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Watch The Yorkshire Vet, Season 23 Episode 9 on Dailymotion (2026).
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00:01Across Yorkshire's moors and dales, the world's most famous vets set the benchmark for animal care, and James Herriot's legacy
00:10lives on.
00:13His former trainee, Peter Wright, has been a Yorkshire vet for over 40 years.
00:22It's like when you're in the pub, you're seeing who can go on a pipe the fastest.
00:25Peter's old partner Julian Norton.
00:28I'm feeling like a gladiator going into battle.
00:31Loves his work.
00:33In the town Herriot made his home.
00:35Wow, welcome to Thirsk.
00:37Everything that you can see all across there is Yorkshire.
00:41Alongside Peter and Julian.
00:43That'll do nicely.
00:44That'll do nicely.
00:45A new generation.
00:47He's got it, he's got it.
00:49Of town and country vets.
00:50High five Elise.
00:51Also uphold the Herriot ethos.
00:54Just lining things up.
00:55I get some lubrication in there.
00:57As the Yorkshire vet team.
00:59Cheers.
01:01Help animals of all shapes.
01:03Oh, got it out!
01:05Hey, up.
01:05Sizes.
01:07Good girl.
01:08Types.
01:09It's only a small one.
01:10I think Julian begs to differ.
01:12And temperaments.
01:13I'll tell you what, he hasn't got any manners, has he?
01:15It's definitely not glamorous.
01:18I'm in the line of fire for another fart, aren't I?
01:21But it's varied.
01:22They're going pretty quick, aren't they?
01:24This is like bull after something.
01:27It's rarely easy.
01:29Help!
01:30But they continue the Herriot tradition.
01:33Treating all creatures.
01:35It's moving.
01:35I can't believe it.
01:37Great.
01:39And small.
01:40I'm not even aware of that.
01:42No, I'm sorry about that.
01:53The land and the animals that roam it.
01:57In Yorkshire, it's a package deal.
02:02They need each other.
02:05With hard yards put into the preservation of both.
02:11Because nothing here stands alone.
02:14Teamwork thrives.
02:20Built on an unspoken promise across moor and meadow.
02:26Forces joined for a common goal.
02:31Near Huddersfield, a derelict dairy farm has become a Yorkshire Wildlife Trust reserve.
02:38Where roaming highland cattle play a key role in rewilding the land.
02:43By trampling, grazing and fertilizing.
02:46You alright, lovely?
02:47Oh, poor lad.
02:49Poor lad.
02:50But grazing team manager, Karen, is concerned about one of the herd.
02:56He's had a growth on his eyelid.
02:58And it seems to be getting bigger and it's bothering him.
03:04They're crucial to what we do.
03:06They're basically land management tools for us on our nature reserves.
03:10You know, the highlands are really well adapted to eating all the really rough grasses and the thorny plants.
03:15He's a useful animal to us and he's a nice animal, so we'd like to do what we can.
03:21Right, let's get everything ready.
03:22Get some gloves on.
03:24Shona's just arrived.
03:26And she has some help.
03:27So we've got Philippa helping us today.
03:30So Philippa's just going into third year, aren't you, at vet school?
03:32And faced with a sizable patient while she's suffering with back trouble.
03:37Can you move yourself?
03:37I don't think you can move.
03:38Really?
03:39Thank you.
03:40Oh, thanks David.
03:41That's great.
03:42She's also asked David to come along.
03:45It's a funny one.
03:46We're not quite sure what we're going to get.
03:48So it could be a quick and easy job or it could be a real challenge.
03:51So we'll find out.
03:52Yeah.
03:55Right, are you suited and booted?
03:57Good.
03:59And see what we can do for this cow.
04:03Hello.
04:04Oh, are you there?
04:05Are you all right?
04:06Hello.
04:07Where's the patient for today?
04:08The patient's in here.
04:09So it's had this growth on its eye for about six weeks.
04:13So it's got bigger over the six weeks.
04:15It has.
04:15So you've been managing to get some antibiotic cream onto it, have you?
04:18Yes.
04:19Which you can't do every day forever.
04:21No, because these aren't normally housed.
04:23No, exactly.
04:24So we have to get them in specially.
04:25And with the equipment that animals got is interesting to handle.
04:29Yeah.
04:29It's got some reach with those horns.
04:31Yeah.
04:31Putting the antibiotics in would have meant that it got rid of an infection.
04:34It would have gone...
04:35And that was causing it.
04:36It would have gone down and it would have gone away.
04:38But it probably is some kind of tumour.
04:41My worry is we might not be able to separate it out very well.
04:44Yeah.
04:44And it might extend deeper.
04:46In which case we are going to have to consider doing an enucleation procedure and taking the whole eye out.
04:51So that's removing the whole eye.
04:52Yeah.
04:52Get in there, have a look and then we can make a decision, can't we?
04:55Yeah.
04:56These Highland cows graze all over Yorkshire in different areas.
04:59And he really needs both eyes if he can.
05:02Not to mention he's got massive horns.
05:04So we could really do with saving that eye if we can.
05:07Come on, trickle.
05:08Come on.
