(no audio) (no audio) (bright music) - [Narrator] In the heart of glorious North Yorkshire lies the quaint market town of Thirsk.

Here, the world's most famous vet, James Herriot, lived, worked, and wrote his bestselling books.

His former surgery and home are now a museum, but his practice lives on nearby.

(phone rings) - Good afternoon.

Skeldale Veterinary Centre.

(kitten mews) - [Julian] It's a great privilege working in this practice and it very much is in the footsteps, really, of James Herriot.

- There's never a dull moment.

- [Narrator] Julian Norton is The Yorkshire Vet.

- Aha.

A rather a wide range of different species that come in to see us, and that gives us a tremendous amount of satisfaction.

I've got the best job in the world.

- [Narrator] Julian works alongside senior partner and former Herriot trainee Peter Wright.

- Isn't it fantastic views?

It looks so tranquil, don't it?

I still get a buzz by walking into the place and thinking what's gonna be happening this morning.

To be able to do what you want and do it here is just phenomenal.

- [Narrator] Here, together with their dedicated staff, they treat animals of all shapes- - Bloody hell, Seth.

- [Narrator] Sizes... - [Peter] Go on.

- [Narrator] Types... - Oh, crikey.

- Get off me.

- [Narrator] And temperaments.

(cat yowls) (dog snarling) - [Tech] He's calmed down.

- [Narrator] It's definitely not glamorous.

- [Julian] Oh no.

- [Narrator] But it's varied.

- Come on, Jay-Z.

Let's just chill out.

- [Narrator] It's rarely easy.

- She's a fast one.

- [Narrator] As the Skeldale team carry on the Herriot tradition... - She's my new best mate already.

- [Narrator] Treating all creatures great and small.

(bright orchestral music) ♪ Small had fallen, snow on snow ♪ ♪ Snow on snow ♪ ♪ In the bleak midwinter ♪ ♪ Long, long ago ♪ (jaunty music) Part of Yorkshire's unique charm is its contrasting landscape and weather.

(jaunty music) (sheep bleating) - [Shepherd] Come by.

- [Narrator] With the countryside snoozing under a sparkling white blanket, the pace of life has eased, but the surgery is as busy as ever.

- So, we've got a bitch spaying.

- He's pre-medded.

- Yeah.

- Do you want to do the one in the trap first?

- Yeah.

- [Narrator] And as Peter heads up through the moors to his first job of day, it's as if he's magically entered a winter wonderland.

(energetic music) - The practice is situated in the Vale of York, and on the low ground, it's hardly any snow at all.

Once you get up Sutton Bank onto the North York moors, the world changes dramatically.

(dramatic orchestral music) (wind howling) (dramatic music) (cow lowing) We're going this morning to Mr. and Mrs. Sayer at Snilesworth, which is probably our most inaccessible client.

They have a beef suckler herd, and we're going to pregnancy-diagnose the cows.

The main challenge today is getting to see our patients.

(phone ringing) - [Mike] Hello.

- Hello, Mike.

It's Peter here.

- [Mike] Hello, Peter.

How are things going?

- Well, we've had better days, haven't we?

- [Mike] Well, come on, mate.

You might need snow plowers for later.

- Thanks very much.

See you in a bit.

- [Mike] No problem.

- In Herriot's day, he used to carry a shovel in his boot, and then if he got stuck, they could always dig the car out and he'd get a farmer to come along and tow him to the farm.

(cows lowing) - [Mike] Peter's never let us down at all.

He's a good vet.

- Would walk one day or night.

So, really, that was involved.

- Yeah, it was so bad with weather.

He'd walked quite a bit a way over the moor.

Well, I'm getting cold.

I don't know if the weather is or not.

- Yeah, I think it is blizzard.

(cow lowing) - Chores have got to be done, and this job was arranged days ago, so we weren't to know that it was going to snow.

Just makes it even more exciting, doesn't it?

(laughs) (bright music) (Peter groaning) (bright music) (wind howling) (jaunty orchestral music) (dogs barking) - [Narrator] At the practice, Julian's heart is warmed by a new arrival.

- This is a very cute little puppy called Smudge.

We've not seen her before.

She's coming for the first time to the practice.

There's a queue of people wanting to hold Smudge, but I'm first in the queue at the moment, so no one's gonna have her for the next 10 minutes, that's for sure.

Look at my new puppy.

Doesn't she look sad?

