The small town of Colan, in northern Peru, is nestled in a semicircular peninsula; sandwiched between an arid lunar desert landscape and the Pacific Ocean. This small oasis of palm trees, holiday homes and seasonal bars is also home to Rosemary and the Asociacion Humanitaria San Francisco de Asis. Together with a dedicated team of staff, Rosemary provides shelter, medical care and neutering for cats and dogs from the surrounding area, as well as care for the region’s working horses, donkeys and mules.
In June 2009 Aneesa – a vet nurse, Rebecca – a vet student and myself – a small animal vet – made the long journey across the Atlantic to join Rosemary and the team in Colan. In the run up to the visit, Rosemary and the WVS kept in regular contact offering valuable advice on travel details and preparations. We were able to take with us a very welcome array of donated medicines and much needed equipment for the charity.
After several flights, buses and taxis, Aneesa and I arrived, jetlagged but excited. We were immediately made to feel welcome and very much at home. Our living quarters were simple but clean and provided us with everything we would need for our stay. We were joined the following day by Rebecca and our team was complete. Amy, a vet from the USA on a 7 month volunteer post at the charity, helped us find our way around with a tour of the clinic and shelter. She had already equipped the clinic adequately with everything needed to do the job. Although the clinic itself lacked running water, a tap was only a short distance away and buckets were plenty. I was impressed by how efficient and well thought out the set up of the clinic was. Here were people that knew how to make the most of their limited resources.
When volunteers came to town, Rosemary wasted no time in ensuring that their expertise was used to its full potential, so it was straight down to work neutering. Our first week was mainly based at the clinic in Colan. Animals for neutering were gathered by team members each day. Marina and Noe, both longstanding staff members of the association were responsible for bringing dogs and cats to the clinic for neutering and for assisting with nursing duties. They largely gathered animals by canvassing door-to-door in local villages. There was never a shortage of willing owners handing over pets of all ages, breeds and sizes for neutering. Male pets were a little harder to come by as it was often a joyless task persuading Senor Owner that his dog would be no less a dog once castrated. However, with sound advice about the risks of venereal tumour spread and other pitfalls, Marina and Noe usually made folks see sense.
On a typical day, after a breakfast of fresh bread, juice, quinoa and eggs, the van would arrive in the morning laden with cages and once unloaded, the plan for the day would be set out. Ingrid, a wonderful Peruvian vet, also came to help out on spay weeks. With three vets operating and three assistants a good routine was established. We kept to tried and tested injectable sedation and anaesthesia protocols devised and perfected by previous volunteer groups. Xylazine and atropine i/m were used to premed dogs. Once taken effect, an i/v catheter was placed and i/v diazepam and ketamine were used to induce and maintain with top ups as needed. An intravenous saline drip was maintained through surgery. Cats were induced with diazepam and ketamine i/m with ketamine top ups if (rarely) needed. Pre-operative non-steroidal and antibiotic injections were given to each patient. A rabies vaccine was also given to all over three months of age. Once operated, all received a spot-on or oral treatment for worms and skin parasites and all had their ears tipped to show they had been neutered. Although theoretically, the pets had owners, most were permitted to roam free in the neighbourhoods and mingled freely with other strays. Once recovered, pets were returned to their owners with words of advice on post-operative care. Occassionally our spay routine was interrupted by the arrival of a worried owner with their sick pet. We would tend to cases ranging all the way from coughs and diarrhoeas through to trauma emergencies. With a fortunate surplus of good Spanish speakers amongst the staff and volunteers, communication was never a problem.
The clinic itself was basic but well stocked with the vital items needed for the day. Instrument kits would be packed, sterilised in the pressure cooker (crude but effective), and stacked ready for the following morning. A good top-to-bottom scrub of the clinic eacy day was vital in order to maintain the cleanest environment possible. Being housed right in a dustbowel by the sea meant that sand found its way into every corner; as did fur and the myriad crawling parasites that infested each poor patient. Everybody chipped in with the laundry, cleaning and preparation tasks at the end of the day and was richly rewarded with a delicious dinner and a cracking sunset by the beach. Rosemary’s superb cocktails were another real treat, and if anyone fancied a coconut, they were right there in front of the house.
We were fortunate also to take part in a number of neutering days away from the clinic. Our ‘take-away spay days’ took us to several local towns, where we were kindly allowed to set up clinic in someone’s home for the day, usually with the front room and dining table as makeshift theatre. On a visit to the villages of Pueblo Nuevo and Miraflores, our arrival was announced on the village loudspeakers and locals invited to bring along their pets to be neutered and spayed that very day. Our presence usually created a buzz of interest, especially amongst the children who would come and stare with utter amazement at our living room surgery antics. Noe would take advantage of the gathering young crowds and usher them together for an impromptu lesson on the importance of caring for their pets. Rosemary was always on hand to help with de-parasiting of any pet through the door. Dogs suffering from venereal tumours were a common sight and these would be earmarked for vincristine treatments on another visit.
At the end of our first busy week, Rebecca, Aneesa, Amy and I boarded a bus on a weekend break to Mancora, a surf beach a few hours up the coast. After a couple of days of R and R and los of fun surfing the waves, we returned ready for another week of hard graft.
Our second week saw more busy spay days, both home and away. I’ll be honest and say the work at times was not easy. Operating on animals which were often far from their peak condition proved a challenge at times. Bitch spays would often bleedmore than expected, made worse by widespread Ehrlichosis, and managing stable injectable anaesthesia was a challenge to us all. However, we rode the steep learning curve and met the challenge each time.
We also dedicated much of our time to managing the motley crew of resident dogs and cats at the shelter. Full of characters with a story to tell, we enjoyed spending time with the merry band of rogues. All resident animals were well cared for and those that arrived malnourished and mistreated grew from strength to strength with the dedicated attention of the team. Many were successfully rehomed during our stay.
In total, we spayed and neutered 103 animals over the two week period. Our hard work was rewarded in so many ways – the gratitude of Rosemary, our colleagues and pet owners alike, the wonderful time spent in the company of so many amazing people and animals, and of course, the beautiful place where it all happened. I’ll never forget the incredible sunsets that rounded off each working day. I have brough home with me a treasure trove of memories, new skills and a firm desire to continue volunteer work in the future. We left Colan tired, happy and grateful for the opportunity to have been part of this dedicated, hard working team. My deepest thanks to WVS for organising this trip and to all at the AHSFA for an unforgettable stay with you all.
