Help our vital new campaign - The Mayhew Animal Home

Street animals and
pressure cookers –
tales of a vet abroad
How does a vet cope with no running water, electricity or equipment?
The Mayhew’s Chief vet, Ursula Goetz MRCVS, talks about the challenges
of helping animals abroad
“My focus has always been on working with animals
and running vet clinics abroad,” says The Mayhew’s
Chief Veterinary Surgeon Ursula, who, through
Mayhew International helps street animals in
Nepal and Peru. “I love getting to see new cultures
as well as doing the charity work. After University I
went out to Africa for six months to do some voluntary
work as a rescue vet helping cheetahs, leopards and
lions – which I loved.”
20
The Mayhew
Before Ursula joined The Mayhew she
balanced time working as a vet in the UK with
carrying out voluntary work for animal charities
in places like Thailand and Indonesia – she even
set up a new clinic on an island in Malaysia,
which is still going strong six years later. The
clinic caters for the large amount of ex-pats who
have pets and live on the island and also helps to
vaccinate and neuter the local street cats and
wild dogs that live in the surrounding jungle.
“While I was in Malaysia a tourist came and asked
if she could take a look at the work I was doing,” says
Ursula. “The woman started telling me about this
amazing place in London called The Mayhew, and
how I must go and visit it – so I did – and from then
on I kept an eye on the website until a position came up
for Chief Veterinary Surgeon. One of the main reasons
I got the job is because I was already doing what The
Mayhew stood for at the practice in Malaysia.”
“The woman started telling me about
this amazing place in London called
The Mayhew, and how I must go and
visit it – so I did”
Ursula now alternates her time between The
Mayhew in London and travelling abroad with
Mayhew International. One of the key focuses
of the international work is vaccinating and
neutering street animals; this is the best way to
ensure the animals live longer and happier lives
without having to reproduce, defend their
territory and compete. “You have to neuter at least
75% of the population to make a difference and it’s
an ongoing task,” Ursula explains.
However, the International work involves far
more than just neutering: “I go to countries to teach
vet students at the University how to handle and
operate on animals. I then try to encourage them to
help local animal charities – hopefully this establishes
a link which continues once we’ve left – it’s important
to re-visit countries to make sure this link continues.”
“You have to neuter at least 75% of the
population to make a difference and it’s
an ongoing task”
Ursula comes up against all kinds of challenges
when working abroad; often there will be no
running water, electricity or access to surgical
instruments and drugs, which makes operating
extremely difficult. “A lot of animals die from
infection, so one of my priorities is to make the work
as clean as possible with the resources they have –
that might just mean scrubbing up in a bucket of
water. We have to bring a lot of equipment over with
us; when I go to Peru in May I’m bringing a £119
pressure cooker to sterilise the equipment!”
“Another problem is that you’re working with limited
time – the types of anaesthetics they use abroad are
different from the anaesthetics we have here – they only
last for about half an hour before the animals wake up,
so you’re working under pressure.”
In the UK, vets don’t usually vaccinate animals
on the same day as they have surgery because
it’s a lot for the immune system to cope with.
However, when working with street animals in
Peru and Nepal, everything has to be done in
one go, as they might not get another chance:
“We vaccinate against rabies, de-worm, de-flea and
neuter all in one day,” says Ursula.
Ursula often works 12–14 hours a day when
abroad with Mayhew International, helping the
animals, but also teaching. “People just knock on
the door and say, ‘Please can you teach us’, and that’s
amazing – so when I come back from abroad I’m
absolutely exhausted, but high as a kite! The most
important thing is to teach people, and if we can
increase the number of vets abroad who choose to
work with charities, then that will make a massive
difference to the lives of animals in the long run.”
Written by Mayhew volunteer, Amy Blyth
www.mayhewanimalhome.org
21