Q1: What makes you know that Mrs. Pumphrey was a rich lady?
Ans: Mrs. Pumphrey was a wealthy lady as she had many servants and maids and also had a pet. She used to feed her pet with a lot of dishes, sweets and snacks. Moreover, she had a separate room and wardrobe for her pet. All these things show that she was a rich lady.
Q2: Why did Mrs. Pumphrey call the doctor?
Ans: Tricki was not eating anything for the past few days. He had refused even dishes and had bouts of vomiting. Moreover, he was spending his time lying on a rug, panting. He was not going for walks. All these symptoms forced Mrs. Pumphrey to visit the doctor.
Q3: How does Dr. Herriot treat Tricki?
Ans. Tricki was treated by Dr Herriot without medicine or surgery. He controlled the amount of food he ate and gave him plenty of water. He made Tricki play and exercise with the other dogs in the surgery. Tricki gained his energy and spark back once he was fed the correct amount of food and given enough exercise.
Q4: Why were the household dogs not interested in Tricki initially?
Ans: Tricki was a newcomer in the house. Moreover, Tricki was very lethargic to play with them. He was not comfortable there. But after a few days, Tricki started enjoying them. He discovered the joys of being bowled over, tramped on and squashed every few minutes. He became an accepted member of the gang.
Q5: Why was Dr. Herriot confident that Tricki will be in hospital soon?
Ans: Tricki was fat as a bloated sausage and his eyes grew red when he had met Dr. Herriot in road. As he was a veterinary surgeon, he predicted that with such health condition the poor dog will surely fall ill soon. Thus, Dr. Herriot was confident that tricky will be in hospital soon.
Q6: Why was the entire staff of Mrs. Pumphrey at work while Tricki was going to the hospital?
Ans: Tricki was Mrs. Pumphrey's beloved dog, and when he was going to the hospital, the entire staff got to work. His day and night beds, favourite cushions, toys and rubber rings, and food bowls were loaded into the narrator’s car by them.
Q7: What was the main cause of 'Tricki’s ill-health'?
Ans: Tricki was overfed by Mrs. Pumphrey. He became hugely fat and inactive. He was pampered with a lot of cream cakes, chocolates and hot links. This was the main cause of his illness.
Q8: Why did Mr. Herriot ask Mrs. Pumphrey to admit Tricki in a hospital?
Ans: Dr. Herriot asked Mrs. Pumphrey to admit Tricki in a hospital because instead of cutting down on his food and making him exercise, she was pampering him.
Q9: Why did Mrs. Pumphrey treat Tricki in a special way?
Ans: Mrs. Pumphrey was an extremely rich lady but was foolishly indulgent in pampering her dog, Tricki. She served him with cream cakes, chocolates and cod liver oil. She did so because she treated Tricki like her son.
Q10: Why was Dr. Herriot worried about Tricki?
Ans: Dr. Herriot was worried about Tricki because he had become hugely fat and inactive. He suggested to Mrs. Pumphrey to cut down his food and give him some exercise but she was reluctant to do so.
Q11: Why was Tricki sent to the hospital?
Ans: Tricki had become sluggish as he had grown so fast that it became difficult for him to walk. He started panting all the time, kept on vomiting and stopped eating. He seemed very ill, so he was hospitalized.
Q12: What was Mrs. Pumphrey’s reaction when Tricki showed little enthusiasm for exertion?
Ans: She was shocked and worried. She thought that Tricki was seriously ill. She thought that he had been suffering from malnutrition.
Q13: What did she do to bring him back to normal health? Was she successful?
Ans: She thought that Tricki was suffering from malnutrition and therefore she started to give Tricki more food because of which Tricki had become very slow and lazy. So, she was not successful.
Q14: What was Mr. Herriot’s strict advice? Did Mrs. Pumphrey heed his advice? What excuses did she make?
Ans: Mr. Herriot’s strict advice was to cut down on sweet things and to give him plenty of exercise. But Mrs. Pumphrey did not heed (pay attention) to this advice. She thought Tricki was weak, so she was giving him cream cakes and chocolates. Tricki had very little exercise because the gardener was unwell.
Q15: Why did Mrs. Pumphrey make a frantic (anxiety with fear) call to Mr. Herriot?
Ans: Mrs. Pumphrey made a frantic call to Mr. Herriot because Tricki was seriously ill. He ate no food. He refused even his favourite dishes. He had bouts of vomiting. He liked to do nothing.
Q16: Describe the `parting scene' between Tricki and Mrs. Pumphrey’s household.
Ans. Mrs. Pumphrey was wailing. The entire staff was roused (awakened). The maids rushed in and out bringing his beds and bowls to the doctor’s car. When the doctor drove the car away everybody in the house was in tears.
