Dr. Rabbit’s Equal Treatment

Once upon a time in the middle of Forrest Lumbquat was a happy village of creatures.

This story is about Rabbit. Rabbit was the village doctor. She was happy to help all the creatures that came asking for help. Before Rabbit was the official village doctor, there was another. The old doctor did not help the creatures that were big. Rabbit always thought that was unfair, because it was not the animals’ fault if they were born too big. When Rabbit became the doctor, she chose to treat everyone the exact same. There was a standard procedure that all the animals underwent.

This worked very well. There were common illnesses, and many animals knew they could depend on Rabbit to treat them.

***

One day her friend Squirrel Gray stepped on a thorn. Rabbit was happy to treat her friend.

She pulled out what she could and put some medicine on the wound.

“You’ll be walking on that paw in no time Squirrel!” she told her friend encouragingly.

Then she sent him away with four additional wrappings and two doses of medicine to take over the next few days.

“These supplies are more than enough! I’ll save what I don’t need for another time. My friend Rabbit always over exceeds the treatment!” Squirrel Gray said to himself as he scurried back home.

***

The next day her neighbors, the Warblers, came by for their yearly procedures.

“My middle talon is giving me a terrible time!” complained Mrs. Warbler.

“Hmm, I don’t know much about bird talons,” thought Rabbit. “My training didn’t equip me for this. The old doctor didn’t teach me very much about birds. Everything I know is based off the studies of small animals, but I’m sure that with enough rest and medicine it will feel better in no time!” she told Mrs. Warbler. She sent them away with four wrappings and two doses of medicine.

“What am I supposed to do with the wrappings?” Mrs. Warbler asked her husband as they flew up to their nest in the treetops.

“I suppose we’ll save them for when we need them dearest,” He responded.

***

The following day, Fox came for help.

“Help! Help! Please Dr. Rabbit, my paw got caught in a trap two days ago, and my family did everything they could to save me and have managed to save my paw. But I’m in extreme pain and didn’t know where else to go!”

“Please, please come in!” Rabbit urged. She didn’t have a clue how to treat Fox. She knew nothing about saving foxes. However, she knew that her treatment seemed to work on everyone else, so it might do Fox some good.

She removed the bandages from Fox’s paw and was shocked! The fur around the area was covered in blood. There was dirt visible inside the wound. The wound was deep and looked infected.

“It was a good idea to come to me. I know about cleaning wounds. I just hope my treatment is sufficient,” she told Fox. She gently washed the area around the wound and applied all the medicine she could. But when she started wrapping the paw, she realized that the standard amount called for by the procedure would not be enough. She stretched the wrapping as much as she could and managed to cover most of it. “I’m sorry Fox,” she explained, “I can’t give you anything else. My policy requires me to give every animal the exact same treatment.”

Fox sighed, thanked Rabbit, and hobbled back to her hole. When she arrived back home, her mother asked what had happened, and why the treatment was incomplete. After Fox explained, her mother exasperated, “That treatment is too much for the small animals, and never enough for big animals! That’s why we can never go to her! We know best how to treat our own kind. Still, at least she tried, unlike that old doctor!” She continued, “It’s a darn good thing that Mrs. Warbler was nice enough to give us her extra wrappings, even though her talon isn’t perfect yet. Selfish Squirrel Gray’s hoarding habits got the better of him, he only lent us a tiny bit!”

***

The animals decided to have a meeting to discuss the matter of Fox. Many of the animals spoke and they all had different opinions.

Squirrel Gray said that the treatment was more than enough. The Foxes were being greedy, he insisted. He didn’t understand that the Foxes were in more pain than he was, or that they were targeted by the humans. He said that the Foxes always looked for trouble.

The Warbler’s said that the treatment was not what Mrs. Warbler needed. They didn’t blame Rabbit. They understood that she didn’t know enough about bird talons to give them the right treatment. What she did, helped a little, but simply was not the right procedure.

Fox’s family all spoke. They explained to the community that they were at higher risk, their wounds often more severe, and that Rabbit’s treatment was not enough.

Finally, Rabbit spoke. “Maybe giving you all the exact same treatment is not the correct thing to do. Some are given to much, and other’s not enough, even though it’s equal. I don’t know enough about some of your injuries, and as your doctor, it’s my responsibility to be more prepared.” She declared, “I will now be changing my policy. I will treat you all differently, But based off your injury, not who you are. I will treat you in proportion to the gravity of your situation. I will educate myself more on the issues you have brought up. If I receive any complaints about unequal treatment remember this: the old procedure, while equal in dispersion, was not equal in reception.”

The animals agreed with her policy. They understood each other and were willing to give up some of their excess in order to help Rabbit be sufficiently equipped. Everyone was so happy they threw a feast. At the feast they continued to discuss and learn from one another.

And all the creatures in Forest Lumbquat lived happily ever after, in equity and respect.