Open Writing

I met Bully once, eleven years ago, some months before Leon and I became aware that we were destined to be together. The wind quintet of which I was a member at that time was making a musical stop in Kimberley, where Leon lived. Leon was hosting a party at which we were to perform the next day, and we’d been invited to his home to relax after our drive from Johannesburg.

The brindle and white bulldog snuffled at my knees while I sat on the most uncomfortable couch ever created. It was upholstered in cold, slippery cream leather; the seat was too long for my legs, and the back too short for support. Every time I slipped forward and then hitched myself back again, Bully snorted.

Bully found a new home with a family on a farm shortly after that visit. The couch is now in our lounge here in Johannesburg.

While Bully was Leon’s house-mate, he developed an opaque film in his eyes. “Poor Bully’s got cataracts,” thought Leon. “I’d better take him to the vet and have them removed so he can see again.”

To his surprise, however, the vet diagnosed an inflammation of the eyes caused by the dog’s eyelashes turning inwards. Every time Bully blinked, his eyelashes scratched his eyes, causing inflammation and infection. Eye drops containing cortisone were prescribed and administered and Bully’s eyes cleared. Eventually, the eye drops were finished and a week or two later, the problem recurred.

After several bouts of applying eye drops to his furry friend’s eyes, Leon decided that there had to be a permanent solution to the problem.

“What,” he asked his vet, “is actually causing Bully’s eyelashes to turn inward and scratch his eyes?”

“Well,” explained the vet, “as do most bull-dogs, Bully has rather a lot of skin on his head and face – heavy, folded, frowning skin. It is pushing his eyelids down, they’re curling inwards, the lashes scratch the eye, and the rest follows from there.”

“Is there any permanent solution?” asked Leon. “Cortisone isn’t good in the long term for anyone, and can’t possibly be good for Bully.”

“Yes, there are a couple of solutions,” the vet replied. “The eyes wouldn’t be inflamed if they were better lubricated. We could ‘re-plumb’ the salivary glands so that they send saliva through the tear ducts. Saliva and tears are a similar liquid,” he hastened to explain. Then he added, “There would be one disadvantage, however. Every time Bully smelled food, he would cry copious tears…”

After they’d finished chuckling at the thought, the vet continued, “There is another option. We could remove some folds from Bully’s frown, which would relieve the weight on his eyelids and solve the problem pretty much permanently.”

Without even considering the first option, Leon agreed that his bulldog should have the minor operation. Bully came out of surgery with a smooth forehead, giving him a rather startled look for a bulldog. His soulful brown eyes were clear and comfortable. The problem was solved.

If you ever meet a bulldog with a rather surprised look on his face and very few wrinkles, you may just have met Leon’s Bully. After all, it is not only the rich and the famous who go in for face-lifts.

Until next time, ‘here comes Treble!’

By Isabel Bradley © Copyright Reserved