- [Narrator] This 11-week-old Whippet has been rushed in by mom Pam.

- Well, I was going to pick my children up.

Secured her in a puppy play pen.

She's obviously trying to climb out.

Probably got over the edge, thought, "Freedom," then landed on the tile floor, and come straight here.

- That's the one.

Look.

- Oh, yeah.

It looks like it is.

- [Narrator] Julian and head nurse Rachel know it's not looking good for poor Smudge.

- Oh.

Sorry.

I'm worried she's broken her back leg.

All right then, little pup.

You'll just lay there.

Oh, you don't need an x-ray to tell that that's broken, do you?

Right.

(machine whirring) It's a pretty bad fracture, actually, at the bottom part of the tibia.

It's bad because it's what we call a transverse fracture.

That means that there isn't any stability in a rotational direction.

Right, I've got a plan.

This will be the best way to fix this fracture.

All right then, puppy.

Are you ready for this?

It's what we call a snazzy repair.

You'll be the smartest Whippet in North Yorkshire.

At the moment, you're not the snazziest anything, are you?

You're just the floppiest Whippet in North Yorkshire.

Right, I've got a plan for this, Rach.

- Yeah.

- [Julian] I'll need the selection of small pins.

- [Narrator] Coming up, found stranded on the snowy moors... (cat meows) an aristo-cat.

- Not your typical moggy, is he?

Very posh.

(bull moos) - [Narrator] A bloated bull... - [Julian] Oh God.

- [Narrator] Needs urgent help.

- It's one of the main reasons why cattle can suddenly die.

- [Narrator] And winter brings misery for local wildlife.

- I'm a pessimist by nature, really.

I just don't know whether this bird's going to pull through.

(dramatic music) - [Narrator] Up on the North Yorkshire moors, Peter is battling the elements.

(dramatic music) Not the ideal day to be traveling to see his most inaccessible clients, the Sayer family, but it's important to find out how many of their beef herd are pregnant.

- The general idea with suckler cows is that they produce one calf per year.

If you've got a cow that hasn't got a calf inside, then it becomes very uneconomical, because it's another year, then, before she produces another offspring, (laughs) Mike's turned up with his snowplow.

Well, that's good.

It feels as if the cavalry's just arrived over the bell of the hill.

Oh, pleased to see him.

(laughs) (gentle music) I was really looking forward to coming.

When I opened the curtains this morning, I wasn't quite looking forward to it so much.

(groans) Bloody hell.

- Oh, it's just the usual weather for up here.

(laughs) The winters aren't as bad as they used to be.

Years ago, you always had to get stocked up quite well, but now you don't need to, of course.

So, the lady are going to get the test scores.

- Basically, I'm going to stick me arm up the bottom of every cow, and hopefully most of them will be in calf.

It's very pleasant in there on a cold morning.

It warms your arms up.

(cow lows) - Was it in calf?

- [Peter] She's about 7-1/2 weeks.

- Good.

That's what I like to hear.

Every time the cows' in calf, it's good news.

I'm happy then.

(cows lowing) - [Peter] Come here, dear.

- Have you got the number on that one, Sue?

- [Sue] Right, now.

How long, Peter?

- She's a bit further on.

She's about to nine, nine to 9-1/2 weeks.

- If it's not in calf, it's all year lost.

You know, that's not gonna make a penny.

- No, not in calf.

No.

(cow lowing) - It's a bit of a shame, but that's the world.

That's it.

(suspenseful music) - I can't feel the uterus.

- [Mike] Oh, hell.

- [Peter] It's not a uterus.

There's nothing there.

Probably, she's been a twin to a bull, you know?

- Unfortunately, it's going to be a dead loss, that one, so that's fine, isn't it?

- We've got best job right here, Mike.

We don't do the gate, man, do we?

(laughs) Poor lad.

(laughs) - Are you all right?

- Yeah.

- Can't be all right if you're stood out in that, can you?

(laughs) - It's only when you stop working do you notice the weather 'cause your concentrating on what you're doing and you keep it moving.

Five months.

About five months.

(quirky music) - [Narrator] It's not just outside that wind is causing problems.

- When you're carrying out rectal examinations, wind is one of your enemies.

(laughs) She's full of gas.

(cow passing gas) That's better.

That's better.

That's all we wanted.

- I don't know about that.

(Peter laughs) Pretty good for the old buck.

(cow passing gas) (onlookers laughing) - [Worker] Hey.

Hey.