05:10Good lass.
05:11But David, as I'm the one with the seized up back today, please, could you do the athletic injecting?
05:16Thank you.
05:17Watch your back.
05:20Although with David's help, Shona's trying to protect her bad back.
05:25Hold on.
05:26Salation's in.
05:27And so now we just need to keep fingers nice and calm.
05:30Nice and relaxed.
05:32She can't be totally hands off.
05:34Right.
05:38He's not under general anaesthetic and obviously he's got these big prongs on his head.
05:42Obviously this foal is a hell of a lot stronger than me, but because he's asleep, I've got a bit
05:46more chance of sort of holding him steady.
05:52We're hopeful we might be able to remove the suspected tumour without losing the eye.
05:57However, there is a chance that if there's a deeper growth and the eye is really compromised, might be the
06:04best thing to do to remove the whole eye.
06:13Near Thirsk, Peter's also heading to see an animal with a worrying lump.
06:20Although his patient is around 1,500 times smaller than Shona and David's hide and cow.
06:27And not one of the attractions here at the visitor farm, rather than four foot homes, has hundreds of little
06:34spines.
06:35Want to have a little snack pickle?
06:38African pygmy hedgehogs are increasingly popular pets.
06:42But the farm's manager, Lauren, is in a pickle.
06:46With pickle.
06:48She's a little old lady now.
06:50I think she's about eight year old.
06:51I am a little bit worried.
06:53She is a family pet.
06:55And my daughter absolutely loves her.
06:57She'd be devastated if pickle didn't pull through getting rid of this lump.
07:02It's just under her neck on her chin.
07:05It's quite big.
07:07Peter's often here checking in on our bigger farm animals.
07:11So I have asked if he'll call in and check on pickle for me.
07:15Hello.
07:16Hi, how are you?
07:18I'm very well, thanks. Are you?
07:19Yes, thank you.
07:20Come on in.
07:21Nice to see you.
07:22You too.
07:23And who have we got here?
07:24This is pickle.
07:26My little hedgehog.
07:28She's really friendly.
07:30But she's got a lump here, can you see?
07:32Oh, creaky, yes.
07:33And it's quite a lump.
07:34I feel like it's all of a sudden just appeared in three days really big.
07:38I did bring my hedgehog gloves.
07:40You did?
07:40Oh, she's quite good.
07:42Yeah.
07:42She's very good.
07:43She's eating okay.
07:44Yeah, eating okay.
07:45Pooping okay.
07:46Yeah.
07:46Drinks fine.
07:48And not lost weight at all.
07:49No.
07:50She's still really, like, active and fit.
07:53Yes.
07:53She's really good.
07:54Hello, pickle.
07:55Hello.
07:57Does that feel at this side?
07:59Yes, that's nice, isn't it?
08:01It's quite big.
08:03It is quite big, isn't it?
08:04I am concerned.
08:06Are you?
08:07What I would like to do is have her in.
08:09Yeah.
08:09And explore that properly.
08:12Okay.
08:12Do you mind, pickle?
08:14She said, well, yes I do, really.
08:16All right, pickle.
08:18Yeah.
08:18Are you going to come with the nasty man?
08:20There you go.
08:21Okay.
08:21There you go.
08:22She's all yours, pickle.
08:23Okay, Lauren.
08:24Right, I'll be in touch.
08:25Bye, pickle.
08:28I'm not sure what this mass is.
08:30I'm fairly sure it isn't an abscess from the feel of it.
08:33I do hope it's something benign.
08:35But having said that, it's seemingly grown quite quickly.
08:40And usually masses that grow quite quickly are not very nice.
08:44It's not the best news because Peter is concerned about pickle.
08:49So we'll see what happens.
08:54After making the half hour journey to the practice in Kirby Moorside.
08:59All right, pickle.
09:01You're looking wide awake, aren't you?
09:03Peter's wasting no time in prepping pickle for her examination.
09:08The first thing, obviously, we've got to do is anaesthetize pickle.
09:11So I'm going to put pickle into a chamber.
09:14And then once pickle's asleep, I'm going to then try, which is not easy.
09:20I want to try and get the tube down into pickle's airway so we can then keep control of the
09:26level of anaesthetic that we're using.
09:29Once pickle's anaesthetized, newly qualified vet India has come to help Peter insert the tube.
09:36I can honestly say that I've never done it before.
09:38I think we do see a fair bit of wildlife and things, but never, I've never seen a pet hedgehog.
09:44So not something I've done first time for everything.
09:47But even with years of experience...
09:50Right, India, let's see if we can just open this mouth.
09:55This is a big challenge.
09:57Gosh, it's small.
10:00We're going to struggle to get in there, but we'll give it a go.
10:03I think it's too small.
10:07No, we'll abandon that.
10:10Right, let's, er, we're going to stick to gas.
10:13All right, pickle.
10:14Bugger. Bugger, bugger, bugger.
10:16Back in the box.
10:19Coming up...
10:20He knows something's up when he sees you, mate, unfortunately.
10:23It's not just painful memories for a precious pig.
