Spring 89th, 514 AV
Spirit’s first patient of the day was with a pair of adults she recognized. They were… second aunt and uncles? Thirds? She couldn’t remember if the male of the pair was her Uncle’s cousin, or her father’s second cousin. She knew two people, very similar in that way, but she could never remember which was which. What she did know, however, was that this one was quite into their own animals. The woman had several rabbits, which the last creature –a dog- remarkably got along with. There had never been an incident that she’d heard of.
“Hello!” she greeted the two, faintly pulling out names from her memory. Quinn and… Sh… Shey? It was a little amusing, as both names could possibly fit for both genders. However, it was the man –Quinn- who grabbed her attention next. “Hello Spirit!” he replied in equally good humor. “We’ve come about Shell here… she’s been limping.” He frowned in concern, resting a light hand on the dog’s back. It was a common breed, the same as Wind, actually… a Zypherian Sled Dog. They were popular in Avanthal for their simple robustness, as well as their practicality.
“A limp?” she replied, a little concerned. To see for herself, she stood a little ways back and called to the dog with a pat on her knee. “Come Shell!” The canine seemed barely able to restrain her joy at meeting a friend again. All the times that Spirit had visited the family recently, she’d always spent quite a bit of time with this dog. She was simply so happy and willing and open that everyone had to love her.
The dog didn’t seem to be in pain, but the difference in her gait compared to any other animal was obvious. It was hard to see from a forward angle, though, what the problem was… she’d have to try again from another direction. However, before that, she crouched down to be at height with Shell, and greeted the dog in a more friendly way. There was snuffling and cuddling, for about fifteen ticks, until Spirit deemed it time to actually get to work.
She pushed herself up, and addressed Quinn again. “Is it possible you could lead her back and forth a bit? So I can see how the limp works, and which side it’s on.” The man nodded in agreement, and called Shell back to him. Together, the pair walked in short stretches, turning a full circle each time to head back in the opposite direction. Spirit had never quite done something like this before, but she just had to find the leg that was causing the limp. Find a difference in gait, and try and compare it to her memory of other dogs moving.
It took quite a while, considering her inexperience, but after looking at the front legs, and the hip and knee of the back legs without any too obvious flaw, she found one at the paw. On the left hind leg, Shell’s paw slipped back every step, dragging a little. Either it was the paw that hurt, or… she was simply having trouble with another part? The way you dragged a foot when you knee or ankle hurt, because your didn’t want to move anything.
“Okay,” she said hesitantly, raising a hand to tell Quinn to stop. He did so, and conveniently led Shell forward. “I think it’s this leg,” she explained, resting a hand on the stated limb. “But… I’m not sure what part it is. I’m just going to check for any physical differences…”
That was partially a lie. If she did find anything, great. However… her actual tactic was different. She’d poke and prod, and watch Shell’s face for any kind of reaction. If someone poked a bruise or an injury, anyone would want to shy away and grimace. You didn’t want any more pain. You also… stiffened, right? She’d have to watch out for that too. And when she found something? Well… she’d have to wait. Maybe ask Lusina. All she could think of to do, after diagnosing this… would be to prescribe some kind of medication. Pain reliever, probably… poppy was the thing in it. She wasn’t any kind of a herbalist, but she did sometimes pay attention to the labels on bottles.
So Spirit's observations are things I've seen myself.