Livestock Report – Uganda, August 2007

WVS and Education

Worldwide Veterinary Service (WVS) is committed to improving the treatment and welfare of all animal species throughout the world. The charity’s mission is to help prevent and relieve suffering and to improve the moral perception of animals whilst benefiting the people who live alongside, or are dependent upon, these animals. Education is essential in order to achieve these objectives and is the key to ensuring both the sustainability of the charity’s work and the future of endangered species. Human health is inextricably linked with animal health and disease control, particularly in developing regions, and a range of human diseases can be controlled by improving animal health. In addition, many people rely on working animals for their livelihood. A greater knowledge of animal care leads to a healthier, more productive life for the animal, providing owners with the means to support themselves. Worldwide Training Service (WTS), the educational arm of WVS, was launched in August with a pilot trip to Buhoma situated in Kanungu District, South Western Uganda.

The Team

The first WTS team consisted of two teachers (Jacqui Foulger and Anne Creen), a veterinary nurse (Joy Howell), the WVS International Projects Co-ordinator (Hannah Westen) and Ugandans Ronald Asiimwe, a recent Biomedical Science graduate and native of Kanungu District, and Jobogo Matondo Pascal, who acted as translator and chauffeur amongst other things. The team’s objectives included assessing animal health and welfare in the area and instigating an education programme covering animal welfare and conservation issues.

Domestic Animals in Buhoma

Most families in Buhoma keep livestock or other domestic animals, although usually on a small scale. The reasons for keeping animals, particularly livestock, were not clear and would need to be established in order to create an effectual education programme within the community. There is potential to improve both human health and the local economy by making effective use of the livestock already present. For example, the eggs served on a daily basis in tourist camps are transported from Kabale six hours drive away furthermore, staff at the Bwindi Community Health Centre (www.bchc.ug) report that protein deficiency is common in the region, particularly among children, yet chickens are common in the area. The problem arises because the chickens roam freely around the whole village so owners have no idea where they lay their eggs.

Assessment of Animals

A general visual assessment of livestock in the area was carried out, based on observations made whilst travelling around the area, and animals appeared in good overall health and body condition. Despite reports of a skin condition affecting livestock in the area no affected animals were seen, conversely the majority of animals had exceptionally glossy healthy-looking coats. Assessment of individual animals may highlight specific health issues and will be required prior to implementing an assistance programme. Too few small animals were seen to draw any conclusions as to their general health and welfare, stray and feral dogs are reportedly a considerable problem in Entebbe but tend to stay away from people during the day and become active at night.

Tethering

Tethering is a common practice in Uganda and education is necessary in order to ensure animal welfare standards are maintained. Areas that particularly need to be addressed include the length and location of tethers, availability of food, shelter and water and regular checking of animals. Many animals were tethered on ropes that were too short to enable them to move freely. Often animals were at risk of injury due to the location in which they had been tethered, most frequently beside a road or steep drop. Adequate food, water or shelter was not always available to the animal, either because they were not provided or because the animal had become entangled in its tether and was therefore unable to access them.

Pigs

There was a particular need for education regarding the specific requirements of pigs in order to allow behavioural thermoregulation. Free-roaming pigs used the ditches beside roads, if present, as a place to cool themselves but tethered animals often did not have access to such areas. Observation and discussion with various parties revealed the need for improvements in the method of transportation generally used, which is in the back of a pick-up under overcrowded conditions through the heat of the day.

Housing

Goats and pigs were often housed in wooden huts raised off the ground by stilts and accessible via a ramp. The hut floors were slatted with the intention that any dung or urine would drop through the slats so that the animals were not standing in their own waste. The system worked fairly well in this respect but slats were occasionally spaced too far apart creating the potential for leg injures. The huts had large gaps at the top of each wall creating ample ventilation but again food and water were not always available and space was often limited. Many animals were housed only at night but allowed free access to the hut during the day.

Education

As part of the education programme a workshop was run for the Buhoma Community Primary School’s Wildlife Group, during which students were provided with educational resources and introduced to the concept of animal welfare. The group, accompanied by several of their teachers, were also given the opportunity to visit the field Clinic for Gorillas and Other Animal Species, run by local charity Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH – www.ctph.org) where chief veterinary technician Steven Rubanga explained the purpose of the clinic and lectured on parasitism. Despite the CTPH clinic being open to the public and located just a short walk from the school none of the pupils or teachers had ever visited previously. Furthermore, they were unaware that the neighbouring Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park was home to around half of the Earth’s remaining mountain gorillas. To put this into perspective it was calculated that there are less than two gorillas remaining for every child at the school. Emphasis was placed on the essential role local people will play in the conservation of the mountain gorilla, which was of particular relevance given the recent gorilla massacre in DRC. Teachers at the school were keen to learn more about the work carried out at the clinic and it is hoped that basic microscopy lessons, led by Ronald, will enhance their understanding of parasitology and its relevance, both to the survival of the mountain gorilla and to public health. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, founder of CTPH, also gave a presentation to the school on the protection of wildlife and the risks and prevention of disease transmission between species.

Agriculture in the Syllabus

The Ugandan Government has produced a syllabus that includes modules on agriculture and animal care but these sections of the syllabus are currently neglected at the school. It is hoped that further WVS involvement will provide the skills and knowledge necessary to enable the school to include these modules, thus ensuring the principles of animal welfare and the benefits of good husbandry technique are introduced from an early age.

Poultry Farm

The school currently relies heavily upon donors for funding towards buildings and maintenance so plans are underway to help implement a programme of self-sustainability. In particular there is interest in setting up a poultry farm, an idea already being put into practice at a nearby school. It is hoped that such a project would have three-fold benefits, providing income for the school from the sale of eggs, providing a protein source and thus helping to prevent protein deficiencies and providing an essential teaching resource to help fulfil the Agriculture module requirements of the syllabus.
There is much to be considered before such a plan can be implemented and WVS are keen to ensure that welfare is a major consideration from the start, even more so given the extremely poor conditions in which chickens are kept in the markets of Uganda. Considering the proposed primary school location of the site attention to health and hygiene is important not only for the welfare of the chickens but also for the health of the children, particularly following recent concerns regarding potentially zoonotic avian influenza in other African nations.

Future Work