The barrio close to where I live is very poor. Most people live in houses with dirt floors. They all have small children and pet dogs.
The families health needs are somewhat met by the government-run public health clinics, meaning they get basic health care and vaccinations. However, this basic coverage does not extend to vaccinating family pets.
Family pets are not vaccinated nor are they spayed or neutered. This leads to a new batch of puppies and kittens being born about every six months. Needless to say, the pet population is starting to overtake the human population which is leading to health issues.
A close friend and I have discussed the situation with the local health unit. They only shrug their shoulders and say there is no money. This is becoming an even bigger threat as we now have coyotes and racoons coming into the area looking for food. Rabies could become a threat as well as other diseases.
We have arranged for a veterinary service form Leon to come out for two days and vaccinate all the animals against rabies and distemper. They actually came out yesterday and are here again today. So far 213 dogs and cats have been vaccinated at no cost to the owners.
Next step will be to raise enough funds so that we can have a spay/neuter clinic too! We also spoke to another company to supply some extra pet food for those that have their animals vaccinated.
Keeping the neighbourhood safe and healthy one pet at a time!
What a great initiative! I'm happy you are able to help the community! As usually, please stay safe!
We try hard to be safe. Don't venture too far outside our neighbourhood.
This is awesome!! Thank you for entering the contest. You know you have my vote helping people take care of their furry family. 💛
What a wonderful thing that you are doing. God Bless you.
Good luck
howdy @cecicastor! this is such a great idea, is this your idea to do this? That vet clinic is doing this at a discounted price or how does that work? What a tremendous program Ceci, great job.
My friend and I were talking about it over coffee one day and the idea came to us at the same time, since we both use the same vet service. He does give us a discount but we are paying out of pocket for the clinic. If it saves one person from having to get rabies shots it is well worth it. We will see when we can do the spay/neuter program. Many folks here baulk at the idea. I think itis a cultural thing...
oh ok, how interesting that they would baulk at that, they would rather be overrun with animals running all over the place?
sounds a little too 3rd worldish.
It is a third world country, no matter how you slice it. There are so many things that just don't make a whole lot of sense but then you look at the state of their education and healthcare system and then you begin to understand...
yes Ma'am I'm sure that's right!
That's a lot of animals that have been vaccinated for sure, good idea on the spay and neutering too. Hope you are able to pull that off, that would cut down on vaccinations down the road as well. Rabies is nothing to fool with for sure, I had a friend growing up that had to get those series of rabies shots, he had gotten bit by a squirrel.
Awsome plan😀🐲🐉💗 so can i help in any way??
thank God for this good news and as always, please stay safe and God bless you & your wonderful family @cecicastor <3 <3 <3
Thank you, @shirleynpenalosa.
That is how we really make a change!
Start at the bottom and prevent it from happening in the future!
Sounds like a smart idea. You may be helping to prevent problems that would impact the whole neighborhood. Keeping you and yours in my thoughts as always.
Thanks.
That is an awesome thing you're organizing - great job getting a vet to vaccinate all the animals!
Thanks. I think it is more self-preservation of me and mine. I don't want to get bitten by a rabid animal!
Is birth control (for humans) frowned upon too by the general population @cecicastor?
Yes, it is. Families are huge here. Some of the younger generations are getting it, but it is really slow. There is still a lot of really young teens pregnant. Seen them as young as 12 years old.
I see this issue as an extension of the other. I think that it’s complicated by a strong Roman Catholic moral compass which still suffocates logical thinking.
Yikes! 12 is so young...just babes themselves, really.
It is not only the Catholic Church. There are other really influential denominations here that are putting the emphasis on big families...Yes, babies having babies.
That’s interesting. I didn’t know that other denominations were playing a larger role in this also.
I don't know if they do in other places, but here they do. Some really dictate the peoples lives here. What they can eat, wear, women not allowed to have short hair, no makeup, no booze, no drugs of any kind...like they have taken every religions' no-no list and rolled into one all-purpose lifestyle. 😲
A wonderful initiative which has turned out well so far @cecicastor Let’s hope it will be an ongoing project.
great post and i love the photo! what a huge undertaking and i wish you the bestest in all your endeavors ceci 🤗
Thanks, @eaglespirit! It is something that I can do to make the community a safer place for everyone.
what a creativity!! lol
Thank you.
Thank you for caring and helping