The Christmas period tends to be quiet for vets as the farming community relaxes before the forthcoming busy spring.

Nonetheless, there are always cows to be calved and this was the case last Christmas Eve when the phone rang at 4.30am and I heard the panicked tones of a farmer with a heifer calving.

This farmer was not known for his patience and sentimentality so I didn’t delay in getting out to him.

I arrived shortly afterwards and noticed a hive of activity around the farm; lights on, kids up, dogs barking and the farmer roaring at Mike, his eldest son.

It transpired that Mike had just got his driving licence and got the go ahead to head into town to the local nightspot.

The only condition was to check the heifer at 2am when he returned. Mike was detained while he drove a new acquaintance home.

His father realised Mike was not home at 4am so he was already raging when he went to check his heifer and sure enough she was under pressure.

In fact, she was down with two big feet showing. Boiling point was reached, he realised the calf was too big to pull, rang the vet, got his three younger sons out of bed just as poor Mike drove into the yard for a roasting.

I managed to get the heifer to stand before I could confirm that we would have to do a caesarean.

Again, tempers rose as the farmer ordered buckets of hot water, etc.

The sons scurried around completing all their duties and surgery was started. Tension was high as the farmer fumed. There was silence among the lads.

Fortunately, we got the calf out alive. I closed the uterus without too much bother and as I started on the muscle layers, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

People from outside the farming community have no idea of the stress and hardships that farmers sometimes have to endure and the often relentless workload 24/7, 365 days of the year.

As I finished suturing up the heifer, the calf was making his first awkward attempt to stand up.

I looked back at the calf with deep satisfaction and realised that farming, just like veterinary, is a vocation and that we do it for the love of it!

*John Berkery works at Mulcair Vet Clinic, Cappamore, Co Limerick. Mulcair Vet Clinic is part of XLVets. XLVets is a group of progressive practices who are working together to achieve a better future for agriculture and veterinary in Ireland. For further information go to www.xlvets.ie