Hello Vet! How are you?

Woof Woof Animal Clinic was smoothly establishing its place.

Less than two weeks had passed since it opened, and already several cases had been referred.

“Ddangkong’s guardian referred you.”

“Yes, they said the doctor is very skilled and recommended it.”

“Thank you. While you’re filling out the paperwork, I’ll take a look at Choco.”

“Doctor, um… Choco is very timid. I’ll get him out in a bit.”

“Sure.”

After filling out the registration form, the poodle’s guardian shared her concerns with Lee Joon.

“I was worried Choco might have leg pain, so I came here. He’s only 6 months old but recently started hating walks.”

“If it’s the leg, has Choco ever walked on three legs, holding one up?”

“I haven’t noticed.”

“How about dragging a leg? Or crying out in pain during a walk?”

The guardian paused, lost in thought over Lee Joon’s questions.

Lee Joon quietly waited for her contemplation to end, his gaze fixed on Choco, resting in her arms.

‘He seems timid since he’s not making any whimpering sounds.’

While Lee Joon was examining Choco, the guardian shook her head and spoke.

“I can’t remember seeing anything like that, doctor.”

“Alright, in that case, has Choco ever disliked walks before?”

“No. At first, he was scared because everything was new, but once he got used to it, he’d get so excited he’d run around the living room as soon as he saw the leash. But recently, he hides just seeing it.”

“To suddenly dislike something he used to enjoy, it seems there’s a problem.”

“Right, doctor?”

The guardian asked anxiously.

Lee Joon nodded at her and looked at Choco. Choco, still tensed, was nervously watching him with wary eyes.

‘He’s wary of me.’

Lee Joon decided he needed to engage Choco in conversation to ease his tension.

“Choco, are you hurt anywhere?”

Choco flinched slightly, nodded his head faintly, and somewhat moved his mouth.

‘Hmm, he seemed to tilt his head to the left just now.’

Despite the initial flinch, Choco’s head tilted to the left.

The guardian didn’t notice this as she watched Lee Joon talk to Choco as if speaking to a friend, smiling brightly.

“They said you communicate with animals as if having conversations, doctor, and it’s true. You really seem to be communicating.”

“I actually do talk with them.”

“Oh my, you have quite the sense of humor.”

Even though Lee Joon spoke truthfully, the guardian took it as a joke.

“Though nothing seems amiss from what you’ve told me, we’ll do an X-ray to be sure.”

“Okay.”

“Let’s start with a physical exam first.”

After getting her consent, Lee Joon spoke to Choco.

“Choco, the doctor will touch your leg. If it hurts, let me know.”

Choco stayed mute but nodded this time.

‘He understands me. But he tilted his head left again when I spoke.’

After his abilities awakened, every dog Lee Joon met could express themselves well.

So he was a bit surprised.

‘I hadn’t considered this scenario. But people have different personalities too.’

Nevertheless, he changed his perspective.

‘At least Choco can understand me. I can at least inform him of what’s happening.’

This meant that the timid fellow wasn’t entirely scared of being examined…

‘Wait. He’s really calm for a six-month-old puppy.’

Lee Joon sensed he might be overlooking something.

‘A poodle this calm at only six months… And he’s only turning his head one way.’

Feeling puzzled, Lee Joon began asking the guardian about how calm Choco usually is at home, whether they’ve changed his leash, or if anything startled him during walks.

“Well, there was one time during a walk… Oh, right, maybe that’s it?”

“Could you tell me what happened?”

“About two weeks ago, while walking to the park, someone we’ve never seen suddenly picked Choco up, saying he was cute. Choco got really scared then.”

“Oh, so that happened.”

“Could that be the reason?”

“If it startled him, possibly. We’ll check and let you know.”

Carrying Choco to the examination room, Lee Joon conducted a small test using a cotton ball, tossing it silently without Choco’s notice from his right side.

The cotton ball fell lightly, hardly making any noise.

Choco continued staring at the door.

‘As I thought.’

Lee Joon repeated the test on Choco’s left side.

Thud.

Choco looked down at the falling cotton, he had heard it.

While touching Choco’s right ear, Lee Joon spoke softly into his left ear.

“Choco, can you not hear well from this ear?”