- About six months.

Yep, nine weeks.

Nine to 10 weeks.

(cow lowing) Just past mid-pregnancy.

(cow lowing) That's it.

- I'm actually pleased with the results, yeah.

I mean, we've had odd empty one, but yeah.

All in all, I'm quite happy with it, I am.

(cows mooing) - When I was young, I used to be doing this all the time.

With not so many sucklers now, I don't do it quite as often as I would like, and I've really enjoyed it.

Really enjoyed it.

Sometimes my partner, sometimes old Norton'll jump in first and beat me to it, but I've beaten him this morning doing a job like this, 'cause we both love it.

(energetic music) (engine humming) (energetic music) (gentle music) - [Narrator] Back at the practice, Julian is in surgery with Smudge.

- There's a queue of people wanting to hold Smudge.

- [Narrator] The young Whippet pup came into Skeldale with a badly broken leg.

- [Julian] Ooh, sorry.

My plan is to fix it by putting two pins, one from this side across the fractured site and into the middle of the bone and another one from this side to stabilize it in that way, and hopefully that will keep it nice and stable.

(anticipatory music) All right, I think that's perfect.

Chop this off and hope for the best.

(anticipatory music) Think I should do 'em first?

- Yeah.

- Before I cut them off.

I'm pretty confident these are just exactly right, though.

(anticipatory music) You're right.

Let's get an x-ray.

It would be sensible to doing an x-ray first, wouldn't it?

(machine whirring) The moment of truth.

(anticipatory music) It's all right.

The on the left, that needs to go in a bit further, but otherwise, that's all right.

Good.

(gentle music) That should be all right.

So, yeah, the test of strength.

That wasn't too bad.

Just watch your eyes.

No, no, it's fine.

False alarm.

All right.

Good.

So, before, this fracture was all wobbly and unstable, but now we've got two pins crossing the fracture site.

It doesn't wobble at all.

And that should allow the fracture to heal quite nicely.

So, that's really good.

All right, little one.

How is that?

(bright music) (stay there) Oh, how comfy is that?

Okay, oh, love, you'll walk it off.

I think I've fallen in love.

(upbeat music) (gentle music) - [Narrator] Next day... - I know you can walk, but I'm going to have to have one last carry, carry and a cuddle.

- [Narrator] Smudge's mom, Pam, is back after an uber-anxious 24 hours.

- [Julian] Come on.

Oopsie.

- Had the mobile in my hand and the landline ready to whichever one rang first.

- [Julian] Your mom's out there.

- It's just all apprehension, really, and fear of the unknown, and just hope everything would be okay.

- You've got a very popular dog.

She's been everybody's favorite while she's been with us.

- Hey.

- That's what it- - Oh my God.

- Looked like before.

- [Pam] Oh dear.

- It's very stable now and it looks nice.

She's been absolutely stoic about it all.

It might be better if she just stays with me.

I'm going to have to give her back at some point soon, aren't I?

(bright music) - I'm going to have a lolly.

- I'm going to have a blue.

- [Narrator] A popular member of the Skeldale team... - Is he stable?

- [Zoe] Seems to be.

- [Narrator] When Zoe is not enjoying the glamour of nursing... (bright music) - That's gorgeous.

- [Narrator] She's preparing for her winter wedding.

(shoppers laughing) - [Zoe] I've come here today with my dad, my mum, and my sister, who's also my chief bridesmaid, and a couple of the girls from work.

- Ooh, that's nice.

- And we've come wedding dress shopping.

- Sleeves?

- [Zoe] I'll try one with sleeves.

- Yeah?

- My arms are quite big with lifting dogs up all day.

I did have some fleas on me this evening, so I did have a bit of a quick turnaround de-fleaing myself, having a shower, and then back out again.

I'm flea-less now.

It's fine.

(quirky music) - I think she definitely needs a sparkly, out-there poofy thing.

(laughs) - [Zoe] My family will be brutally honest with me.

- Oh no.

(group laughs) - [Zoe] No?

Doesn't anything for me, does it?

- No, it looks like you've been led up to Dracula.

- [Zoe] You'll have to make your mind up quickly 'cause I can't breathe that well in it.

(group laughs) - I don't know if it's got the wow factor.

- I think my perfect dress is probably something quite princessy.

I don't usually wear dresses anyway.

(dramatic music) What do you think?

- Really, really nice.

- It's really pretty and it's just the right amount of sparkly stuff.

