch of elephants in this book)
Circus Doctor is, as its straight forward title suggests, an autobiography of a circus veterinarian. At the time he wrote this book, J.Y. Henderson had been working for Ringling for ten years, and from some cursory Googling it looks like he ended up working there for over forty. You can tell from the book how caring and passionate he is about caring for the vast variety of animals under his care, so it makes sense he would keep going for as long as possible.
This book is a good overview both of the difficulties and challenges of exotic veterinary practice and of the day-to-day life of Ringling in the 1940s. At this point American circus was in its golden age, and the descriptions of the effort that went into making the giant machine that was Ringling run are evocative of an art form at the top of its game. I was very stirred by this book and how it got across the complexity of the organization — the 1,500 people working non-stop to make the show run in perfect order and move what was essentially a small city around the country by rail. Henderson’s devotion to the seven hundred animals in his care is also very moving, as it was a round-the-clock job. He details how he figured out different techniques and advanced medical care for the animals. The advent of penicillin and sulfa drugs is a highlight here, as he is able to save a lot more animals, and this made me think again how short of a time ago it was that we were dropping like flies without antibiotics. It’s so easy to forget the immense loss of life, both human and animal, before the advent of antibiotics, and I always do my best to never take this for granted. I learned a lot about the care that large cats, elephants, horses, bears, monkeys, etc all need, and the stories are humorous and illuminating, ranging from how to deworm polar bears to a harrowing account of a fire in the menagerie.
Recommended for anyone interested in classic American circus or veterinary history. Lots of graphic accounts of surgery and illness/death of animals.