10:26You can see how he's holding his hoof now, like, you know, he's elevated, like, I don't want to pressure
10:30him.
10:31Shona works through her pain barrier.
10:33My back's all right in this position.
10:35Trying to give the cow comfort.
10:37Well, good lad.
10:38And the sleigh dogs come in an orderly two by two.
10:42Wow, hello dogs.
10:43Before chaos reigns.
10:46I think we'd better abandon, aren't we?
10:48This is why they live outside.
11:00At a disused dairy farm turned Wildlife Trust Reserve near Huddersfield, where they use Highland cattle as part of a
11:08rewilding project.
11:10Putting a little bit of loco in here to try and numb it up.
11:14One of the herd has a suspected eye tumour, which David and Shona are trying to remove.
11:20Yeah, it's going to bleed.
11:22It'd be really good for this animal if we don't need to take his eye out, because there's nothing wrong
11:27with his actual eye.
11:28He can see fine.
11:30It's the tissue around it that's the problem.
11:33The sizeable challenge isn't made any easier by Shona having a bad back.
11:38My right shoulder hurts.
11:40My back's all right in this position.
11:43Especially when the bullock isn't in the best position.
11:46He is moving a little bit back.
11:48Will it dry up a bit?
11:50As much as you can.
11:51No, no.
11:51Yeah.
11:52Good lad.
11:54Along with third year vet student, Philippa, the Wildlife Trust's grazing team manager, Karen, is an anxious spectator.
12:02Without them, we've got to get volunteers to go and cut and remove all the bramble and the dead grasses.
12:08So, he's a good lad. We're fond of him.
12:11Are you all right, buddy?
12:12Just wondering if we should take it more.
12:14Grab and put it, yeah.
12:16But with David and Shona getting to the bottom of the problem...
12:22...things are looking more positive.
12:25There wasn't any mass growing, but there's a slight protrusion and then just...
12:32...worry that it would either cause some irritation to the eye.
12:37You all right?
12:37I'll take your back. Yeah.
12:38No, no, I'm all right like that. He's just... he's fighting a little bit.
12:41Well, good lad.
12:43I'm happy with that. I think it's just gonna ooze a little bit, but there's no significant hemorrhage.
12:48That's good.
12:49That's it.
12:52So, we're just putting some antibiotic eye ointment in there.
12:55There's now an open wound that could get infected, so we're gonna put that in there.
12:59We're gonna make sure he's got plenty of fly protection on.
13:02And...
13:02He doesn't get up.
13:03Don't get up too quick, buddy.
13:05Good lad.
13:06You all right?
13:07We're all done now.
13:08We can let him go.
13:09Can we let him go?
13:09Yeah.
13:10Good lad. Nearly done. Nearly done, lad.
13:13Well, I'm glad we don't have to take his eye out.
13:15I think it looks like, you know, there was quite an obvious bit of tissue that was swirl, and I
13:19think we've got that.
13:20I mean, his eyes open nicely now. He doesn't look too traumatized.
13:23Hopefully we've got rid of the problem. Keep a close eye on him.
13:28Nice one.
13:29Put back and see how he's doing soon.
13:32Yeah.
13:32But he's a nice boy, so...
13:33He is. Fingers crossed it won't grow back. It'll heal, and he can carry on.
13:39Brilliant. Thank you.
13:41How's your back after that one, Sharon?
13:43I mean, it needs a bit of movement, and that was fine, because I was down. It's just...
13:46Lifting is hurting more than anything, so...
13:48Yeah, it's...
13:49I'll lift your bobs back into the car.
13:50I'll keep battling on there. Thank you.
13:52You're a hero.
14:01While a big patient isn't ideal for a vet with an injury...
14:05Hello, Thurston Henry Centre.
14:06At the practice in Thursk, Julian will have to put his back into his next job...
14:11...with six little ones.
14:12Next on the list is a litter of puppies.
14:14They're all coming in for the vaccinations, and they belong to my colleague Nicky.
14:19Good puppies.
14:20She and her husband have been to husky racing.
14:25And this is their next litter.
14:28They're going to be pulling their sleighs around the forests of North Yorkshire.
14:33Wow. Hello, dogs.
14:35Although Julian's colleague is a fellow vet, the three-month-old puppies are a handful for Nicky and Dean.
14:42I can imagine that it's fairly much a full-time job on top of being a vet, is it, looking
14:46after the dogs?
14:47Yeah, yeah. So we try to train four times a week, and we'll go before work on a morning in
14:52the week...
14:52...and then on a weekend. And then with these guys who are out most nights, pretty much it takes over
14:57your life, I would say.
14:59So when you come into work on the morning, you might have been up half the night racing dogs around
15:04forests?
15:04Yeah.
15:05Gosh. So when you're looking tired on the morning, we should be a bit more sympathetic, maybe.
15:11It's definitely a lifestyle, isn't it? As opposed to just having a hobby. Like, you live and breathe them every
15:16day.
15:17Is this your next generation of sleigh dogs? How does it work?
15:20Yeah. We decide who's going to be on what team eventually, and if you're doing a lot of hills, you
15:25want your bigger dogs that are going to take a bit more brunt.
