Large-Scale Heatstroke Incident

"Mejiro Sakuya... that's how it's spelled, right?"

A staff member from the Hokkaido Racing Association looked up and asked.

"That's right. Mejiro Sakuya."

Kitano gave an affirmative answer.

"Then we have no further issues on our end."

After checking the naming application form once more, the staff member nodded at Kitano.

"Thank you for your efforts, horse owner Kitano."

Over the past few days, Kitano had made several trips to and from the racing association because of the ownership transfer and registration of his two racehorses.

At this point, the two-year-old bay filly formerly known as Resistance Queen was only one final step away from becoming an officially registered racehorse.

"Oh, right—"

"If it's convenient, could you tell us the meaning behind the horse's name, Mr. Kitano?"

The staff member stopped Kitano again.

"After all, it's a requirement from the JRA."

He shrugged helplessly.

"The meaning, huh—"

The first time he had come to register Mejiro Tenma, Kitano had been troubled by that very question for quite a while due to his lack of preparation.

After all, Pegasus had been a name he came up with on the spot.

But just as a Saint would not be defeated by the same move twice, Kitano had come prepared before this registration.

"Mejiro is a personal naming prefix, while Sakuya comes from Konohanasakuya-hime in mythology. The meaning is that I hope this horse can live a long and healthy life."

"I see... It's a name with a wonderful meaning."

The staff member nodded repeatedly as he added an explanation of the name's meaning in the blank space beneath the name field.

"Though I thought she was named after that time-stopping maid from Touhou Project."

Scratching his thinning hair, he smiled apologetically.

Sir, you're almost sixty, aren't you?

Still, most people who knew that character probably were not young anymore either.

"Then why not add that meaning too? A time-stopping racehorse sounds pretty cool."

Sometimes, Kitano's chuunibyou tendencies flared up.

"That's right, that's right! That makes it perfectly elegant and cool."

The middle-aged staff member happily agreed as well.

The two quickly reached a consensus on the matter.

After completing the registration, Kitano left the racing association.

In the parking lot, the phone in his pocket began ringing urgently.

"This is Kitano."

Walking at an unhurried pace, Kitano answered the call.

"Dr. Kitano, please come to our farm as soon as possible. The address is Sasaki Dairy Farm, XX, 3-chome, Niikappu Town. It's a very urgent situation!"

A man's somewhat hoarse voice came from the other end. Even through the phone, Kitano could clearly sense the anxiety in his tone.

"I'll be right there."

His steps turned into a jog, and before the heat had fully left his body, he started the vehicle.

On the way there, Kitano kept the call connected.

"There's been a large-scale heatstroke incident among the dairy cows at our farm. Several have already collapsed one after another!"

"Are they in the cowshed or out on pasture?"

With one hand on the steering wheel, he asked calmly.

"On pasture. There are twenty-six of them. Three... no! Four have completely passed out!"

The man's voice grew more and more tense.

"First move the most severely affected ones into the shade, or anywhere with good ventilation. If you can't do that, put up a temporary shelter where they are."

"Then lay a layer of hay beneath them. It doesn't need to be too thick."

This was to cut off the continued effects of the heat source.

"Understood, Mr. Kitano!"

The man shouted loudly enough to hurt Kitano's eardrums, then gave several instructions to someone away from the phone.

"Do we need to cool them down?"

He raised his voice to nearly the same level again.

"Use room-temperature water!"

Kitano unconsciously raised his voice as well, but quickly steadied himself.

As a doctor, he had to remain calm at all times while working.

"Focus on splashing water around the base of their ears, their necks, bellies, and the insides of their legs."

Ice water could cause blood vessels to constrict, which would instead hinder heat dissipation.

"Before I arrive, prepare oral rehydration solution at a ratio of nine grams of salt and thirty grams of baking soda per liter of water."

He glanced into the back seat. His glucose supply was running a little low.

Still, it should barely be enough this time.

"How much do we need?"

The man on the other end pressed.

"The more, the better!"

Upon arriving at the farm, Kitano jumped out before the car had fully stopped.

"Bring my medical case and the box of glucose in the back of the car."

He instructed the farm workers who had gathered around him.

Then he briskly headed toward the pasture where the incident had occurred.

Even over that short distance, Kitano was already drenched in sweat.

Since April, the weather had been unusually hot compared to previous years.

As large livestock, dairy cows generated tremendous amounts of heat and had limited ability to disperse it through their skin and breathing. In weather like this, heatstroke was not actually unusual.

"Mr. Kitano, you're finally here!"

Mr. Sasaki, the farm representative and the man who had been speaking with Kitano on the phone, rushed forward like he had seen a savior and grabbed his hand.

"Where's the rehydration solution I told you to prepare?"

Kitano looked around. Several workers were spraying the dairy cows with hoses to cool them down.

But he could not see the rehydration solution he had asked them to prepare.

"Over there!"

Sasaki hurriedly gestured toward the edge of the pasture.

Seeing this, two workers quickly pushed a farm cart over together, swaying as they went.

"There should be over two hundred kilograms here. If it isn't enough, I'll have them prepare more."

After saying that, Sasaki waved toward the employees in front of him.

"This is enough."

Kitano quickly stopped them.

Even if the solution needed to be administered several times, four or five kilograms per cow was already more than sufficient.

"Find me a rubber tube and a larger funnel."

After giving the instruction, Kitano turned and headed toward the most severely affected cows, his heavy medical case in hand.

"This one is already in critical condition."

Kitano walked over to one of the dairy cows and heard its distinctly rapid breathing.

When he touched the base of the cow's ear with the back of his hand, he could feel the obvious heat.

Moreover, the dairy cow had already gone into cardiac arrest.

"I can only use adrenaline first."

He used a grinding disc to cut open the vial and took out a disposable syringe.

Under the sunlight, the glinting needle plunged straight into a vein.

Sweat ran into his eyes, but Kitano did not dare blink.

At last, the injection was complete.

Then came the second cow, and the third.

After that, he spent quite a long time administering oral rehydration solution to the other dairy cows with milder symptoms.

Kitano was completely soaked in sweat.