My father fixed cows 
For a living 
And horses, 
Sheep, 
Pigs, 
And goats, 
But mostly cows—

And I know this because
We went with him, 
My siblings and I—

We drove the 
Back roads 
As we listened to 
Kenny and Dolly,
The Oak Ridge Boys; 
 
We carried the pail
Of hot sudsy water

And trudged 
To the truck 
To get the drugs
That he needed 
To treat 
Ketosis,
Mastitis, 
Milk Fever

And listened
To  stories, 
Gossip, 
Counseling
That  
He shared with 
His clients, 
His friends. 

12, 14 hours
A day, 
7 days a week—
He worked like a mule
Or a farmer.

And now, 
Decades later,
The farmers are
All but gone
From our 
Neck of the woods, 

And

It is our mission now, 
My siblings and I, 
Our mission and 
Privilege 
To care for 
Our old country vet.