in a much calmer voice:
‘I suppose he’s died?’
‘There’s just a flicker of pulse,’ replied Bormenthal.
‘Give him another shot of adrenalin.’
The professor replaced the membranes over the brain, restored the sawn-off lid to its exact place, pushed the scalp back into position and roared: ‘Suture!’
Five minutes later Bormenthal had sewn up the dog’s head, breaking three needles.
There on the bloodstained pillow lay Sharik’s slack, lifeless muzzle, a circular wound on his tonsured head. Like a satisfied vampire Philip Philipovich finally stepped back, ripped off one glove, shook out of it a cloud of sweat-drenched powder, tore off the other one, threw it on the ground and rang the bell in the wall. Zina appeared in the doorway, looking away to avoid seeing the blood-spattered dog. With chalky hands the great man pulled off his skull-cap and cried:
‘Give me a cigarette, Zina. And then some clean clothes and a bath.’
Laying his chin on the edge of the table he parted the dog’s right eyelids, peered into the obviously moribund eye and said:
‘Well, I’ll be… He’s not dead yet. Still, he’ll die. I feel sorry for the dog, Bormenthal. He was naughty but I couldn’t help liking him.’
Four
Subject of experiment: Male dog aged approx. 2 years.
Breed: Mongrel.
Name: ‘Sharik’.
Coat sparse, in tufts, brownish with traces of singeing. Tail the colour of baked milk. On right flank traces of healed second-degree burn. Previous nutritional state — poor. After a week’s stay with Prof. Preobrazhensky — extremely well nourished. Weight: 8 kilograms (!). Heart:… Lungs:… Stomach:… Temperature:…
December 23rd At 8.05pm Prof. Preobrazhensky commenced the first operation of its kind to be performed in Europe: removal under anaesthesia of the dog’s testicles and their replacement by implanted human testes, with appendages and seminal ducts, taken from a 28-year-old human male, dead 4 hours and 4 minutes before the operation and kept by Prof. Preobrazhensky in sterilised physiological fluid.
Immediately thereafter, following a trepanning operation on the cranial roof, the pituitary gland was removed and replaced by a human pituitary originating from the above-mentioned human male.
Drugs used: Chloroform — 8 cc.
Camphor — 1 syringe.
Adrenalin — 2 syringes (by cardiac injection ).
Purpose of operation: Experimental observation by Prof. Preobrazhensky of the effect of combined transplantation of the pituitary and testes in order to study both the functional viability in a host-organism and its role in cellular etc. rejuvenation.
Operation performed by; Prof. P. P. Preobrazhensky. Assisted by: Dr I. A. Bormenthal. During the night following the operation, frequent and grave weakening of the pulse. Dog apparently in terminal state.
Preobrazhensky prescribes camphor injections in massive dosage.
December 24th am Improvement. Respiration rate doubled. Temperature: 42°C. Camphor and caffeine injected subcutaneously.
December 25th Deterioration. Pulse barely detectable, cooling of the extremities, no pupillary reaction. Preobrazhensky orders cardiac injection of adrenalin and camphor, intravenous injections of physiological solution.
December 26th Slight improvement. Pulse: 180. Respiration: 92. Temperature: 41°C. Camphor. Alimentation per rectum.
December 27th Pulse: 152. Respiration: 50. Temperature: 39.8°C. Pupillary reaction. Camphor — subcutaneous.
December 28th Significant improvement. At noon sudden heavy perspiration. Temperature: 37°C. Condition of surgical wounds unchanged. Re-bandaged. Signs of appetite. Liquid alimentation.
December 29th Sudden moulting of hair on forehead and torso. The following were summoned for consultation:
1. Professor of Dermatology — Vasily Vasilievich Bundaryov.
2. Director, Moscow Veterinary Institute. Both stated the case to be without precedent in medical literature. No diagnosis established. Temperature: (entered in pencil). 8.15pm. First bark. Distinct alteration of timbre and lowering of pitch noticeable. Instead of diphthong ‘aow-aow’, bark now enunciated on vowels ‘ah-oh’, in intonation reminiscent of a groan.
December 30th Moulting process has progressed to almost total baldness.
Weighing produced the unexpected result of 80 kg., due to growth (lengthening of the bones). Dog still lying prone.
December 31st Subject exhibits colossal appetite. (Ink-blot. After the blot the following entry in scrawled hand-writing): At 12.12pm the dog distinctly pronounced the sounds ‘Nes-set-a’.
(Gap in entries. The following entries show errors due to excitement):
Cheerfully barks ‘Nes-set-a’, repeating loudly and with apparent pleasure.
3.0pm (in heavy lettering): Dog laughed, causing maid Zina to faint. Later, pronounced the following 8 times in succession: ‘Nesseta-ciled’. (Sloping characters, written in pencil):
The professor has deciphered the word ‘Nesseta-ciled’ by reversal: it is ‘delicatessen’… Quite extraord…
January 2nd Dog photographed by magnesium flash while smiling. Got up and remained confidently on hind legs for a half-hour. Now nearly my height. (Loose page inserted into notebook): Russian science almost suffered a most serious blow. History of Prof. P. P. Preobrazhensky’s illness:
1.13pm Prof. Preobrazhensky falls into deep faint. On falling, strikes head on edge of table.
Temp.:…
The dog in the presence of Zina and myself, had called Prof. Preobrazhensky a ‘bloody bastard’.
January 6th (entries made partly in pencil, partly in violet ink):
Today, after the dog’s tail had fallen out, he quite clearly pronounced the word ‘liquor’.
Recording apparatus switched on. God knows what’s happening.
(Total confusion.)
Professor has ceased to see patients. From 5pm this evening sounds of vulgar abuse issuing from the consulting-room, where the creature is still confined. Heard to ask for ‘another one, and make it a double.’
January 7th Creature can now pronounce several words: ‘taxi’, ‘full up’, ‘evening paper’, ‘take one home for the kiddies’ and every known Russian swear-word. His appearance is strange. He now only has hair on his head, chin and chest. Elsewhere he is bald, with flabby skin. His genital region now has the appearance of an immature human male. His skull has enlarged considerably. Brow low and receding.
My God, I must be going mad….
Philip Philipovich still feels unwell. Most of the observations (pictures and recordings) are being carried out by myself.
Rumours are spreading round the town… Consequences may be incalculable. All day today the whole street was full of loafing rubbernecks and old women… Dogs still crowding round beneath the windows. Amazing report in the morning papers: The rumours of a Martian in Obukhov Street are totally unfounded. They have been spread by black-market traders and their repetition will be severely punished. What Martian, for God’s sake? This is turning into a nightmare.
Reports in today’s evening paper even worse — they say that a child has been born who could play the violin