15:27If they're in unity, in stride, they actually create more power.
15:30I can see how you could get really hooked on it.
15:34I'm quite keen, if possible, to come and have a go on one of your sledges.
15:37No, absolutely. We can certainly sort that out.
15:39And if I'm not careful, I can see what might happen next.
15:44Anne, is it all right if we have, like, ten huskies?
15:49So we'd better do some vaccines, then, shall we?
15:51Yeah.
15:52Wait, who's finished?
15:54What's this one called?
15:55Come on then, Mr Forge.
15:56George.
15:57George.
15:58Good boy.
15:59There you are, Forgey.
16:01Once Julian has raced through the vaccinations...
16:04Flo is the last one.
16:06Good girlie.
16:07There you are, Flo.
16:08There you go.
16:09Superb.
16:10Good job.
16:12The puppies are ready for some fun.
16:15It's just why they live outside.
16:19That's when you've got one as well.
16:23One's eating a piece of plastic.
16:26I think we'd better abandon, haven't we?
16:31Well, you're very nice.
16:32I can't wait to see you running around and putting this energy to good constructive use.
16:37But we've had, I think, plenty of fun now.
16:40So it's time, stop it, for the pups to go home, I think, before more chaos ensues.
16:48Oi!
16:49Stop it!
16:51Oh dear, there's poo coming now.
16:53Oh no, right, it's definitely time to go.
16:53I think that's time to...
16:54Oh no, right, it's definitely time to go.
17:00Across the North York Moors...
17:02Quite a big lump, isn't it?
17:03It is a big lump.
17:05Peter's investigating a large lump on Little Pickle, an eight-year-old African pygmy hedgehog.
17:11Here's Nurse Chloe, with decades of experience.
17:15He wasn't able to insert a tube to help with the anaesthetic, and Chloe knows that pickle being so small
17:22makes the risk high.
17:25They're not like a dog or a cat, put it that way.
17:28Do you know, I think I'd rather anaesthetise a half-ton horse than something like this.
17:34Yep.
17:35Less stressful.
17:38That mask has got to stay over her nose the whole time we're operating now,
17:42because even the small tube wasn't quite small enough.
17:46This is the best way to proceed now, and times are the essence with these little chaps as well,
17:52because they can suffer from hypothermia, they can get chilled,
17:57so this is something that we need to work on as efficiently as we possibly can.
18:02All right?
18:03Yeah.
18:06No, as I thought, this isn't an abscess.
18:09With an abscess ruled out...
18:11Can we get that thing out? That's the thing.
18:14...Peter needs to remove the lump.
18:17Yep, yep.
18:19Turn up a bit.
18:20Yeah.
18:21They're just very difficult, because obviously it's...
18:24Yes.
18:26It's not a nice mass.
18:29Not quite sure what it is.
18:31The main thing is to get this thing out.
18:34I don't know about you, Claire, but this is blooming. It is stressful.
18:37It is.
18:39Absolutely.
18:41The anaesthetic, everything about this, is very, very stressful.
18:45It's got a good steady heartbeat, though.
18:47Yeah, yeah.
18:48I think the next stop after this, Chloe, for me and you, is the pub.
18:52Absolutely.
18:56Is that your last stitch?
18:58I have one more to go in.
19:00With time being of the essence when such a small patient's under anaesthetic...
19:05Just trying to lighten her up a little bit so we can get her awake as soon as possible.
19:10The surgery's done in less than 15 minutes.
19:13There we... What timing!
19:15What timing!
19:17Hello, little one!
19:18Hello! What timing!
19:20Hello, I know!
19:22Oh, darling!
19:24We've got to keep it nice and warm now.
19:27Have we got somewhere where we could put it?
19:28Yeah.
19:29Some of these masses, they do have potential to spread to other parts of the body, so this had to
19:34be removed.
19:36She's trying to escape now.
19:38Good sign.
19:39I always like it when the patient's trying to escape after an anaesthetic.
19:47Steady!
19:47There we are, look at that!
19:49Look at that!
19:50And she's having a mealworm!
19:55Oh, look at that!
19:55Look at that!
19:56She's eating!
19:57She's eating!
19:58Look at that!
19:59That's incredible.
20:00Absolutely incredible.
20:02With operations like this, especially where we've got wildlife, anaesthetics aren't always easy, so it did fantastically well.
20:11The speed at which Pickle came around is quite remarkable, so we've just got to keep everything crossed now.
20:20Right, Pickle, I'll give you a little bit of privacy.
20:24You can have a nice little rest, and I'll come back and see you in a bit.
20:34At Millington's rescue farm near Huddersfield, all kinds of creatures are taken in and cared for by Jake.
20:44Excuse me, mister.
20:46But one in particular holds a special place in his heart.
20:50So Truffles was my very first rescue.
20:54He had his hoof caught in a grate, and he was rescued, but it was just a piglet around about
20:58this big.
21:00Truffles.
21:01He lived in my house to start with, so I'm obviously very, very close to him.
21:04Enjoying that, mate? Thank you for that, yeah.
