To address the challenge of homeless cats and dogs, Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) and International Veterinary Outreach (IVO) hosted a workshop for Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) students to educate them on animal rights and welfare.
The training took place from 24 to 28 October 2022 at the Sokoine University of Agriculture in Morogoro and the Tanzania Animal Welfare Society (TAWESO) center located in Kibaigwa, Dodoma region.
A group photo of Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine (BVM) students, training facilitators from IVO, and veterinary experts from SUA
Dr. Athanas Ngou, Assistant Lecturer at the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, SUA, spoke about the training. He said that the aim was to increase students' knowledge and understanding of how to care for and protect animals from various risks and contagious diseases like rabies.
"This training helped our students learn how to care for dogs and cats on the streets, which is in line with the university's direction that all students should learn practically", said Dr. Ngou.
BVM SUA students following instructions on how to take care of and treat a dog
Dr. Eric Eisenman, the founder of International Veterinary Outreach (IVO), said that their goal is to help animals feel less pain and make the community healthier.
"We looked at how we could work together to help Tanzanians who care for animals and build their capacity and skills. We found that the Sokoine University of Agriculture teaches students about animal health, so we decided to work with them on this training." – Said, Dr. Eisenman
Some of the topics they taught the students were how to take care of and treat a dog, how to stop rabies in dogs from spreading to humans, and basic birth control methods for dogs.
Haji Mkata was one of the students who benefited from the training. He said that the training helped him learn more about the rights of animals and how to deal with them on the streets. In this way, people will be safe.
"I would like to see training like this offered more often so that more people could benefit from it. This is the right kind of training that helps free animals and society," He said
Two of the five days of training were spent learning theories at the Sokoine University of Agriculture, while the other three were spent learning practically at the Tanzania Animal Welfare Society (TAWESO) center.
Obadia Imani (on the left), a BVM student at SUA, learns how to sterilize dogs from Dr. Stephania Cataldo, a veterinarian from IVO
Students from BVM SUA are practicing how to close surgical wounds
Jessica Bogosian, a nurse from IVO, and Dr. Eric Eisenman explain how to give an animal medicine or water through a vein
BVM Students learn how to wash their hands before they touch an animal
Story and photo by: Amina Hezron - SUAMEDIA
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