Fitzpatrick Referrals is a genuinely unique animal hospital with a team of people who have only one aim, and that is to help animals regain a pain-free, functional quality of life. I've already read Becoming the Supervet, and found it so interesting to try and understand how Fitzpatrick has reached his current status as a veterinary surgeon. He does this while discussing many of his cases in practice, his own family pets and his time living on a farm growing up.

Beyond Supervet: How Animals Make Us The Best We Can Be

This is not a light fluffy read by any means, it is gut wrenching and you will never forget reading it. Now, in this long-awaited memoir, Noel recounts this often-surprising journey that sees him leaving behind a farm animal practice in rural Ireland to set up Fitzpatrick Referrals in Surrey, one of the most advanced small animal specialist centres in the world. It was this bond with Pirate, and a fateful night spent desperately trying to save a newborn lamb, that inspired Noel to enter the world of veterinary science - and set him on the path to becoming The Supervet. Discover amazing stories of The Supervet’s most incredible animals from bionic cats to hero hedgehogs and courageous chameleons! I enjoyed every second of this book, just a wonderful man with a heart of gold, a pure love of animals yet also such kindness to all human beings, I wish there were more people with such huge kind hearts as Noel.Daddy started out with nothing and made his own way, by his own intelligence, determination, toil and sweat. Secondly, how the author draws on the qualities he sees in animals – particularly pet cats and dogs, including his own. Growing up on the family farm in Ballyfin, Ireland, Noel's childhood was spent tending to the cattle and sheep, the hay and silage, the tractors and land, his beloved sheepdog Pirate providing solace from the bullies that plagued him at school. His book doesn't disappoint, and is extremely inspiring - he has led an interesting life, has had his ups and downs, experienced bullying at school, sadly puts himself down even now (why, Noel, why?

The Supervet The Supervet

Maybe it is because I am very sensitive myself that I felt uncomfortable at times, maybe it was too close to the bone. If anything, I would have liked to have read more tales from the various practices he ‘locumed’ for, as I think he spent a greater amount of time describing his experiences on farm animal cases (which I still really enjoyed - especially the story about the drunk lads and the cow ceasarean!

As someone currently studying to be a veterinary nurse this book gives me motivation to keep going at my studies. Fitzpatrick and his team at Fitzpatrick Referrals have been the subject of television series, including The Bionic Vet [16] [17] and The Supervet. Reading about Noel’s upbringing on a rural Irish farm, there’s a vulnerability to his writing that makes him instantly endearing. It can be hard to read in parts but if this is your kind of thing I truly believe you will enjoy it. Where the book fails for me is the inclusion of far too much technical information as he struggles to improve his surgical skills and raise money for his own business.