Just like what happened to me the previous year while we were traveling through India, after a few months of wandering around Asia I felt that my most animal side, the one that always needs to have some animal close to me to be happy, was starting to talk to me again (well, I think it was complaining already…).
After almost a year since I finished volunteering at the wildlife rescue center in Thailand and without having gone on a safari for a long time, I felt that the time had come to do something that would bring me closer to animals.
My main idea before embarking on the last trip had been to collaborate at some orangutan rescue center in Borneo, but after a long time looking for information and asking at various places, I came to the conclusion that I was not going to find what I was looking for without having to part with an amount of money that at that time I was not willing to pay.
In addition, the tasks assigned to the volunteers in these places were simply cleaning or maintenance, and I wanted to go a little further and work as a veterinarian.
Then I remembered a place that two different people had already told me about, Lanta Animal Welfare, a clinic and shelter on the island of Koh Lanta in Thailand. Although I hadn’t initially thought of working with dogs and cats (being in Asia, wildlife always iomes to mind), I sent in the application to try it out.
I had the opportunity to work as a veterinarian after many months of traveling after finishing my degree, and maybe that was better than preparing food for the orangutans. Besides, after two months on the motorbike in Vietnam, we were tired of moving around so much and we wanted to stop somewhere for a while. I was determined.
When they answered my application a week later, we immediately bought our tickets to Thailand.
Lanta Animal Welfare is a dog and cat shelter and its main objective is, as defined on its website, “to alleviate the suffering and pain of all animals on the island through care and sterilization.” To this end, it also has a veterinary clinic where, in addition to caring for stray animals, anyone in Ko Lanta or the surrounding area can bring their pet to be treated.
Shelter: Lanta Animal Welfare is home to homeless dogs and cats who are cared for with great dedication by workers and volunteers from all over the world, while they await for a permanent home.
Clínic: In addition to functioning as an “animal shelter,” Lanta Animal Welfare has a veterinary clinic that treats animals from Koh Lanta and nearby islands such as Phi Phi and Koh Lipe. Most cases are related to accidents or fights between animals, although many cases of common infectious diseases are also treated.
Thanks to the awareness-raising work carried out by the center, people come every day to have their pets vaccinated, de-wormed and sterilized.
ICU: Animals that require daily attention due to their illnesses or their severity are admitted to the clinic, where they are provided with continuous care either in the recovery room or in the isolation room, the latter intended for animals with infectious diseases.
Sterilization: Population control is essential if we want to reduce the number of homeless animals. For this reason, through campaigns in schools or with simple explanatory posters, we try to make people aware of the need to sterilize their pets. The price of the operations, as well as of any treatment, is minimal, thus ensuring that the lack of financial resources is not an impediment for the owners.
Vaccines: In addition to the center itself, the veterinary team occasionally goes out to vaccinate animals in a specific area. This is intended to reduce the number of cases of the most common infectious diseases among dogs and cats, or to prevent the appearance of some, such as rabies, a disease of which no case has been recorded on the island for 15 years.
Mobile Clinic: Neutering and vaccinations are performed daily at the clinic, but occasionally a mobile clinic travels to nearby areas to care for stray animals.
Education Campaign: To ensure that Lanta Animal Welfare’s animal welfare message reaches as far as possible, talks are held in schools. Children are the future, and education is the foundation of all change.
Although, as I have already told you, my main idea at the beginning was not to volunteer with dogs and cats this year, I have to admit that it has been the best thing I could do. A volunteering project that I initially applied to because I couldn’t find what I was looking for has ended up being something that has influenced me more than I thought and has made me consider new projects.
I have worked many hours a day (more than I thought I would) for six days a week. Every day, I came back “home” tired after hours and hours of operations and treatments. But they have trusted me, I have learned, I have enjoyed the animals and the satisfaction of helping them and I have been excited to see that people from all over the world, including veterinarians, assistants and animal lovers, have joined together to fight for the same cause: the welfare of animals.