Q17: “I think I know a cure for you.” What was the `cure’?
Ans: It was the cure to control Tricki’s diet. He did not give any food to Tricki for two days. He gave him a lot of water to drink. He gave him no medicine. He gave him a lot of exercises and this all made Tricki very active.
Q18: The household dogs at the surgery rejected Tricki as “uninteresting objects.” Why?
Ans: At the surgery the household dogs surrounded Tricki. He looked at them with dull eyes. The other dogs sniffed him, but he did not give any response. So, they found him as an uninteresting object and rejected him.
Q19: How did he become an accepted member of the gang and start enjoying the company of other dogs?
Ans: After two or three days Tricki’s health began to improve rapidly. He started mixing-up with other dogs. He enjoyed playing different games with the other dogs. In this way, he became an accepted member of the gang. He enjoyed their company.
Q20: What was Mrs. Pumphrey’s reaction when the doctor said that Tricki must be taken to the hospital for a fortnight?
Ans. Hearing this from the doctor’s mouth she almost swooned. She was sure that Tricki would pine and die if he did not see her every day.
Q21: How did the gang of the household dogs accept Tricki as their member?
Ans: After two or three days Tricki mixed-up with the household dogs. He had a lot of fun and exercise there. He ran about with the dogs. He enjoyed being bowled over, tramped on and squashed. Thus, they accepted him as their member.
Q22: How did Tricky treat his mistress when she went to collect him?
Ans: When Tricki saw his mistress, he took off from Mr. Herriot’s arms. He took a tremendous leap. He sailed into Mrs. Pumphrey’s lap. He swarmed over her. He licked her face and barked.
Q23: What special diet did Mrs. Pumphrey give to build Tricki up?
Ans. Mrs. Pumphrey found that Tricki had become listless. He seemed to have no energy. She thought he must be suffering from malnutrition. She decided to give some little special diet between meals to build him up. She gave him some malt, cod-liver oil and a bowl of Horlicks at night. She couldn’t refuse cakes and chocolates to Tricki even after being advised to cut down on the sweet things.
Q24: What was the only fault of Tricki as diagnosed by Dr. Herriot?
Ans: Dr. Herriot knew that overindulgence and pampering of Tricki’s mistress, Mrs. Pumphrey created problems for him. The only fault of Tricki was his greed for food. He had never known to refuse food. Overfeeding and not giving him proper exercise made him hugely fat and dull.
Q25: What plans did Dr. Herriot make to get Tricki out of the house?
Ans: Dr. James Herriot realised that as long as Tricki was with Mrs. Pumphrey, he would be miserable. He suggested to her that Tricki must be hospitalised for a fortnight. He would be under his observation. The lady almost fainted on hearing this, but Dr. Herriot took a firm line. He insisted that the dog was ill, and it was the only way of saving him.
Q26: How did Mrs. Pumphrey react when she heard from the doctor that Tricki needed to be hospitalised for a fortnight?
Ans: When Dr. Herriot informed Mrs. Pumphrey that Tricki was to be kept under his Supervision, Mrs. Pumphrey almost fainted on hearing this. It was extremely difficult for her to be away from her pampered pet for a fortnight. She agreed only after Dr. Herriot told her that that was the only way of saving Tricki.
Q27: How was Tricki treated at the surgery?
Ans: Dr. Herriot gave no medical treatment to Tricki. He realised that the only problem of Tricki was his greed for food. For two days, he kept an eye on him. He gave him no food but plenty of water. He made up a bed for him in a warm loose box next to where other dogs slept.
Q28: Describe the gradual progress of Tricki at the surgery.
Ans: Tricki’s main problem was his greed for food. For two days, Dr. Herriot gave no food but plenty of water to the dog. On the first day, Tricki lay motionless on the carpet. On the second day, he started showing some interest in his surroundings. On the third day, he began to whimper when he heard the dogs in the yard. From then on, his progress was rapid. He started for his share of food and hunting rats at night.
Q29: How did the word ‘convalescing’ affect Tricki’s mistress, Mrs. Pumphrey?
Ans: The moment Mrs. Pumphrey heard that Tricki was out of danger and convalescing, she was excited. She started bringing fresh eggs, two dozen at a time, to build up his strength. Wine and brandy were given to enrich Tricki’s blood. For a few nights, brandy was rolled around, inhaled and reverently drunk.
Q30: Why was Dr. Herriot tempted to keep Tricki on as a permanent guest?
Ans: Tricki was a pampered dog and his mistress, Mrs. Pumphrey was an overindulgent lady. For a happy period, Dr. Herriot and his partner had two eggs each for breakfast. Then there was a liberal inflow of wine and brandy. They were the days of deep content for him. He was naturally tempted to keep Tricki on as a permanent guest.
