The Cowboy Goes to the Doctor

The doctor's office is a common scene for jokes, and I really like this one about a cowboy; I made it into a 100-word story.

A cowboy goes to see a doctor about his bad back. "It aches mighty fierce, Doc!" he says. "Can you do something to help me?"

"Well, let's see what might be doing on," the doctor replies. "Tell me: have you had any kind of accident lately?"

"Nope," says the cowboy. 

"That seems odd," replies the doctor. "I thought cowboying was dangerous work."

"Dangerous? Yes, sir! Just last week I got kicked by a mule, thrown by a bronco, and bit by a snake." 

"And you don't call those accidents?" 

"No, sir!" exclaimed the cowboy. "Them varmints did it on purpose."

The cowboy may seem like a fool to the doctor, but it's just because he has own way of understanding the animals. This joke made me curious about the etymology of the word "varmint," and it turns out it comes from the word "vermin." It's an old word, dating back to the 16th century! (Wiktionary: varmint)

I've been trying to adapt jokes to feature Nasruddin, but the cowboy element of this joke feels essential. I could make it about Nasruddin's donkey kicking him, for example, but it just wouldn't have the same effect as this cowboy joke.

from Rawpixel