21:11Although Truffles is still only seven years old, pigs originally bred for meat have heavy bodies and often develop joint
21:20issues, and he's been suffering with arthritis.
21:24Over the last two or three weeks, it's got to the point where sometimes he's falling over and I'm having
21:29to help him up.
21:30Matt's just arrived from the Huddersfield practice, and he's brought auxiliary nurse Megan to help him take some x-rays.
21:36We're just wanting to see whether it's just that arthritis that's advancing to become worse and worse, or if there
21:42is something else that we're missing.
21:43So, yeah, quite nervous about today.
21:48Morning, Jake, all right?
21:49Morning, mate, how are we doing?
21:49Getting on a little too bad, you?
21:50Good, good.
21:51Right, hi, Truffles.
21:54He knows something's up when he sees you and me, unfortunately.
21:57I know.
21:57Took your testicles away, didn't we?
21:59He's never forgotten.
22:00No.
22:01I'm saying, how many years is it now?
22:02Seven years.
22:03Seven years ago, yeah.
22:04Look at how that's mental.
22:06Obviously, x-rays today to see what kind of state his joints and stuff like that are in.
22:11You can see how he's holding his hoof now, like, you know, he's elevated, like, you know, he doesn't want
22:16to pressure it, whether that's his back end or his hoof.
22:19Or his hip, something like that.
22:20Hopefully, we'll get some answers.
22:23Get some answers.
22:23All right.
22:26So, I have known Truffles all his life.
22:29I've seen him grow to a fair size in that time.
22:33Now, unfortunately, he's not going to stand still while we do those x-rays, so we're going to have to
22:38give him some sedation and an anaesthetic.
22:42That we are good.
22:44Muscle, three, two, one.
22:49Really, we just want to know what the future's going to look like for Truffles, so we're all a bit
22:53nervous, really.
22:55You're okay.
22:57Good boy, Truffles.
22:58Good lad.
22:59There we go.
23:00Done.
23:00Give it a rub.
23:01Right, then.
23:02We'll leave him to it for a bit.
23:09Coming up.
23:10Three, two, one.
23:12The moment of truth for Truffles.
23:14All the x-rays are really quite clear.
23:17What we have found.
23:20The art of delegation.
23:22So, shall we see if David can get near?
23:23Yeah.
23:24Well volunteered, Shona.
23:25Yeah.
23:26As David has to brave the Highland.
23:28Oh, mate.
23:29And Julian needs to be brave.
23:31I might not be coming back.
23:33With the high-speed huskies.
23:35Here you go!
23:35Oh, ho, ho, ho!
23:47In the shadow of Huddersfield's Castle Hill, the local wildlife trust use Highland cattle to help nature conservation on a
23:56former dairy farm.
23:57And a month ago, Shona and David were called to help one of the herd.
24:04Today, we've come back up to see the bullock that we operated on recently, and we're going to have a
24:11look at how his eye is doing after we remove that small tumour.
24:14This Highland is a really nice boy, but he's got some serious horns on him.
24:17We're just coming to hopefully get a closer look and check everything's healed fine.
24:21So, I had a particularly bad back that day, but that is doing a lot better now.
24:25She's had a nice spell of annual leave since then, so if there's any heavy lifting today, it's not me.
24:31The dairy farm had been abandoned for ten years when the trust took it on as a reserve run by
24:37Mary.
24:37Hi, Mary.
24:38Oh, how are you there?
24:38Hi.
24:39How are you doing?
24:39Good to see you both.
24:40Good to see you.
24:41So, how has he been since we chopped a bit of his eye out?
24:45He was inside for three days afterwards.
24:48He didn't have too many flies because we had all that wind at the time, so that was really good
24:52timing.
24:52And then we let him back out, and he's been out with the rest of the herd ever since.
24:56Fantastic.
24:57Maybe we can get a closer look at him and check his hearing all right.
24:59Yeah, we can have a go.
25:00We can try.
25:01See if he lets us get close.
25:04All right.
25:05I think if we all approach en masse, he's definitely going to go the other way.
25:09Yeah.
25:09So, shall we see if David can get near?
25:10That might be wise, yeah.
25:12Well volunteered, Shona.
25:13Yeah.
25:18David was walking faster than us, so I volunteered him to go and look at the rodeo ball in the
25:22closet.
25:24Hail, mate.
25:29It's healed really well.
25:30You can't really tell which eye it is apart from the shaved bit around.
25:34Yeah.
25:35It looked like he gave you a good view of it when he turned his head to show you.
25:38He was just checking how I'm going to chop anything else off, I think.
25:41There's nothing visible above the eyelid.
25:44No sign of conjunctivitis from there.
25:46So there was no discharge still or anything like that?
25:48The air looks absolutely fine from there.
25:50He's still got both his eyes.
25:52We can leave him in peace in the field.
25:54Yeah.
25:55And while it might be peaceful, he's already back at work.
25:58This area needs finishing grazing.
26:00Then he'll move through our winter rotation of which fields need grazing.
26:04And then come spring, he might move off to another site where he's required.
26:11I'm really glad that we didn't need to go to the extremes of taking his eye out.
26:15Quick operation.
