It was a lazy Thursday afternoon, and the sun had chosen this very day to blaze. I was sitting in front of my desktop computer in the clinic, staring unseeingly at the screen. A man in jungle green overall and black gumboots strode in and broke my stare. He greeted me with a gummy smile and said, “Habari daktari.” “Niko salama. How may I be of assistance to you?” I responded gleefully. At least the afternoon was beginning to look promising. “Chiloba is my name, and I am from the World Greens Herpetology Centre in Nairobi. We have a sick animal.” He explained. “Herpetology…reptiles.. hmmmm..” My mind was racing fast. “Sick animal.. Lizard? Tortoise? Snake? Or perhaps a croc..wow..” My mind was now on overdrive. “Yes, exactly as I was saying,” Chiloba continued. “We have a particularly queasy snake, a puff adder. Can you help?” “Of course. We are a clinic for all animals, wonderful and small.” I responded, perhaps a bit unsure of that very statement. “What’s the matter with the snake?” I enquired with utmost curiosity. “He hasn’t been eating well for the past few days. He is definitely not in hibernation. We weighed him today, and he has certainly lost some grams.” Chiloba explained. “Yes, that loss of appetite, coupled with anorexia, is never a good sign.” I stated that I was racking my mind over tentative diagnoses. “Can you come with me? II believe it would be beneficial if you took a closer look at Puff Addy, as we call him.I collected my trade tools and called my loyal assistant Mutuma to join us as we set out for World Greens.

The drive to the herpetology centre took us all of 15 minutes. In the middle of a forested patch, the World Greens Herpetology Centre stood in a massive, self-imposing building. The building was crescent-shaped and had five stories. The building boasted a smooth exterior finish, complemented by a forestscape painting that engulfed the entire structure. It was a definite work of art. One giant mural of a building. Mutuma and I could not help but stare in pure amazement; we were dumbfounded. “Has this place always been here?” After I found my voice, I asked. “Yep, for about 13 years.” Chiloba quipped nonchalantly. “I must say I am impressed, to say the least. But back to business; where is Puff Addy?” I stated. Chiloba led us into the building, into the elevator, and out onto the third floor. “The snake section is on this floor, and Puff is right here,” he said as he opened a door into a room with several large glass cases. “That’s Puff.” Pointing to a still yellow-creamy snake. “Ok,” I said, my mind racing with ideas about how we should proceed with the snake’s examination. Fortunately, the centre had trained snake handlers. Chiloba called the two people assigned to the snake section. They got Puff out of the glass case and gently placed him on the stainless steel examination table. “Mutuma, bring out a pair of gloves and a torch for me, will you?” I instructed. With one handler holding the distal part of the snake and the other holding the head with the mouth open, I was able to visualise the interior aspect of the mouth. “I see them, do you?” I asked Chiloba, pointing to several ulcerative lesions on the floor and roof of the mouth. “I believe that is the cause of the anorexia—the loss in appetite, that is,” I explained. “We will clean them daily for five days with a solution of diluted betadine.” We will also administer daily antibiotic injections and provide supportive therapy in the form of fluids, such as a drip if necessary.

Mutuma, who was listening to my explanation, swung into action and brought out the therapeutic items I had mentioned. I began by cleaning the mouth with cotton wool wrapped around mosquito forceps, then dipped in the dilute betadine solution. I repeated this several times. In the middle third of the snake’s abdominal cavity, I administered the antibiotic and part of the 500-ml drip. “We’ve finished with him for today. We shall return tomorrow.” I notified Chiloba and the team. The snake handlers carefully picked up Puff and returned him to his glassy abode. They then placed the heavy lid onto the glass case, securing the snake inside. The snake recoiled slowly, as if summoning all of his energy. “At least he is moving now.” Chiloba expressed excitement. “That’s a definite good sign.” “We hope for the best.” I replied, removing my gloves in preparation for the journey back. Mutuma packed our work items in a brown leather bag. Chiloba then returned us to the clinic in a rickety World Greens-branded jalopy. It was a complete turnaround in just five days of daily treatment. Puff had fully regained his appetite and began to gain weight. “Thank you, Daktari. Puff is certainly back to himself,” Chiloba thanked us gleefully on our last day of Puff’s treatment. “We weighed him today, and there has been an addition of some grams to his kilos since last week. We couldn’t be happier.” “All in a day’s work, all in a day’s work.” I replied, looking at Puff with great contentment. I was satisfied with his recovery. Our efforts had not been in vain. Mutuma collected our now-famous brown leather bag, and we walked out of the snake section, accompanied by Chiloba. He saw us heading to the exit of World Greens. “It was great working with you,” he said, tightly grasping my hand in a handshake. “You are welcome to visit the facility anytime.” “Thank you for the invitation; we shall definitely visit. We shall be on our way now; good-bye.” I responded by releasing my hand from its tight grip. He bid us farewell as we walked to our clinic van. We gave World Greens a final look and drove off to the clinic, hoping for yet another unique, mind-boggling case.