- Ooh.

- Ooh.

- Ooh.

- I like that.

That just makes it.

- Makes it.

- I love this one.

(dramatic music) I'm really pleased.

I think I've found the dress.

I like this one.

- I think she's found the right dress for her.

- But we can't let anyone know, can we?

Which one she's chose?

Getting all emotional.

- [Zoe] Oh, no.

- Only joking.

When I see the price, I might then.

(laughs) - She looked really beautiful and she looked like a princess.

- Oh.

- Aw.

- She did, didn't she?

- Yeah.

- Very nice.

- [Narrator] As winter nights draw in, wild animals are out and about earlier while our roads are still busy.

Unfortunately, wildlife and traffic are never a good combination.

- Ha, two right-handed ones.

That's useful.

- [Narrator] But just because an animal doesn't have an owner, it doesn't mean the team here don't give a hoot.

- [Peter] Right.

- [Narrator] This morning, Peter is examining an injured owl.

- Doesn't look very good, does it?

Mm.

(anticipatory music) This little owl, Tawny, has been brought in this morning.

It's been found at the side of the road.

It looks in a comatose state.

There's blood coming down the right nostril there so I'm pretty sure this bird's been hit by something.

It's very weak.

The wings seem intact.

Its limbs seem okay as well.

I think the main issue is head trauma here.

There's very little life there.

By the time these birds are in a state where a member of the public can walk up to them and pick them up, they're usually in a pretty bad state, so it's possible that this little bird might not make it, so we need to try and get some nourishment into this bird to see if we can get it perked up a bit.

Rach?

- Yeah?

- Come get some more stuff into it.

Have you got anything mixed up for this bird or not?

- Some glucose, yeah.

- [Peter] Oh, some some critical care we got?

- Yeah.

Yeah.

What's your verdict with it?

- I think he's had head trauma.

That's it.

It's taking this okay.

Hopefully, it'll give it some instant energy to try and pick it up a bit, but I want to continue with this every hour or so.

Beautiful birds, aren't they?

- And see about his eye.

- Yeah, that's the side it's been clobbered at.

Will you be able to keep at him this afternoon for me?

- Yeah.

Yeah.

- We need to sort of make it comfortable in here as well.

I'm a pessimist by nature, really.

I just don't know whether this bird's going to pull through, but all we can do is keep at it.

(anticipatory music) Right.

Can I leave him in your tender care?

And keep everything crossed.

I'll give you a ring later to see how he's doing.

All right.

- Yeah.

(anticipatory music) - [Narrator] Coming up.

- Don't laugh.

- [Narrator] Julian goes skiing Yorkshire-style.

(Peter calling out) - I'm surprised anyone saw him at the top of Sutton Bank in all that snow.

- [Narrator] Can the team solve the mystery of the moor's missing moggy?

- I think we better go and do some detective work, haven't we?

- [Narrator] And a bloated bull needs emergency treatment.

- Go on.

Go on.

Go on.

- [Narrator] But he's not happy.

- Whoa.

(singers humming) - [Narrator] Up on the North Yorkshire moors, a lost and lonely traveler has been making tiny paw prints in today's freshly-fallen snow.

(sheep bleating) (singers humming) (cat meowing) - He was found at the top of Sutton Bank, of all the places to be on a snowy day like today.

(cat meowing) - [Narrator] This adventurous Cornish Rex has quickly made himself at home with Zoe.

- Your claws are cutting me.

He's very noisy, aren't you?

And you're a big fuss-pot.

I'm surprised anyone saw him at the top of Sutton Bank in all that snow as well.

Just camouflaged.

(cat meowing) - [Narrator] Next to Skeldale's mystery snow trekker are nurse Chloe... - Let's have a look.

- [Narrator] And Peter.

- So, we don't know whose he is, do we?

- No.

- Did somebody pick him up from up there?

- [Chloe] Yeah.

They've got some stables up there.

He was seen hanging around on the yard and sheltering in the barn.

- Probably middle-aged.

Middle-aged, aren't ya, hey?

Well, a chap like this has got to belong to somebody, haven't he?

- He's very posh-looking.

- Very posh.

He's not your typical moggy, is he?

He's very affectionate.

- [Chloe] Mm, he's really friendly.

- I wonder if he's chipped.

Let's see if he... (scanner chirps) Oh, he's chipped.

Excellent.

If he's chipped, we've got an owner.