26:16And to be honest, he doesn't even look like he knows what's happened.
26:19He's back to his normal life.
26:20He's back with his friends.
26:21And that's all we can ask for, really.
26:28A few miles across West Yorkshire, at Jake's Animal Sanctuary...
26:34One, two, three...
26:38Matt's X-raying the hooves of their first ever rescue, seven-year-old pig Truffles.
26:45Doors don't look too bad.
26:48We'll try to get a face on one, I think, maybe.
26:50Mm-hm.
26:50But I think the problem's higher up, Jake.
26:53OK.
26:53Just given how he moves and looking at that.
26:56Truffles has been suffering with arthritis.
26:59Again, it's not jumping out at you as that joint is a mess.
27:02Mm.
27:03But Matt's trying to work out...
27:05All right, let's see what it shows.
27:09Yeah, please.
27:11Why he seemed in much more pain recently.
27:14Right, then.
27:15I think it's processing elimination.
27:17We know it's bad.
27:18I want a picture of this here, so we're going to need to pull it...
27:22If it'll come round, like, this way a bit.
27:24All right.
27:24That's what we're going to have to do.
27:27Three, two, one.
27:28Perfect.
27:29Good, good, good, good.
27:30You OK?
27:31You OK?
27:31I'm sorry.
27:32I'm sorry, mate.
27:37All right.
27:37Three, two, one.
27:44That's the right side that it's laying on.
27:47You see this white mark here?
27:50Essentially, it's got new bone growths that are forming.
27:54All the x-rays are really quite clear.
27:56What we have found, and we can be really quite confident in our diagnosis of this,
28:02just because of how he moves, process of elimination from all of the other joints.
28:07His spine, which is running through his hip area, is starting to fuse underneath,
28:13and we're just getting bony attachments.
28:15And it's that there is what's causing truffle the issues getting around.
28:20Unfortunately, there's nothing more we can do for him in terms of joint injections.
28:26Is it the news you wanted?
28:28Like I said, really, none of the news is great, but it really helps us manage our expectations,
28:32and helps us do the most that we can do to keep truffles comfortable.
28:38Because of this serious spinal condition, palliative care is now the only option.
28:45It's a ticking clock for him, basically.
28:47Unfortunately, it is.
28:49Let's try him on a slightly different anti-inflammatory, maybe, and see if we get more responsible.
28:54At least we know as well.
28:58All right, three, two, one.
29:00There we go.
29:00Good lad.
29:02And no big boy.
29:03I'm sorry.
29:08Why did I have to like animals?
29:12It's a bit emotional just because we were the first ever animal that we rescued,
29:17so it's like family to me, so that's why, you know, today we're always going to be difficult.
29:23But I did my best to hold the tea, but I didn't do very well.
29:29Er...
29:29So, yeah, it's just a case of now making sure we savour all the truffles that we've got now, mate,
29:34innit?
29:36He'll have heard his favourite snacks, some cherry tomatoes, what he could...
29:43He even mugged his ear then.
29:48Yeah.
29:50So dang it.
29:54Oh, God.
29:57He's a good pig.
30:09In the 8,000 acre Dolby forest up on the North York Moors...
30:14Good lad.
30:15Here we go.
30:17He's a good boy.
30:18First vet Nicky and her husband Dean's husky puppies, who Julian vaccinated three months ago...
30:24He's a good boy.
30:26He's a good boy.
30:27...have begun their sleigh pulling training.
30:30They caused absolute chaos in the practice.
30:33But now we're six months old and they're just starting to learn the ropes.
30:38And a keen lover of high octane sports, Julian's managed to find them in the forest.
30:44So tonight we're going to train our main string dogs.
30:46Just go out, enjoy it and hopefully show Julian what these guys can do and what they're bred for.
30:51So this will be a good test.
30:52We'll see how Julian matches this adrenaline with his mountain biking.
30:55We're looking forward to seeing Julian again, aren't we?
30:58Yes, we are.
31:01Hello. Hi, how are you doing?
31:03Hiya.
31:03You made it up to Dolby then?
31:04Made it into Dolby and into the deepest part of the forest.
31:08Found your way here, yeah.
31:09So these pups, they're the ones that we vaccinated a few months ago and now they're nearly fully grown.
31:13They're getting close to being fully grown.
31:15Yeah.
31:15As you can see, they've got some legs on them now.
31:17They won't be running today.
31:18They're just here for the experience and to get used to it all.
31:21Yeah, yeah.
31:22So what we're doing is getting the older dogs to teach the younger dogs.
31:24So that's the buggy.
31:25Yeah.
31:25So you'll be sat at the front.
31:26I'll stand behind and steer it and command the dogs and you just relax and enjoy.
31:30How fast will we go?
31:32We'll probably average around 16, 17 but we'll probably top out around 23, 24.
31:37Miles an hour or kilometres?
31:38Yeah.
31:38Yeah, miles an hour.
31:43I do quality skiing, which is a bit of excitement and sometimes high speed and I do a lot of
31:49mountain biking.
31:50I'm comfortable on wheels that are moving rapidly around forests.
