Roving vets care for Mexico’s rural animals

Veterinary students Mauro Antonio Nieto Acosta (left) and Morin trying to calm a horse before giving it an anti-parasite at a clinic in Charco de Sierra, Guanajuato. — The New York Times

PEDRO Parra stood by his horse’s side as the animal dropped to the ground under the weight of anaesthesia. Its four hooves flailed for a moment, then ceased, and a team of volunteer veterinarians rushed in. One placed a pillow under the patient’s neck; another tied a rope around a back foot and lifted it.

Their task was to castrate the stallion – a necessary surgery to keep the animal from becoming uncontrollable and a danger to its owner and to other animals.