Volunteering: Whether you are a veterinarian or assistant, or your profession has nothing to do with animals, you can help Lanta Animal Welfare, as volunteers are needed both at the clinic and the shelter. The tasks are varied and consist of providing care and treatment, preparing food, cleaning the shelter, walking the animals and, above all, spending time with them. Any help is welcome, although a minimum stay of one month is required.
As it is the only clinic on the island, all animals requiring veterinary care go there, which is why there is always a need for dedicated volunteer veterinarians or assistants (vet nurses) who are willing to work many hours a day.
If you are still a student or have finished your studies and want to gain experience at Lanta Animal Welfare, you have the opportunity to do so. You will be able to assist the veterinarian in the surgeries and carry out daily treatments. The cost of volunteering is 5,000 baht for one month, 2,500 for the second month and 1,000 for the third and subsequent months. You can read more about volunteering at the following link.
Making a donation: Lanta Animal Welfare does not receive money from the state, and, although it receives donations from tourists, locals and the Time for Lime restaurant, financial contributions are really necessary.
Please bear in mind that the shelter is home to many dogs and cats, that a large number of the animals that are cared for are strays and that the prices of treatments and sterilizations for animals with owners are really low so that money is not an impediment to bringing them to the clinic. In addition, you have to pay the head veterinarian, the material, food, medicines, electricity, water…
Donating supplies: Many people use the end of their trip to donate supplies from the first aid kit that they have not used. Although not all of them (NEVER MEDICATE AN ANIMAL UNLESS IT HAS BEEN PRESCRIBED BY A VETERINARIAN, SOME MEDICATIONS ARE TOXIC FOR OUR PETS), some drugs are common between humans and animals, and the supplies are very similar. Any help is welcome.
There are also those who, from their homes, send boxes of supplies to Koh Lanta, and I still remember the face of Vicky, the head veterinarian, opening one of the boxes with the same excitement as if she were a child opening a present. Here you can read which supplies are most needed.
Adopt: All shelter animals need a home. Although the animals’ living conditions are good thanks to volunteers and staff, space is limited and the more animals are adopted, the more animals can be taken off the streets. Lanta Animal Welfare takes care of getting the animal to your country of residence by volunteers who make the most of their flight and bring the animals with them.
Sponsor: You may want to help one of the animals but you are unable to adopt, so why not sponsor it? You can help with the upkeep and treatment of the dog or cat you have grown fond of.
Flight volunteers: If you are returning to Europe and are traveling from Bangkok or Phuket, you may want to consider taking an adopted animal with you to the airport in the country where its new home is located. This is much more economical for LAW and will not cost you any money out of your pocket.
If you are on holiday in Koh Lanta, you can see for yourself everything I have told you by visiting the shelter. Every day and every hour from 9am to 5pm there are guided tours of the center, where one of the volunteers will explain everything that is done there.
You will see the vets at work, you will meet the dogs and cats at the shelter, you will be able to pet them and take them for walks, and you could also ask all the questions you want. Tourists are a necessary source of income, since most of them are so happy with what they see that at the end of the visit they do their bit by making a donation.
After my time at Lanta Animal Welfare, I can only recommend this experience, especially to those who have recently finished their degree or those who take a few months off to travel during their studies.
From experience, I know that, with little veterinary experience, it is very difficult for the owner of a clinic to trust you to carry out certain techniques that require a bit of practice, and you end up greener than green.
The amount of work means that at LAW you have the opportunity to start practicing and feel like a vet. There are always treatments to be given, operations to be performed and wounds to be healed, and, little by little, at the pace that the head vet trusts in your good work, you do more and more things. And you are also collaborating for a good cause.
Don’t hesitate and write your application to Lanta Animal Welfare now.
Jackie Ellis says:
There is a cat at our resort, Phi Phi The Beach on Koh Phi Phi that looks quite rough and appears to have Notoedric mange. Is there a way to get medication for the cat?
Carme says:
Hello Jackie.
This isn’t the official website of Lanta Animal Welfare, just a post in my blog telling my own experience volunteering in the shelter. As far as I know, the team used to go every now and then to Phi Phi with a mobile clinic, but I´m not sure if they do it anymore. Try to write them directly [email protected] Good luck with the cat.