31:56Not so comfortable when it's pulled by 10 howling huskies.
32:00Hopefully we'll stay upright.
32:04I think we've got all 10 dogs out now raring to go.
32:07I'm hoping they don't set off without Dean to take charge.
32:11Otherwise they might not be coming back.
32:14But Julian might just have been working on his Santa impression.
32:18I'm ready.
32:19Are you ready?
32:20Ready, go!
32:26They're going pretty quick, are they?
32:27Yeah.
32:28Turn left.
32:29Don't go.
32:29Stay home dogs.
32:34So I can definitely hear Julian screaming just a little bit.
32:38Whoa!
32:40Jeep!
32:42Jeep!
32:42Jeep!
32:43Good dog!
32:43Let's go!
32:46Let's go, Helen!
32:48This is wet!
32:58Let's go!
32:59Let's go!
33:00Let's go, let's go, let's go!
33:03Good dogs!
33:06Good girls!
33:08Again!
33:09Again!
33:09That was really good!
33:11Stop!
33:12That was absolutely epic!
33:16Let you do those two!
33:17There you go!
33:19Is he a good girl?
33:20Yes!
33:22All done!
33:23Yeah, enjoy that!
33:24Absolutely!
33:25Did I enjoy it?
33:26Yeah!
33:26Could you not tell by all the whoops and there was lots of giggling?
33:29And the beauty of it is, they're doing it because they want to.
33:32There's not, you know, we can't push them, we can't push that string.
33:35Yeah, absolutely.
33:36It's the smiles on their faces when they come back, which is the same for yourself.
33:40Very good.
33:40Well, thank you for having me.
33:41No, thank you for coming.
33:42Thank you for putting up with my sighted childish giggles.
33:46It's all right.
33:46I could hear it at the van!
33:47Did you hear that?
33:51Yeah!
33:52Still to come.
33:53What's this, big boy?
33:54Your favourite?
33:55For truffles, TLC to the end.
33:58This is just a balm that's got fragrance and things in like that that will relax him.
34:04And while Julian's beetroot treat might leave him red-faced.
34:08Look at all that tasty fun.
34:10That is nice.
34:11Pickle is the apple of her owner's eye.
34:14Now, I may be wrong here.
34:15Would you say she's a little bit pampered?
34:17Yeah.
34:19Yeah, she is.
34:20She's very pampered, actually.
34:29After practice in Thirsk, the team often gets sweet treats from grateful clients.
34:34Oh, thank you.
34:36But Julian's been shopping and cooking to provide a healthier option.
34:44I've prepared some boiled beetroot, but I got carried away with my beetroot boiling and I totally overestimated the amount
34:56of beetroot that I was going to eat.
34:58Quite a lot of beetroot.
35:00So I had the inspired idea of bringing it in for all the staff to nibble on.
35:07And the shoe buns and the tarts need eating up too, so we'll see what tickles everybody's fancy.
35:13Unlike hotcakes or even cold buns, the beetroot might be a hard sell.
35:19And Julian can't even count on his wife Anne for support.
35:23Do you want some?
35:24Do you like beetroot?
35:25Er...
35:25Not really, but I'll try it.
35:27Bring another bun?
35:28Yeah.
35:28It probably can't sound better than a bit.
35:30You like beetroot, don't you?
35:33You like beetroot, don't you?
35:34Yeah.
35:34Look at all that tasty fun.
35:38Beetroot, buns.
35:39It's obvious, isn't it?
35:40Yeah.
35:40It's going to be beetroot.
35:42I had to eat some because I couldn't fit the lid on the pot.
35:45You're looking very suspicious at the end.
35:47Yeah.
35:47That's worrying me.
35:49Oh, no.
35:51Finally, love for the beetroot is growing.
35:55It's good beetroot.
35:56It's nice.
35:57Mmm.
35:58Very nice.
35:59I'm pleased to see the beetroot is going down better than the buns.
36:02But maybe not quite that much.
36:05I can't say that all the beetroot will be gone by the end of the day, though.
36:08No, I'm not expecting...
36:10Aw, that's not very positive.
36:12I'm not...
36:13How much beetroot can you eat?
36:24At Jake's Animal Sanctuary near Huddersfield...
36:27What's this, big boy?
36:28Your baby.
36:29A month ago, Matt diagnosed their first-ever rescue, seven-year-old pig truffles...
36:35Good boy, aren't you?
36:36...with a serious spinal condition that puts pressure on the nerves.
36:41We consulted with a veterinary chiropractor, and she gave us some excellent rehab exercises for truffles.
36:49They were absolutely flying.
36:50He made some brilliant progress.
36:52He was probably more mobile than he'd been in months.
36:56And then, as is often the case with animal rescue, that you have one good result followed by a worse
37:03result.
37:05He developed soreness in his hoof, which then showed some swelling.
37:09A really aggressive form of cellulitis, which is incredibly difficult for any animal, let alone an animal of truffles' size.
37:17Because he can't wake down that hoof, he's spending a lot of his time now sat down.
37:22And that brings about its own problems where you can develop sores.
37:27He loses body condition, muscle wastage, and...