I think we better go and do some detective work, haven't we?

(quirky music) Putting the number in off his microchip now, so this is the interesting bit now.

- [Chloe] There we go.

- Oh, crikey.

- Certainly well-traveled.

- That means he's traveled going on for 20 miles.

Wow.

- [Chloe] It's no wonder he was hungry.

(cat meows) And he's called Arthur.

- [Peter] Yes, he looks an Arthur, doesn't he?

- Yeah, definitely.

- Yeah.

(Arthur meows) Right, we need to get a hold of the owner, don't we?

(bright music) (upbeat music) - [Narrator] In winter, North Yorkshire's rugged terrain is perfect for a refreshing afternoon stroll, (upbeat music) but these are hardly alpine slopes.

- So, the first time I did this, I fell over about 10 times, so I quickly learned that wearing a helmet was really important.

I do quite a lot of activities.

I'm a keen triathlete, really.

That's mainly a summer sport.

Yep.

Going like that.

And my most recent activity is ski mountaineering, and I'm training for a pretty big ski race in Switzerland.

I'm likely to fall over at this point.

Ah.

The rest of my teammates doing this ski race live in the Alps.

They've got big mountains and lots of snow right outside their house.

I haven't got that luxury, so I've got the use of some roller skis, which are like really enormous roller skates, one strapped onto each foot.

Right.

I'm in.

So, when I'm doing this, I need to find quiet places where nobody's going to either run me over with a car or spot me doing this rather ridiculous activity.

I'm ready to go.

Don't, oops.

Don't laugh.

Told you it looked ridiculous.

It's not like Ski Sunday, that's for sure.

(energetic music) Well, I go.

Ah!

Ah!

Being a vet, there's a lot of pressure with it, but luckily for us, it's not really a job.

It's more a vocation, a way of life, really, as much as anything.

Whoa.

But that said, it is long hours, and we really need to make the most of every opportunity we've got when we're not at work.

I'm going all right now.

I'm in a rhythm.

Oh, I go.

Whoa.

It's a lovely area.

It's a wonderful part of the country to be in, and it's really just an absolute privilege to have the chance to get out and enjoy it.

Anything, really, in the fresh air of this part of North Yorkshire is a wonderful opportunity to have.

I know it looks like I'm an expert on these skis.

Ah.

Oh, I go.

It's a strange thing.

You don't see many other people on roller skis.

That said, it's an excellent exercise.

I'm led to believe it does wonders for the pertness of the buttocks.

Whoa.

Ah!

(chuckles) Well.

Excellent.

- [Narrator] Yesterday, a wild tawny owl was brought into the practice.

- It's been found at the size of the road, so I'm pretty sure it's been hit by something.

I'm a pessimist by nature, really.

I just don't know whether this bird's going to pull through.

We've come a long way in the last 25 hours.

This bird's now looking stronger.

We've got some wing activity, a bit more energy there.

Bit livelier.

Yeah.

Wanting to nibble a bit today.

Very different from yesterday.

Very different.

Yeah.

I do feed owls at home.

I think they're awesome birds.

This eye isn't quite right yet, but it's certainly got much more about it.

It's saying, "Get off now.

Get off.

I don't want you messing me about."

So, it might need to move on to the next phase.

(bright music) Morning, Rose.

- [Rose] Morning.

- [Narrator] The next phase is a local animal rescuer... - [Rose] So, we're going to put this one in here.

- [Narrator] Owl lover Rose.

- Oh, yeah, it's quite young.

- Yeah.

- Could be even this year's, that one.

- Oh, I just want to put a bit of ointment in here.

- [Rose] Didn't like that, did you, darling?

Didn't like that, did ya?

It'll be quiet enough up here.

Plenty of fresh air.

- You got a proper environment, but at the same time, it's not vulnerable.

- No, we know about the owls and we know what they need, and hopefully, we can pull it through, and, touch wood, it's gonna have the best chance, aren't ya?

- In a nutshell, it couldn't be anywhere better.

(both laugh) - [Narrator] After leaving him to a waitress-served lunch of hand-cut chicks... - [Rose] Save you a little bit of work, eh?

- [Narrator] Two weeks later, Peter's back to check on the progress of the poorly little owl.

- [Rose] Everything's covered in yellow fly strike.

- Is he eating okay on his own now?

- He's eating wonderfully.

- [Narrator] And he's now called Mattie.

- I think there's nerve damage to that eye, Rose.

