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After the busy birthing season, life is less hectic for the mountain vets.

For vet Maurice King, it is a less pressured time of year and a chance to enjoy the rewards of the job. At his practice in Downpatrick, Yorkshire terrier Mackie comes into the clinic with owner Liliane. Liliane is worried about Mackie’s lack of appetite. Her other dog Sonny died two weeks ago and she thinks Mackie is suffering from a broken heart. Vet Miriam Campbell books him in for a series of tests.

Vet Rachael Frew heads out to a pre-booked appointment with a farmer she knows well. Damien produces meat from a large herd of Dexter cattle. His prized possession is bull Charlie, who has won several awards. Damian has had his eye on a young bull to follow in Charlie’s footsteps, but it is not working out.

At Tullyraine Equine Clinic, today’s patient is ten-week-old colt Beau. His owner is concerned that one of his legs isn’t growing as straight as it should. Vet Inge D’Haese uses her skills to carry out a tricky procedure to correct his stance.

At home, Tullyraine stablehand Caroline prepares her cow Daisy for her first ever competition at Northern Ireland’s biggest country fair, the Balmoral Show, where farmer Damian is also showing his bull Charlie.

It is a new day and Miriam is rushing to an emergency at a local farm. She has been called to a local farmer who has a ‘cow down’. Miriam explains that if a cow is unable to stand up, it could be a sign of mineral deficiency, in which case the cow could die within hours – but the treatment for mineral deficiency can also be fatal.

Maurice heads over to marine life sanctuary Exploris to give a new litter of otter pups their first health check. They belong to the centre’s resident family of Asian short-clawed otters, an endangered species.

Rookie vet Daisy Dillon is called out to an emergency at a local farm. A cow has a ruptured a vein and is losing a lot of blood. It is the first emergency of this type that Daisy has had to attend to – and the cow’s life is in her hands.