Choco, who hadn’t shown much reaction earlier, slowly nodded this time.

“So it was like that.”

Choco’s dislike for walks wasn’t due to leg problems.

In fact, his legs were found to be perfectly healthy and strong.

With answers in hand, Lee Joon returned Choco to his guardian.

“Ma’am.”

“Yes? How is Choco?”

“His legs are fine.”

“That’s a relief. But why does he hate walks so much then…?”

“Did you know Choco has issues with his right ear?”

“What? His ear? Is there something wrong with Choco’s ear?”

“Choco’s right ear has congenital hearing issues.”

“Oh my… Choco…”

On hearing this, the guardian hugged Choco tightly.

“The person who surprised Choco two weeks ago must have approached him from the right. Since his right ear has weak hearing, Choco understandably panicked.”

“Choco, I’m sorry… I didn’t realize…”

The guardian stroked Choco apologetically for a while before sighing deeply.

“Doctor, does this mean Choco can’t handle walks anymore? He’ll be bored if he’s always indoors.”

“No, it just seems that incident scared him. Once Choco feels safe, he should be fine.”

“That’s such a relief…”

“Oh, just a moment.”

Lee Joon went out and returned with a leash.

“Do Not Touch. Very Timid.”

were written in large letters on this reflective leash for better visibility at night.

“Oh, things like this exist?”

“I’m sure you’ll be cautious, but having this helps. It’s reflective, so it’s clearly visible even at night.”

“Wish I’d known about this sooner.”

Watching the guardian stroke Choco with a regretful expression, Lee Joon spoke.

“Choco, your mom will protect you. So feel safe and enjoy your walks, okay?”

Choco looked at Lee Joon and nodded.

Witnessing this, the guardian’s eyes widened.

“Oh my, really. Choco nodded at your words, doctor. It seems like he understood you.”

“Perhaps he did.”

“I’m glad I came. We would never have known if not for you, doctor. Thank you so much.”

“Ha ha, not at all. Just doing my job.”

“Thank you so much. I’ll visit you again.”

“Sure, Choco, when you visit next, tell us all about the fun you had during walks.”

『…… Okay.』

The voice was tiny and fragile, but Lee Joon immediately recognized it as Choco’s voice.

A small smile formed on Lee Joon’s lips.

“Alright Choco, stop worrying and enjoy your walks.”

***

As soon as Choco’s guardian left the animal hospital, she took out her phone from her coat pocket.

After a few rings, the other party picked up.

-Choco’s guardian, what did they say?

“Oh my gosh, ddangkong’s guardian. Thank you so much. The doctor is amazing.”

-Right? Doctor Lee Joon is wonderful, isn’t he?

“Yes, he’s so skilled. He immediately knew what was wrong with Choco.”

-See? I told you he’s excellent.

On her way back, Choco’s guardian continued to praise how good Woof Woof Animal Clinic was.

Their conversation lasted until Choco’s guardian reached home.

However, she still wanted to spread the word.

“Let’s see…”

She scanned her contacts of fellow guardians she met at the park.

“I talked to Ddangkong’s guardian already…”

She still had more than ten contacts to call.

“Hello? How have you been? No, nothing else… Remember I mentioned Choco’s fear of walks? Well, there’s a newly opened clinic nearby called Woof Woof Animal Clinic…”

If people saw her, they might mistake her for an enthusiastic marketer.

She began fervently promoting Woof Woof Animal Clinic.

***

A few days after Choco’s guardian left, Woof Woof Animal Clinic was bustling.

“Doctor!”

“Yes! Coming!”

From guardians buying treats to those registering for consultations, Lee Joon was incredibly busy.

However, despite the hectic schedule, he didn’t neglect any patient or consultation.

He attended passionately to every animal.

Yet, something peculiar was happening around Lee Joon.

Even when interacting with guardians buying treats.

“He seems bored with this. He said he wants this treat.”

“Really? I’ll take 10 cans then.”

“Ten cans? Maybe just one to try… or perhaps a sample?”

“No! Give me 10 cans!”

“Um… okay.”

During consultations post-diagnosis.

“No need to worry much, but it’s best to hospitalize for a day.”

“Alright. If you recommend it, I’ll trust you with my Minky.”