I think that's our biggest problem there.

He's done very, very well, but we are left with nerve damage to this right eye, so it's highly likely that he'll have to stay in captivity because he won't be able to hunt properly with only sighting one eye.

Our aim is always to put them back into the wild, but if he's got to live his life here with all the other owls, then that'll be fine by me.

He's alive.

- [Rose] Come on, then.

Off we go.

Whee.

It's lovely to see him flying.

It makes all the hard work well worthwhile.

- [Peter] It does, doesn't it?

Well, you've done well, Rose.

- [Narrator] And pretty soon, Mattie's ready to meet his new housemate.

- Now Caitlin, let's see what you think to this place.

I think Mattie's hiding from you.

(jaunty music) Oops-a-daisy.

There's a chance that he's going to get friendly with the female, and they could, you know, be girlfriend, but Caitlin's an old lady.

Okay, Matt.

Whew!

More likely to be a mother substitute, I think, which shall be nice.

He could probably do with mothering after what he's been through.

I think they'll be okay.

(owl hoots) (bright music) - [Narrator] Once again, Julian's had to get his skates on.

- I've just had a call from the practice to ask me if I can go to see a bull that's bloated that belongs to a guy called Chris.

- It's got to the time of year now where the cattle need to be coming in, and we brought them in today, and he looked really big and blown up, and he was just groaning a bit.

- It's actually a bull he's hired to serve his cows, so he's even more anxious because it's somebody else's bull, and it sounds quite urgent.

- Very worried.

The Whitebred Shorthorn is on the Rare Breeds Survival Trust endangered list because there are only 150 breeding females left in the world.

There's more giant pandas in the world than Whitebred Shorthorn cattle, so it's really important, I feel, that we return the genetics of this breed.

So, we in our small way are trying to do that.

This boy, he's not looking really just right, and I need him checked out.

(anticipatory music) - [Julian] Hi, Chris.

- This might be a waste of time, but I just- - Oh God.

That one there?

- Yeah.

- That's your bull, isn't it?

That's not a waste of time.

It's massive.

When did that happen?

- Well, I've noticed he was laid there with the cows and just groaning.

That's when I thought I need to speak to you.

He just didn't look happy.

- Hmm, he's very big.

Basically, what he's got is got is he's got bloat, and that's the buildup of either gas or gassy froth in the rumen.

The rumen is like a big bag, and it ferment grass and everything else that goes in, and in the process of doing that, it makes some gas, and that gas normally gets burped out or it gets basically farted out, and if those things don't happen, then it builds up and builds up, and sometimes it gets to such a point where it just gets trapped.

So, that's where we come in.

These cases of bloat, especially when there's a lot of gas buildup, can be very serious.

It's one of the main reasons why cattle can suddenly die, because the pressure builds up to such an extent it affects the breathing, puts pressure on the lungs.

The seriousness depends on the suddenness with which it develops, and this is quite sudden, and the extent of the of the bloat, and this is pretty dramatic, so this is quite serious.

I'm standing right behind him.

I can see the full extent of his size, and he's about probably nearly twice as big as he should be.

Go on.

(claps) What's he called?

- Joe.

- Joe.

Whenever we're dealing with cattle, to do it safely, we really need the animal in the crush.

Unfortunately, they don't always cooperate.

Go on, go on, go on.

We're gonna make you better.

Go on.

Up you get.

He thinks something bad's gonna happen if he goes in there.

It's gonna be good.

I promise you.

(whistles) Go on.

Up you get.

Go on, go on, go on.

It doesn't want to go.

Without him in there, it's going to be extremely difficult.

I wonder whether we should get another gate.

- [Chris] Yeah.

- Is that in?

This is Plan B now.

Come on, Joe.

It's not that bad.

(comical tuba music) Right, so we can bring that right 'round now.

That should... Come on, Joe.

You've got fewer and fewer options.

Well done.

And so he just fits.

- Good work.

- Excellent.

- [Chris] So much better.

- [Narrator] With Joe finally in position... - So, hopefully we can get all that gas out.

- [Narrator] Julian's battle with this bloated bull has only just begun.

- Right, next job is to get my pipe into him.

I guess he's not that used to being handled, is he?

Whoa.

It's bad enough with a cow, but with a bull that weighs probably the better part of a ton, yeah, I constantly worry about about my safety as a vet.

(bull lows) (anticipatory music) - [Narrator] At a local farm, Julian is battling to save Joe, a big bull with a big problem.

