The Nightingale Connection
Posted by Anne Corke on 2006-10-01. Filed under Monthly Feature
Although Florence Nightingale is well known as the founder of modern nursing, most of us are unaware of her association with animals. Florence was from a privileged background and spent most of her life on the family estate in Derbyshire, England. From a young age, she was fond of animals When she walked the wooded paths in her garden, she would bring a handful of nuts to feed the squirrels. In one of the paddocks, an old pensioned pony would wait for Florence to visit with her daily treat of an apple or a roll of bread. Florence was fond of riding and would often accompany the parish clergyman as he visited outlying farms and cottages. Having studied medicine as a young man, he would provide aid and advice to those parishioners who had fallen ill or met with an accident, ably and eagerly assisted by the compassionate Florence.
In one of these solitary cottages lived an old shepherd, Roger, whose sole companion and invaluable workmate was his sheepdog, Cap. One evening, Florence and the clergyman came across Roger struggling to gather his flock for the night. Cap was nowhere in sight. When Florence inquired as to the dog's whereabouts, a distraught Roger told her that he was going home to hang him as he was no longer of any use. The day before, a schoolboy had thrown a stone at Cap, breaking his leg. Florence and the vicar pleaded with him to spare Cap but the shepherd argued that he could not afford to feed a dog that could not earn his keep. On their way home, Florence and the vicar stopped by Roger's cottage. Cap crept out from under the table and lay at their feet. The vicar examined his leg which was swollen and painful, but not broken. Florence lit the fire to heat some water and found an old flannel petticoat hung out to dry at a nearby cottage. She tore it into strips and applied hot compresses to Cap's leg. Later, as they continued on their way, they met Roger who was delighted to hear that his companion would recover and offered his tearful thanks for their help.
The next morning, Florence was up early. She took two petticoats to replace the one she had torn, then went to check on Cap. The swelling was subsiding and she bathed the leg again. A few days later, Florence and the vicar encountered Roger and his sheep, once more accompanied by Cap, who greeted Florence enthusiastically. The shepherd stopped his work to thank them again, saying that, if not for their ministrations, he would have hanged the best dog he ever had in his life. Driven by a compassion for all God's creatures, Florence would dedicate her life to the sick and war-wounded and become a legend in the medical field. And it all started with a crippled sheepdog.