Africa and Honduras, all in one Summer

By: Tamaya Trejo

Colorado State University

As a student you tend to forget that there is a world outside of veterinary school. In the summer of 2010, I took two trips to Zambia, Africa and Agalta Valley, Honduras through Christian Veterinary Missions. We spayed/neutered dogs and cats, castrated horses, consulted farmers on the most prevalent diseases in their herds, gave small animal rabies vaccinations, and dewormed both small and large animals. These trips were some of the best professionally relevant experiences of my life.

My travels overseas helped me understand the leadership role of a veterinarian in a foreign country. The veterinarian leading the team needs to be a great communicator. The Africa trip consisted of 6 people while the Honduras trip consisted of 14 people. Since we came from all over the states, the first time we saw each other was at the airport. All of our communication was conducted over emails and telephone. We had local contacts in both Africa and Honduras that organized our transportation, meals, and translation needs. Our team leader was in communication with the local contact before the trip which helped us prepare for the animal issues we took care of, and also helped us get an idea of what supplies to bring in our suitcases.

As veterinary professionals, we were in a position of service working at cost to the benefit of others. The seven veterinarians I worked with were great mentors for me and served the communities well through education and demonstration. We helped the farmers in Africa by advising them on low cost solutions for diseases such as pink eye, lumpy skin disease and liver fluke infestations. We also helped them understand why rabies kills people and told them what to do should they receive a bite from a dog. We hoped our education would be spread through the villages by the farmers, who were leaders in the community.

Animal welfare was an issue at the forefront of everyone’s mind in Africa and Honduras. As veterinary teams educated in modern medicine, it was important not to try to change the culture, but work with the culture in order to meet a common goal. We were warned that we could see both small and large animals hit with rocks and sticks. We were also warned that people kicked dogs commonly, sometimes for fun.

I learned that animal welfare in a non-western, developing country is dependent on what you can advise to manipulate the environment to decrease disease, what supplies you bring that can make the biggest impact on the most animals, and what example you set for the local population. Our supplies were selected with the requirements of being easy to transport, easy to administer to potentially fractious animals, and easy for the owner to medicate if necessary. The owners brought their animals to us and restrained the animals themselves. If the animal gave the owner any trouble it was a great educational opportunity to show the owner how to safely restrain an animal while minimizing stress on everyone. We also set an example in the way we treated the animals before, during, and after surgery. We advised owners on how to properly handle their animals after surgery and explained why the animal could not walk on its own back home. Our intention was not to assume that the animals would be treated poorly once they got home, but to be an advocate for the animal in hopes that the owner would listen to us.

I also learned that organization was essential for making the greatest impact on the villages and animals. It helped to have the local contacts notifying the villages that we were coming beforehand and to have them take care of our transportation and lodging. In the area of Africa we were in they spoke Lozi, while the people in Honduras spoke only Spanish. It was key to have a translator there to make animal procedures work more efficiently. The trips were organized around being mobile veterinary clinics. We got ready for the next day the night before by condensing our supplies so that it would cover a day of work. In Honduras when there were surgeries on the next day’s schedule, we organized an anesthesia team, a surgery team, and a recovery/deworming/vaccination team. We rotated between these teams in a specific manner so that everyone did a little of everything. The veterinarians were always on the surgery team and taught us how to do spays, neuters, and castrations. The organization helped us treat the maximum amount of animals per day in the most humane way possible.

Working for free in Africa and Honduras was a liberating experience. We had a great relationship with the locals because they knew we were volunteering our time solely to help them. I honestly think veterinary mission trips are the best way to travel. You go to places in need that tourists rarely see and get a better appreciation for the culture working alongside the people. I did get sick in Honduras from the food but I had my medications, did not need to stop working, and had the best time of my life.