Desert Air - 58. DA Ch 58 - Changing Homes

Walking around the house, I was pleased at how it looked on the outside, and since I have not officially been handed the keys, I walked through to the landscaped garden park that I had built especially for Spike and Frilly.

I found about half a dozen deep burrows that would be ideal shelters for them both, as well as plenty of rocks and sandy hills to climb over and dig in, as well as some desert shrubs and ground covers to match with the terrain.

The landscaper had done an excellent job of building the four different climate areas, and I hoped that both of my pets would be very happy here. With the main veterinary complex still in building stage, it was all locked up, so I walked back to the hanger, where I had left my vehicle, and I drove back to the clinic, to see how things are going there, and I was surprised to see that the place was all locked up.

This is when I remembered that it was Saturday afternoon, and that all the staff were off duty or on call, as I unlocked the door and disarmed the alarm, before turning on the lights and I sat down at the reception desk, to check for any messages, and I found one scribbled note, in Auggie’s handwriting.

“Boss, Amanda and I have gone to Wyndham on an emergency, the phone has been diverted to me, but if I don’t answer it, the phone will divert to you, Auggie.” Just as I finished reading the note my phone rang, “Dr Kendrick speaking…” and a few minutes later, I was on an emergency call to a farm on the edge of town, where a horse was sick.

By the time I arrived back at the clinic, it was a bit after dark, the lights were already on, and I saw Amanda and Auggie talking in the reception area. “Hey boss, how were things with the family?” Amanda asked, “Yes all good, but I have been back from there since mid afternoon, and I have been out on a call just out of town with a horse that has Colic, luckily it was just a mild case, and the horse will recover. How did things go in Wyndham?” I replied.

“All good, a dog was hit by a car, and got away with it lightly, with just cuts and bruises and a sprained paw, so a good day all around by the sounds of it,” Auggie replied, and after cleaning and putting away everything, we locked up and headed our own ways for the night.

With Sunday usually quiet, with just one of us on call for the whole day, with that being me for this week, I was just relaxing at the resort, with a sleep in and a late breakfast, and hoping that I would not be called out, for an emergency.

Unfortunately, this was not the case, when my mobile rang just after 10.45 am. “Dr Kendrik, this is Quarantine Officer Dave at the border checkpoint, we have a vehicle that has an alert on it, something to do with an earlier truck load of sick cattle?” the man’s voice said to me.

“Hold the truck there, do not under any circumstances let it drive into Western Australia, I will be there as quickly as I can,” I replied before hanging up, and I quickly changed in to work clothes, with gumboots and overalls in hand, before leaving my resort room.

I already have the number for the Senior Sergeant in-charge of Kununurra Police and I dialled the number as I climbed into my vehicle. “Andy speaking, how can I help you,” came a response when the call was answered, “Hi Andy, Jex here, sorry to disturb you on a day off, but I need you to be in attendance with me at the Border Checkpoint, ASAP,” I said.

“Right, I will meet you out there, and no speeding please,” the Senior Sergeant responded, “Got it, and thanks mate,” I said before ending the call. Just over twenty minutes later I arrived at the checkpoint, and I purposely took the road to the right as it divided just before the checkpoint, and I parked in front of the truck.

“Are you responsible for this, keeping me held up in the increasing heat and humidity,” the truck driver said as he came storming towards me. “Yes, that would me, and I have the authority to stop you from entering the state, if you do not assist me with my investigations,” I replied.

“You’re no cop so you have no authority at all,” the truck driver said as he stopped less than a foot in front of me, standing a good six inches above my 5 foot 8 inches in height. He is also well built too, so there was no chance of me stopping him, if he wanted to shove past me.

“You are wrong there mate. I am the District Veterinary Officer, so I have all the authority to stop you to inspect your truck and it’s cargo,” I responded, and I was pleased when a Police four-wheel drive pulled up behind my vehicle.

“We will see about that… mate,” the truck driver said as he stepped around me, nudging my shoulder as he passed me, nearly knocking me off my feet. “Sir are you the owner and driver of this truck?” I heard the junior of the police officers asked, as the Senior Sergeant kept walking to speak to me.

“Are you ok Jexon? Do you want me to charge him with assault, as I clearly saw what he did to you just now,” the senior officer asked me, “No, I am fine, just drop it, I am more concerned about his attitude to allowing me to inspect his truck and stock,” I replied.

“Well you go ahead with your inspection, and I will keep him busy with a road worthy inspection,” Andy said to me, with a hint of a smile. I walked back to my vehicle and put on the overalls over my clothes, and changed my work boots for gumboots, before grabbing my vet bag, and heading back to the truck.

“Dr Kendrik, I am glad you called the local boys in blue, this guy looks like trouble,” the Agriculture Department checkpoint officer said to me, as he handed me all the paper work from the driver, as well as his report on the vehicle logbook and other details.