(anticipatory music) Joe was brought in as a stud for Chris's extremely rare-breed cattle.

- Oh God, it's massive.

- [Narrator] But he's been hit by a sudden sickness.

- These cases of bloat, especially when there's a lot of gas buildup, can be very serious.

It's one of the main reasons why cattle can suddenly die.

- [Narrator] Julian must relieve Joe's gas to save him.

- This metal pipe is important because that stops Joey from biting my tube in half, so that means to wiggle its way in.

So strong, that's the trouble.

That's better.

Right, we're in now.

Steady, steady.

- Dear Lord, you're (indistinct).

- I'm just listening for gas whooshing out.

(groans) Come back, pipe.

So, you can see what's inside his rumen.

It's not gas but fluid, and I could hear a gurgling noise in there when I was listening.

There's a bit of gas at the top, but it's mainly fluid, which is kind of good.

It means it's much less serious.

- [Chris] So, you think we're safe just to leave him?

- Should be safe to leave him, yeah.

What I will do is pour some stuff in.

So, this is magic liquid for getting rid of all the fluidy contents of his abdomen.

It's a bit like a sort of laxative to get things moving through.

Steady.

Steady.

- Come on.

Good boy.

- All right.

That's it.

Perfect.

That's it.

Yeah.

- Ready?

- Yeah.

- Won't use that until you get about halfway down, then he'll swing his head around and cover us with bull medicine.

Yeah.

Whoa.

Just like that.

See, I've done this before.

There's lots of aspects of being a large animal vet that are quite dangerous.

Steady.

And sometimes there's no way of avoiding that.

You've got a poorly animal that really just does need to be treated, and unfortunately for us, you just have to get on with it, really, and if we didn't, then we wouldn't be able to do our job.

It's gone in, yeah.

He won't look any different for the next half hour or so 'cause there's a lot of gas and fluid in there that'll need to work its way through.

The bull went straight back to his hay and started eating that with great enthusiasm, so I think it's gone quite well.

- But look, he's stood there eating it like- - Looks happy, doesn't he?

- Really relieved I called Julian out 'cause I wasn't quite sure whether I was wasting his time, so I'm really pleased he came, and hopefully everything'll be okay.

- I call it magic, but it's not a magic potion, obviously, but it's one of those things that always seems to work and no one quite knows why.

- Maybe I should have some of that potion for Sunday morning.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

It's getting it into him.

That's the only problem.

- I wasn't thinking about him.

(Julian laughs) (energetic music) - [Narrator] Joe can certainly vouch for Julian's magic medicine.

- [Chris] You're looking well now, aren't you, hey?

- [Narrator] Just a few days later, he's fighting fit and ready to boost the population of his own rare breed.

- Hey, why don't you stay in Yorkshire with these girls?

Oh, yeah.

(bright music) - [Narrator] In Yorkshire, the bond between man and his best friend is ever strong.

(dog barking) (shepherd whistling) Whether they're workers- - [Shepherd] Come by.

(dog barking) (sheep bleating) (dog barking) - [Narrator] Or racers... (dog barking) And recently, when he fixed Smudge's badly broken leg... - [Julian] Now we've got two pins crossing the fracture site, it doesn't wobble at all.

- [Narrator] Julian suffered from a bad case of puppy love.

- I'm gonna have to give her back at some point soon, aren't I?

- Smudgy, din-dins.

- [Narrator] After Pam managed to drag Smudge away... - [Pam] Come on, then.

Din-dins.

Good girl.

Come on.

- [Narrator] She's back home with her family of prize-winning Whippets.

- Good girls.

He's done an absolutely marvelous job on her leg.

It's just like it was before.

I'm so happy and she's so happy that she can run.

She managed to escape down the back garden and she did three circuits 'round the back garden.

Couldn't catch her.

I've never seen a dog run so fast.

(bright music) You don't exert yourself.

You just sit there.

Yeah, I think she'll be going to her first show in January.

So, fingers crossed we've got a star in the making, all down to Julian.

(laughs) (grand orchestral music) (grand music continues) - [Narrator] Swapping her nurse's green for snow white, it's Zoe's big day.

(grand music continues) - [Zoe] Dave's hectic plowing, combining, and spraying schedule has meant that we've ended up getting married in the winter.

- Third finger.

The one that says "I do" on it.

