The Village Horse Doctor [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

Ben K. Green (Author), Lorence Bjorklund (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 12, 1971

Ben K. Green takes us back to the deep Southwest and the never-a-dull-moment years he spent as a practicing horse doctor along the Pecos and the Rio Grande. With precious little formal schooling but a perfect corral-side manner and plenty of natural wit, Green became the first to hang up a shingle in the trans-Pecos territory. Hear him tell the tales of his struggles with mean stockmen, yellowweed fever, banditos, poison hay, and “drouth.” His canny mix of science and horse sense when treating animals “that ain’t house pets” is 100-proof old time pleasure.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Ben Green has won the approval of the sternest literary critics I know—ranch cowboys. In old Doc’s books, they recognize a man who knew horses and cattle to the bone and could tell about them with honest prose and a sly cowboy sense of humor. I’ve read them all, as have most of the cowboys I know.”—John R. Erickson, rancher and author of the Hank the Cowdog series

(John R. Erickson ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

A veterinarian in the far Southwest for much of his life, Ben K. Green retired to ranch in Texas until his death in 1974.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 306 pages
• Publisher: Knopf; 1st edition (April 12, 1971)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394429222
• ISBN-13: 978-0394429229
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,149,512 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Village Horse Doctor, January 20, 2008

By 

Donald E. Petersen "Fla. Cracker" (Humid, Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Village Horse Doctor: West of the Pecos (Paperback)

I have read The Village Horse Doctor a couple of times since the early 1970's. It is among my favorite books. I loaned the book to an old timer who grew up in OK and Texas during the depression. He told me that The Village Horse Doctor is one of the best books he's ever about the west. I loaned V.H.D. to the veterinarians I worked for, they also loved it. (There's no James Harriett in Fort Stockton!)

I do not have the book handy to skim it to refresh my memory and evaluate how much Dr. Green may be pulling our leg. After reading the book the first time, it made perfect sense to me why Mr. Green would retire all the way across Texas after publishing The Village Horse Doctor.

Perhaps some of the stories are exagerated. But, the point of the loco weed story is NOT what he detected in the lab. It's his observations in the field. As far as the loco weed goes, the lab and the pills were a deception so that he'd recover for his time spent on the field work.

Like O Henry, the sense of humor often involves a bit of chicanery. (For example, O. Henry's The Gentle Grafter).

I would rate this book higher than Wild Horse Tails although it is also a fine book.

7 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars FEATS OF CHEMISTRY IN COUNTRY LAB STRAIN CREDULITY, May 27, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Village Horse Doctor (Hardcover)

GREEN HAS A BIG COW COUNTRY FOLLOWING. IN OTHER BOOKS HE TELLS OF VIRTUOSO PERFORMANCES IN AUCTION HOUSES, BRUSHY PASTURES, AND SMALL TOWNS WITH FIRST MONDAY HORSE SALES. NOW WE FIND GREEN ALL GROWN UP AND WORKING IN WEST TEXAS AS A VET. WITH LABORATORY EQUIPMENT AVAILABLE DURING WORLD WAR II, HE ANALYSES NOXIOUS WEEDS, FINDS SPECIFICALLY TOXIC SUBSTANCES, AND COMPOUNDS CURES RIGHT THERE. THIS IS PROBABLY NOT POSSIBLE WITH TODAY'S RESOURCES, SO THE ACCOUNTS IN THIS BOOK DO NOT RING TRUE TO ME. I'VE WORKED CATTLE IN A BRUSHY COUNTRY AND I'VE DONE SOME ORGANIC CHEMISTRY AND THE MORE I READ OF GREEN'S DOINGS, THE MORE SKEPTICAL I BECOME. I THINK GREEN MAY HAVE WORKED US TEXAS BOYS THE WAY CARLOS CASTENADA WORKED HIPPIES.

5.0 out of 5 stars Village Horse Doctor, January 2, 2012

By 

JBoyd - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Village Horse Doctor (Hardcover)

Excellent hands on account of veterinary medicine as rural America emerged from WW2. In addition to the examples of large animal care, DVM Green displays the pioneer spirit to tackle research type animal problems.