“After looking at the waybill, which the owner of the stock that is being transported, I saw that the cattle are from the same area of Daly River, as the last lot of cattle that I had diagnosed to have Leptospirosis, but this mob are to be delivered to a different Kimberly cattle station, and this concerned me a lot.

I took a slow walk around the sides and back of the truck, to check on the condition of the cattle, which all looked to be in good condition. Putting on some rubber gloves and retrieving a sample container, I managed to get three samples of urine from three different cows, and I took note of each of their tag numbers on their ears.

Once I had done that, I took swabs of the floor of the back of the truck in four different locations. I used a permanent marker to make a small mark on the cattle crate, at the location of those swabs, which I also noted down in my notebook, before heading into the checkpoint building, where it is nice and cool.

Sitting at an empty desk, I made a few notes down, before picking up the phone and dialling the number for the cattle station where the cattle come from, and all I got was an answering machine, so I left my name and contact details, and asked for a call back as soon as possible.

Next, I dialled the number for Riveren Station, and Uncle Owen’s answering machine took the call, so once again I left my name and numbers to call me ASAP. On an off chance, I called the number for Inverway Station and it answered, and it was Mum’s voice.

“Hi Mum, this is Jex, can you tell me if you have had any more thought on buying those other two stations, on the Victoria Highway,” I asked, “Yes, Owen and I discussed it some more and made an offer on Newry Station, why do you ask son?” Mum replied, “I have an idea I want to put to you both, that will be a little bit of extra work for you both, but it will have some extra income attached to it,” I replied.

“That sounds very interesting, tell me some more about this idea?” Mum asked, as I heard a door on the background thump, “Boots off you two, and then when you have done that come here to talk to Jexon,” I heard Mum say, as she put the phone on speaker.

“Hello Jexon, Hey Bro,” I heard my Uncle and Brother say, “Hey, now I have this idea that may mean extra work, but it could also bring in some extra income for the family business, Mum tells me she has made an offer on Newry Station. When does the settlement take place?” I replied.

“Well it is an urgent sale, walk out and walk in, and the settlement is in one week, with all station staff including the station manager staying on,” Uncle Owen replied. “that is good to know, now as you know I am the District Vet Officer for this area, including your stations, and I am not sure if I mentioned it or not, but we had an outbreak of Leptospirosis recently.

I am currently at the border, with the same suspect truck, with a load of cattle on the back, I need you to contact the current owners and ask for permission to use their cattle yards as a livestock quarantine station, until the cattle have been cleared of any diseases including Leptospirosis,” I announced.

“All we need to do is speak to the station manager, and we have met him, he is a good man and I am sure that he will be able to help you with this matter,” Mum said in response. “Good, can you arrange it and call me back here at the Border checkpoint please,” I asked, “Sure thing, we will get right on it, bye,” Owen said, before hanging up.

“So what have you organised?” the Senior Sergeant asked me when he walked in a few moments later, “I am arranging for the cattle to be offloaded at cattle yards on a nearby station, about 30 clicks east of here,” I replied.

“How on earth did you manage that, I hear the owners are very difficult people to deal with,” the Ag Department officer asked, “Well, I happen to know the people are in the process of taking over ownership of Newry Station,” I said smiling broadly.

“Who are they, and how do you know them?” the second police officer said from the doorway, and he had a set of truck keys in his hand, and an irate truck driver standing behind him, not looking at all happy. “Easy, it is my uncle Owen Kendrik and my mother, Mrs Amanda Kendrik,” I replied, and the senior sergeant laughed.

The phone rang, and one of the Ag department officers answered it, “Just a moment, I will pass the phone to him now,” we heard the officer say, and he held the phone out towards me, so I stood and walked over to the other desk, “Hello… Good, I will arrange it from this end, just get a few bales of hay delivered to the yards, and get them to check that the trough has plenty of fresh water, as the cattle will be thirsty… ok, will do, thanks for that, bye,” I said.

“Well, I presume by your end of the conversation that they are going to Newry Station?” the senior sergeant asked me. “They are indeed; and I will escort the truck there. I have been informed that it is 33 kilometres from here to the station turnoff on the left, and it is just 450 metres to the cattle yards, from the highway,” I replied.

“Right, now you heard what the DVO just said Mr Henry, you are to back your truck out of the inspection bay, and follow Dr Kendrik to Newry Station, where they are to be offloaded, and kept in quarantine, until Dr Kendrik has cleared them as free of any diseases,” the senior sergeant said to the truck driver.

Although not happy about the situation, the truck driver did as instructed and he followed me to the cattle yards at Newry Station.

When we arrived, there was two quad bikes parked near the cattle race, and I stopped near them, making sure I was clear of where the truck needs to stop at the race, to unload the cattle.