TOM AND THE DENTIST.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XVI, Issue XI, 14 March 1896, Page 307

TOM AND THE DENTIST.

Surely this is the golden age for domestic animals. Our horses and cows and dogs are attended in sickness by doctors who have received their diplomas from a university ; there are homes for lost dogs, and retreats for stray and friendless cats. Everything is done to make these humbie friends of ours happy. The latest departure is that of cat dentistry, a story of which is told in a recent paper. It runs as follows :— ‘ Mr Wright's Tom at one time was the possessor of a full set of false teeth. Two years ago the cat was kicked in the head by a drunken rough ; the loaer jaw was completely broken, and only the two large fangs were left in the upper jaw. A friend of Mr Wright's, a young student of dentistry, took a cast of the cat 's mouth with great difficulty. He manufactured a set of teeth and a rubber plate for the upper part of the cat's mouth, which it fitted perfectly. In time the cat grew accustomed to its new teeth, and wore the plate for more than a year. Last autumn, however, in a battle with a neighbour's cat. Tom's set of teeth dropped out just at the critical moment, and besides the breakage of the plate, he received a tremendous thrashing. ‘ Since that time the cat has been practically toothless, but he manages to flourish in spite of his loss, being a fine-looking fellow weighing nearly thirteen pounds.'

A certain young lady from Turkey Found London decidedly murky ; So she sat on a steeple, And mocked all the people. Then ran with all speed back to Turkey