Yesterday, three of my patients tried to bite me. Four tried to scratch me. One succeeded and I’ll have the scar to prove it. Another one tried to crush me against a wall and two very nearly kicked me.

Such is the life of a veterinarian. I’m Jessie Cameron, and along with my business partner, I own and run the Cameron Veterinary Hospital where we care for small animals. We also take turns responding to farm calls. It was at one of those where a horse took offense at my attempt to give it a shot yesterday and pinned me in his stall. A cranky Holstein (that’s a breed of cow for you city folks) came close to nailing me with a well-placed cow kick. Yes, the term “cow kick” comes by its name honestly. But to be clear, horses can cow kick with the best of them.

In any given day, I can be found doing routine examinations and vaccinations on any variety of pets and livestock. But that’s only a small part of my practice. I do surgeries, dental cleanings, and treat all sorts of emergency situations from the escapee pooch who tangled with a car to the ravenous kitty who was poisoned when she ate her human mom’s flowers.

The large animals provide their own always interesting cases. Horses have notoriously sensitive digestive systems and colic all too frequently. They also get tangled up in fencing or even their own blankets. I recently treated a Jersey (another bovine breed) that swallowed a strand of barbed wire.

Sometimes, there’s nothing I can do to save a patient. In those cases, the final kindness I can offer is to end their suffering humanely. It’s my least favorite part of the job. I shed tears right alongside my human clients.

Starting tomorrow, I’m turning over the Cameron Veterinary Hospital to my partner so I can fill in for my mentor, Doc Lewis, at Riverview Racetrack. He’s taking a rare and long-overdue two-week vacation.

I worked as Doc’s assistant while I went to school and always loved being around the Thoroughbreds. But it’s been a while. I wonder how many familiar faces I’ll see. At least there should be more of a routine to my schedule while I’m there. And fewer surprises.

Or maybe I’m just kidding myself.

Death by Equine
Genre: Traditional Mystery
Release: May 2021
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Misplaced trust

Veterinarian Jessie Cameron agrees to fill in for her mentor, Doc Lewis, at Riverview Racetrack so he can take a long-overdue vacation. When he’s tragically killed by one of his equine patients the night before he’s supposed to leave, Jessie quickly suspects the death is anything but accidental. Her search for the truth is thwarted by everyone from well-meaning friends to the police, including her soon-to-be-ex-husband. Undaunted, she discovers layers of illegal activities and deceit being perpetrated by the man she thought of as a father figure, creating a growing list of suspects with reason to want Doc dead. Too late, she realizes that her dogged quest for the truth has put her in the crosshairs of a devious killer desperate to silence her. Permanently.

About the Author
Annette Dashofy is the USA Today best-selling author of the multi–Agatha Award nominated Zoe Chambers mystery series. She and her husband live on ten acres of what was once her grandfather’s dairy farm in southwestern Pennsylvania with one very spoiled cat.

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