(attendees laughing) - To be honest, he probably should have been out doing some spraying today, but thankfully, he's had a day off so we can get married.

I'm sure he went and saw his cows this morning, though, did you?

- Yeah.

All is well.

- You're husband and wife.

Congratulations.

You may kiss the bride.

(attendees applauding) - He decided to tell me as we were signing the register that one of the other guests has had to pull a calf out of a cow this morning, so we're lucky that he's here.

Hope there's no stray placenta flying around.

(laughs) (onlookers cheering) - She looks stunning.

When she walked through the door, she just took my breath away.

- It's all going down the dress.

I've put up with him for six years.

Finally Mrs. Jackson, so I'm very happy.

(jaunty wedding march music) (upbeat music) - Do you remember that party at our house there?

Sick in the toilet.

Pretty much all the practice is here.

For us, it's really nice.

It's winter time, it's the end of the year, and we don't really, as a practice, get that much time to hang out and have a few drinks together and possibly even do a bit of dancing later on, if we have enough of this stuff.

(group laughing) - I struggle to recognize some of our staff when they're all dressed up and of all the makeup on and let their hair down.

You have to look twice to see who they are, really.

Hello, dear.

- Hello.

- Nice to see you.

You look lovely.

- Nice to see you.

- Zoe's had this smile on her face pretty much ever since I first saw her today.

- We're not a bad-looking bunch, are we?

- A very good-looking bunch.

(Zoe laughs) - Right, I'm off to change my shoes.

- All right, then.

- She looks very different in a wedding dress to in a green nursing outfit, and she does look beautiful.

(guests laughing) - [Zoe] I did have really pretty shoes on.

(guests laughing) - You look amazing, girl.

- It's a chance all to get together and really celebrate their wedding, but also celebrate the Skeldale family.

Rachel, when's your turn?

Well, I think we should raise our glasses in a special Skeldale toast to Zoe and Dave.

- [Guests] To Zoe and Dave.

(guests laughing) (bright music) (sweet flute music) - [Narrator] Found lost on the moors in heavy snow, (Arthur meows) a freezing-cold Arthur was brought into Skeldale.

- Putting the number in off his microchip now.

- [Narrator] The team have managed to track down his address.

- That means he's traveled going on for 20 miles.

- [Narrator] Now owner Sarah's come to collect him.

- I can't wait for her to see him.

She's going to be so pleased.

- Would this be your Arthur?

- Arthur.

Arthur, do you recognize me?

- He said, "Sorry, Mom."

- Arthur.

(Arthur meowing) - There we go.

I'll let you hold onto him.

- [Peter] How long has he been missing?

- Nearly two months.

- Has he?

- Yeah.

- By Arthur's voice, it's all your fault.

(laughs) - Hello, Arthur.

- Oh, I was going to say.

- Oh.

- That's right.

Do you want to go home?

- [Peter] After two months, you'd probably given up on him just about.

- Well, we were heartbroken.

I put some pamphlets through doors and those sort of things on Facebook trying to find him.

- [Peter] It's a very happy event for us to be able to reunite Arthur with you.

- Yes, Arthur.

I know.

(Peter laughs) And I think you've made my daughter's Christmas.

It was really, really heartbreaking.

Couldn't stop crying for ages.

- [Peter] Well, after two months, I think I would've given up, but lo and behold- (Arthur meows) Arthur's going to your house.

(laughs) - Thank you very much.

- Not at all.

Nice to meet.

Nice to meet you.

- Yeah, nice to meet you.

- Jolly good.

Many hands.

- [Sarah] Thank you.

- Have a good Christmas.

(Arthur meows) - [Narrator] Next time on "The Yorkshire Vet..." - He's been struggling a bit to go a-feed.

He's not out of the woods to us, no.

- [Narrator] Life hangs in the balance for runt of the litter Tiny Tim.

- We'll give him some drugs to limit any pain.

- [Tim's Human] Poor little fella.

- [Narrator] Peter gets lumbered with some donkey work.

- Would he get on well with children?

- No.

- No.

- It'd be pandemonium.

- [Peter] It could be chaos.

It's that look in his eye I don't like.

Sorry, Horace.

- [Narrator] And Will Barney be back with his family in time for Christmas?

- [Julian] We're not going to be able to remove that from the leg, I don't think, 'cause it's so big.

- Feeling pretty sad.

(jaunty music) (jaunty music continues) (jaunty music continues) (dramatic instrumental music) (no audio) (no audio)