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All the way home from church, Sarah looked out the car window at the
changing leaves. She couldn't wait to ride her pony, Bobbi, down the
country lanes under the trees’ golden canopy. Once home, Sarah skipped
out the door, her halter in hand, toward the barn.
As she approached the barn, what she saw made her stop dead in her
tracks, not sure of what she was seeing. Bobbi, her best friend and
companion, was lying on his side, one leg entrapped tightly in the
barbed-wire fence.
Sarah rushed to Bobbi's head, her chest bursting and eyes welling with
tears. Bobbi was still alive, but exhausted from his struggle to free
himself from the fence. Sarah ran to the house, broken-hearted and
sobbing.
Sarah and her dad, Jeff, raced back to the fence and cut the wire free
of Bobbi's leg. Bobbi just lay there, sides heaving and wet. Sarah
cradled his head in her lap, and sobbed.
In the house, Sarah's mom, Brenda, was desperately trying to find a veterinarian
on a Sunday afternoon. Again and again, she was greeted by answering
machines inviting her to call back Monday during regular office hours.
Brenda knew that Bobbi couldn't make it that long.
On the verge of tears herself, Brenda finally called the Joliet Animal
Hospital. To her surprise and great relief, a real person
answered the phone. Brenda rushed to explain her story, words spilling
out in an excited jumble. The receptionist helped Brenda to slow down and
explain her emergency as well as the condition of Sarah's pony. She
promised to contact a veterinarian promptly. Brenda hung up the phone
and rushed outside to Jeff and Sarah.
Unknown to Brenda, the person Brenda spoke to was not at
the animal hospital at all, but at a telephone answering service. In accordance with the
hospital's instructions, the answering service operator that Brenda spoke to
contacted Dr. Trindle, the on-call vet, who rushed to Bobbi's aid.
Thirty-five minutes later, Dr. Trindle was treating Bobbi. Soon, the doctor had Bobbi
up on his three good legs
and his wound was tightly bandaged. Sarah wrapped her arms tightly around
Bobbi’s neck and buried her face in his mane, crying with relief.
As Dr. Trindle packed
up his instruments, Brenda explained to the doctor how thankful they all
were that he offered emergency services on weekends, and how much Bobbi
meant to Sarah. Brenda went on to say that he was the one person who
answered their call and that the family would be bringing all of their
veterinary business to his animal hospital from that
day forward.
Learn more about telephone
answering services and discover how they might be able to help you.
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