TV crew films life at Edinburgh's Royal Dick Vet School

Published on Friday 20 November 2009 10:14

As a camera crew films a new fly-on-the-wall series there, we pay a visit to a treasured city institutionseries there, we pay a visit to a treasured city institution

PEERING out from a snug-looking cage, six-year-old Brodie the cat looks thoroughly fed up.

He's certainly been through the ringer since he arrived at the city's Royal Dick Vet School last week, getting his breast bone sawn open in a complex operation which allowed vets to remove a cancerous tumour four times the size of his heart from his chest.

Brodie lets his vet Donald Yool give his neck a stroke. He is the surgeon that saved the cat's life, removing the 10cm x 6cm tumour from his tiny body to give him a chance of survival.

"He's a lovely cat," Mr Yool, 38, smiles. "And he's doing very well and will get home soon. He's just not too keen on crowds of people – he gets a little nervous. Also, cats often tend to be a little stubborn, so he's not too keen on eating while he's staying here for instance."

Brodie has certainly stolen the hearts of staff at the vet school, yet he should probably prepare himself for even more attention in the spring when his story will be aired on national television.

As part of filming for a four-part documentary on life at the internationally renowned vet school, STV crews have taken up residence at the facility, recording Brodie's experience as one of the 15,000 cases that come through the door every year as members of the public bring their pets for Edinburgh University vet students and trained experts to help make better.

Series director and producer Richard Higson, 34, explains: "We have wanted to do a series like this for a long time – Edinburgh's vet school is, after all, one of the leaders in the UK with staff that are quite simply the cream of the crop.

"We hope the public will engage with it as we follow animals like Brodie, a hawk with a shattered leg and a spaniel as she undergoes surgery to deliver seven puppies.

"There have certainly been a lot of tear jerking moments for us as we film, but it's fair to say, there are more happy endings in the series than sad."

It will be an emotional ride for viewers, who will get to see the life-changing experiences staff at the school make to animals and their owners.

"For families, bringing an animal here is exactly like taking a child to hospital," says Ronnie Soutar, the school's director of veterinary services and head of clinical division.

"They are little patients who cannot tell us what's wrong with them and they're part of a family, just like anyone else. That's a relationship we're very aware of as we try to develop a trust with owners."

As he walks around the school's sprawling small animal hospital, it is clear how passionate he is about it. A former graduate of the school himself, he grins with pride as he introduces colleagues and explains the workings of high-tech equipment, lowering his voice as he enters wards of "patients" – a term he always uses to refer to the hundreds of animals receiving treatment by his staff.

He stops at the school's specialist cancer centre, revealing a room-sized state-of-the art linear accelerator used to give radiotherapy to animals.

The first of its kind in Scotland, it is due to come into operation next week.

The small animal hospital itself was built only ten years' ago, forming part of a large and continually expanding campus at Easter Bush with facilities for all types of animals.

Mr Soutar hopes the site will eventually develop into the "Little France" of Edinburgh's veterinary world, mirroring the facilities available for humans at the Royal Infirmary campus.

As he returns to the main reception, a bright eyed, white Highland Terrier peers around a chair leg, her owner waiting patiently for her to be seen by staff.

Eileen Foulner, 65, is the owner of Tami, a five-year-old dog whose back is partly shaven after an operation to fix a damaged disc.

"We had been out walking at Newhailes and boxer puppy jumped on Tami's back, causing the damage and paralysis," she says.

"She's recovering, but her right foot is still weak . "The vets here have been absolutely fantastic, but I must admit, it was awful when she was kept in for seven days. I was so worried about her – she's never been away from me before."

Nearby, a chirpy German Shepherd cross looks on, waiting for his regular check-up.

It's been a bumpy ride for six-year-old Woody after vets discovered a cancerous tumour in his nostril in June. Since then he has been seen many times by staff at the vet school, as well as making many trips to Liverpool for radiotherapy, as it was unavailable in Edinburgh – until now.

Owner Tim Coates, 42, from Dunbar, sits with his wife Kerry, 41, said: "We've had Woody since he was six months old. The vets have been wonderful. We were really concerned – he's our boy after all."

As the camera crew make their way back through the building to capture the experiences of more animals, staff welcome more patients through the door, making appreciative comments as the pets pass by.

"We still do that too," says Mr Soutar.

"The time you stop that is the time you should stop being a vet."

LEGACY OF EDUCATION PIONEER

THE Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies was founded in 1823 by William Dick – a pioneer of veterinary education in Scotland.

Mr Dick, who grew up in the Canongate, founded the school in 1823 and was appointed veterinary surgeon in Scotland to Queen Victoria in 1844.

He died in 1866 having taught 818 students, all of whom went on to work across the world, going on to found veterinary schools in Glasgow, Liverpool, Ireland, Canada, the USA and Australia.

Nowadays, the "Dick Vet", as part of Edinburgh University's College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, is one of the top 15 centres of biomedical research in the world.

It has a main campus at Easter Bush, but further facilities also at Summerhall, and livestock farm in Roslin.