Vetnews | Februarie 2025 48 « BACK TO CONTENTS Life plus 26: FIFTY YEARS IN VETERINARY PRACTICE. (Part 3) The Advertising Industry I had been drawn into the advertising and film industry and in particular the wild animal aspects of this. Camel Cigarettes asked us to do an advert of elephants seeking water in the Namib desert and one of the sneaker companies asked for an advert where their shoes on the right person could outrun a lion. This was all fun work. Then Telkom asked if we could change the spots on a leopard and replace them with the new Telkom logo. We had the leopard and the makeup artists – a total of 40 people. The company director had very long pockets and short arms and was not happy to wait for the leopard to come around from a lengthy anaesthetic. I made an error – I said we could try gaseous anaesthetic. The leopard, a male weighing 80 kg was put into a cage and covered with a plastic tarp. The gaseous anaesthetic was put into a retractable bowl and slipped into the cage. It worked like a charm and in a short while the makeup artists were hard at work. The leopard stopped breathing and I was convinced it was dead. Just as quickly as it went under it woke up and was growling. I caught it by the jowls held it as firmly as I could and told all the assistants to get the hell out - it never took much encouragement. My arms were failing and this leopard’s wild eyes were very intimidating. When everyone had left the enclosure and the door was closed it was time to determine my fate. I threw the leopard to the ground expecting it to attack. It did not and slunk away. One very lucky vet. The leopard was then given the full monty of an anaesthetic and we completed the job. The advert was screened but never amounted to much. Life plus 26 without parole Mike Lowry Mike Lowry has been in veterinary practice for "life plus 26" years. In this column, he shares his experiences and opinions. +26 Regulars I Life plus 26
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