37:33Unfortunately, it's just not really the life that we want for truffles and what he deserves, you know.
37:39I know.
37:43Jake knows there's nothing more he can do for truffles.
37:46This is just a balm that's got fragrance and things in like that that will relax him.
37:52You're a very loved boy, aren't you?
37:54He's gonna break my heart into a thousand little pieces when he goes, but...
37:59It'll never be forgotten, that's for sure.
38:05And after a discussion with Matt, he's just arrived.
38:12Unfortunately, it's a bit of a sad day today.
38:15We're here to put truffles to sleep.
38:18Truffles' mobility was just deteriorating and...
38:20It's come to that point where, unfortunately, that quality of life is now gone and, well, it's time.
38:29All right.
38:31Oh, dearie me.
38:34If you want to stay with him, Jake, I stay with him.
38:36Because he's just gonna go to sleep and he'll be absolutely fine.
38:41People always ask us as vets, are euthanasia the hardest part of the job?
38:45And if I'm honest, it can be difficult, yes.
38:48But they are the hardest part.
38:50You get taught at university or a treatment to relieve an animal suffering.
38:54And I take them as quite bittersweet.
38:57You're doing the animal a kindness.
38:59There's no quality of life there.
39:01And you're relieving its suffering in the kindest, most peaceful way possible.
39:07And, you know, that, at the end of the day, I think is one of the most important jobs of
39:11a vet.
39:17Every bit of my journey here is aligned with truffles and that's why it means so much to me.
39:23It's been a little piglet that lived in my house to the one that I took him to sleep when
39:28he was too small and he didn't have friends so he couldn't stay warm and it's truly been a blessing
39:34to watch him live his life here.
39:36Yeah, I hate truffles.
39:40I said I wasn't going to cry.
39:45It's crazy how quick seven years goes by because I've been truffles' vet for that length of time as well.
39:50And, well, we've had many a wrestle to try and get his tusks down to a minimum and he's seen
39:55lots of pigs come, he's seen pigs go.
39:56So, yeah, today's been quite a poignant day for me.
40:02I think he'll go knowing that he was completely loved and adored and that's the main thing, isn't it?
40:19Near Thirsk, Peter's back at the local visitor farm.
40:24He's treated lots of their animals over the years, but not many as small as his recent patient.
40:31A short while ago, I probably met one of the nicest hedgehogs that I've ever met in my life.
40:36A little girl called Pickle.
40:38She had quite a worrying lump that had grown very quickly and the only option was to attempt to remove
40:44it.
40:45And I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that Pickle is in good health.
40:48African pygmy hedgehogs are becoming popular pets and Pickle belongs to 12-year-old Phoebe.
40:55Hi, Peter.
40:56And the farm's manager, Lauren.
40:58Come on in, Peter.
41:00Thank you.
41:01Oh, have you got Pickle, P?
41:02Yeah.
41:03Ah.
41:04That's the perfect patient.
41:06Pickle?
41:08Well, Lauren, there's no need for me to ask how she's getting on.
41:11Every picture tells a story and Pickle looks absolutely magnificent.
41:15She's been doing really well, really well.
41:19I'm just a bit concerned that she's too bright because we're going to have to take some stitches out.
41:24And will she stay still long enough while we do it?
41:26She had her toes trimmed this morning just for the occasion and she did not sit still, did you, Pickle?
41:32Well...
41:33You're a fidget.
41:35She's left the stitches alone.
41:37She has, yeah. She's not messed with them.
41:39And there's no inflammation around them at all, so, yeah, we'll have those out.
41:44And restore your form of beauty, won't we, Pickle?
41:47Yes.
41:48Please stay still, Pickle.
41:52Well done, Pickle.
41:53Yeah.
41:54I can't believe how well behaved she's been.
41:57She is a model citizen.
41:59Last one, Pickle.
42:00Oh, good girl!
42:03With Phoebe's pet Pickle only being a little punchy, another P word has popped into Peter's mind.
42:10Now, I may be wrong here, will you say she's a little bit pampered?
42:14Yeah.
42:16Yeah, she is.
42:17She's very pampered, actually.
42:20I don't think I've ever seen such a friendly little hedgehog, to be honest.
42:24Yeah.
42:25She's magnificent, and I can see why you love her so much.
42:29Yeah.
42:29And why she means so much to you, because she's just adorable.
42:34Oh, we're super happy that she's all good, aren't we?
42:37Yeah.
42:38Very, very delighted.
42:39I'm happy she made it.
42:41She's a joy to be around.
42:45How can you not give her a little cuddle?
42:48To be able to get up close like this, without curling into a ball, is quite special, really, for me.
42:57We've got to do all we can to protect our hedgehog population.
43:01They are in decline.
43:03But I'm going away, quite happy now, seeing Pickle absolutely thriving.
43:11New Yorkshire Vet continues next Thursday at eight.
43:14And after Shona and David's efforts, worries for another cow and her calf in Darabee.
43:19James and Siegfried on unfamiliar ground, new, all creatures, great and small, at five past nine.
43:24And tomorrow, slices of our great Yorkshire life, be it Canal.