“Uh… okay…”

Guardians seemed to trust Lee Joon’s words almost implicitly.

It was uncommon unless they were longtime patrons.

While slightly bewildering, Lee Joon viewed it positively and kept doing his best.

After several intense hours, Lee Joon was about to take a breather when…

Ding.

A woman with a carrier bag opened the clinic door.

The dogs inside began barking upon hearing the door chime.

Woof, woof, bark!

Much to her dismay, she paused at the threshold, seeming unsure how to proceed.

‘A cat guardian.’

Lee Joon intuitively realized this and momentarily set down the chart he was organizing.

“Everyone, let’s quiet down.”

Instantly, as if they had never barked, the dogs went silent.

“Huh?”

“Wow?”

The guardians present were amazed, but the person most surprised was the guardian at the door.

‘He calmed all the dogs at once. Is he a trainer?’

Having seen trainers only on TV, the curious cat guardian momentarily observed the scene.

The doctor turned towards her, nodded, and spoke.

“I know you’re all excited, but there’s a cat who’s quite scared. Can you keep it down, please?”

『Sure, we can do that.』
『Who cares? What’s a cat?』
『Doctor, I’ve always been quiet, haven’t I? It was those guys making the noise. You know that, right?』

Woof, arf, uwu!

The dogs barked again, furrowing the cat guardian’s brow.

But after a brief pause, silence ensued, followed by peace.

‘No way. Just with words, he calmed the dogs.’

The cat guardian, hong Jisoo, entranced by the scene, opened the pet gate and walked in.

“Welcome.”

Lee Joon greeted her with a pleasant, baritone voice, inviting Hong Jisoo to enter the examination room.

“Shall we go to the examination room?”

“Yes… Yes.”

She unintentionally followed Lee Joon’s lead, relieved by her surroundings.

‘There’s a separate examination room for cats.’

Hong Jisoo, who thought a small clinic wouldn’t have a separate space for cats, was surprised to find a cat tower and a litter tray.

‘Hmm, there’s also pheromones.’

On one wall, pheromones to reduce stress in cats were emanating.

Thinking the clinic had everything despite its small size, Lee Joon placed a blanket over the pet carrier.

“It’s best to let him adapt before starting the examination. This blanket is new and sanitized, by the way.”

The blanket reassured Hong Jisoo, who disliked the practice of forcing cats out of carriers right upon arrival, usually for weighing.

Yet, the doctor in front of her was different.

‘I made a good choice.’

Feeling optimistic, hong Jisoo diligently filled out the initial consultation and medical history forms.

***

Since opening Woof Woof Animal Clinic, Lee Joon had conversed with numerous dogs, but he hadn’t yet communicated with a cat.

Thus, Lee Joon was eagerly anticipating the encounter.

‘Will communication work with a cat, too?’

Brimming with anticipation, Lee Joon picked up the registration form filled by Hong Jisoo.

At that moment, a sound echoed in the quiet examination room.

Choo! Choo!

‘It sounds like sneezing.’

Sneezing is a convulsive reflection from irritation within the nose.

‘Could it be a foreign object or an upper respiratory tract syndrome?’

Lee Joon quickly looked for medical history on the form.

〈Because of yellow mucus, antibiotics, and cold medicine were prescribed. The medication was taken for two months (medicine administered for one week, stopped for a week, then continued for two more weeks. With no improvement, another vet prescribed medicine for a month.)〉

‘Taking medications for so long without improvement? I should consider allergies, fungal infections, and not rule out tumors.’

Unaware of what medications were given, Lee Joon expanded the potential diagnosis range.

“The medication has been administered for quite some time.”

“Yes, but there’s been no sign of improvement. They even suggested a CT scan, which showed no foreign objects or tumors, just inflammation.”

“When was the CT scan done?”

“About a month ago, I think. We changed clinics, and after another week of no improvement with their medication, they suggested a more thorough examination. At my last visit, they mentioned the discharge had decreased slightly and recommended another scan…”

Hong Jisoo looked increasingly somber.

“Two antibiotics sessions within a month for such a small animal felt cruel, yet he won’t improve…”

Lee Joon looked between Hong Jisoo and Tofu.

“His name is Tofu. Can you share Tofu’s treatment journey in detail? From when the symptoms first appeared.”

—