A story from my Life

[cornishteddyboy]

A Porker in the Family

When I first left school I wanted to be a vet so I got a job at the local vets surgery. My job was to help out at operations, sort out the prescriptions, deal with appointments, etc. The best part of the job though, was to go out with the vet on his rounds, visiting the local farms.

One day when I came in to work he told me that he had to go to a conference and would be away for a week. He said that I could do his farm round. So off I peddled (I couldn't drive then) with my bag of pills and medical equipment. I spent a week bandaging dogs paws, giving out medicine to sick sheep and sticking my arm into cows checking on calves.

On my last afternoon I was at Farmer Giles's farm. I had just checked up on a poorly horse and was sitting with Farmer Giles on a bale of straw having a cup of tea when around the corner came a large piglet. The thing is he had three wooden legs! One wooden leg yes, but three, that was unbelievable.

I asked the farmer why the piglet had three wooden legs and he replied, "He's special that pig, called Pinky, he is. No other pig like him in the world". So I asked him what he meant.

"Last month I was out baling the hay when the baler got jammed. So I jumped down to clear it. As I bent down the tractor rolled forward and trapped my foot under the tyre. Pinky must of seen this cos he ran to the kitchen and grabbed hold of my wife's dress and pulled and pulled. My wife followed him and she saw me under the tractor. She ran across and drove the tractor back off my foot. Luckily it was OK. Doctor said if I was stuck much longer my toes would have fallen off. Special pig is Pinky".

So I said, "That may be but it still doesn't explain the three wooden legs".

"Ah", he says, "Pinky saved my boy's life the other day. He was swimming in the duck pond and he must have jumped in and hit his head on the bottom, cos he was floating in the water. Pinky must have noticed cos he ran to my herdsman and pulled him towards the pond. Old Jack found my boy and dragged him out. When he was on the bank, Pinky jumped up and down on his chest until he spluttered and coughed and my boy started breathing again. Doctor said he saved my boys life."

"What an incredible story, but why has he got three wooden legs"? I ask.

"Wal, last year the old farmhouse burned down," the farmer continued. "Like as not we all would have been cinders, but for that little porker. We was all asleep when the fire started, but ol' Pinky ran squealing 'round the house 'til we all woke up, and went and dragged my youngest daughter from her bedroom just seconds 'fore the roof collapsed."

"That's one special pig," I admitted, "But please, tell me, why does Pinky have three artificial legs?"

"Wal," said farmer Giles, "A pig like that's just too valuable to eat all at once!!!!!"

CTB