Angelica Finds Vets without Borders Voluntary Work Gratifying.

Dr. Angelica Romero is a new veterinary graduate from the university here in Valdivia, and has been volunteering with us for almost 6 months now. She has helped us with all kinds of projects, research, and general day to day stuff, and is a huge asset to our group. We asked her to make a few comments about her work, and this is her report below, first in her own words in Spanish, followed by the translation into English.

Angelica helping us in Dichato, Chile.

Mi nombre es Angélica Romero soy medica veterinaria, hace unos meses atrás tuve la ocurrencia de venir a hasta la oficina de Veterinarios Sin Fronteras en Valdivia, como parte de la búsqueda de mi perfil profesional, y también asumiendo mi oportunidad para experimentar nuevos conocimientos después de haber obtenido mi título profesional. Mi experiencia como voluntaria ha sido satisfactoria, ya que siento que comparto varios intereses en común con Elena y Guillermo, desde dar solución a los problemas derivados de la tenencia irresponsable de mascotas en Valdivia, hasta el respeto y valoración hacia las diferentes especies de fauna. Me siento muy cómoda después de integrarme a este equipo, como a su vez muy agradecida del intercambio de experiencias, puesto que he podido presenciar una forma de trabajo diferente, más ordenada, lógica y humana, algo que los chilenos generalmente evadimos para tomar el camino más rápido al abordar un problema.

Bueno además de participar en el quehacer de VSF-Valdivia,  llevo un par de años trabajando con una especie endémica con problemas de conservación el “Pudú” (Pudu puda). Este ciervo habita los bosques templados de Chile y Argentina, su estado de conservación es vulnerable de acuerdo a la lista roja de la UICN. Las principales amenazas que enfrenta esta especie son: la fragmentación del bosque nativo, la caza ilegal, los atropellos, la introducción de especies domésticas, y dentro de éstas la más importante es el perro!!

Mi trabajo con esta especie es a través de un criadero privado donde mantienen alrededor de 25 animales, me encargo de velar por su bienestar y brindarles atención clínica periódica. Acá les dejo una fotos de esta especie, un adulto y un cervatillo, cuando son pequeños tienen manchas blancas en su pelaje, alrededor de los 3 meses estas manchas desaparecen por completo. A mí me causa mucha empatía este ciervo, ¿y a ustedes? espero que lleguemos a compartir este sentimiento...

Negro- Deer more than 3 months old.

My name is Angelica Romero and I am a Chilean veterinarian. A few months ago I had the idea to come to Veterinarians Without Borders-Canada (VWB) office in Valdivia, to look for ways to obtain new professional experiences and use the ones I obtained during my degree. My volunteer experience with VWB has been gratifying, as I feel that I share many common interests with Elena and Guillermo; from providing solutions to problems of irresponsible pet ownership in Valdivia, to ideas on how to teach respect and appreciation towards wildlife. I feel very comfortable after joining this team, and at the same time very grateful for the exchange of experiences, since I have witnessed a different form of work ethic, more orderly, logical and humane, different from the Chilean way which usually takes the fastest path to get the job done.
Well in addition to participating in the work of VWB here in Valdivia, I´ve been working on conservation issues of an endemic wildlife species, the "Pudu (Pudu puda), for a couple of years. This deer inhabits the temperate forests of Chile and Argentina and its conservation status is vulnerable according to the IUCN Red List. The main threats facing this species are fragmentation of the native forests, poaching, vehicle traffic, introduction of domestic species; and among these, the most important is dogs!
My work with this species is through a private captive farm where they have about 25 animals. I work to ensure their welfare and provide regular medical care. Here I´ll leave you with a couple of photos of this species, one adult and one fawn. When they are young they have white spots on their coat. At about 3 months, these spots disappear completely. This deer makes me feel empathy. How about you? I hope we share this feeling ...

Pudicillo - Fawn

Certainly, Chile is Interesting!

Today was such a weird day; we just had to share it with you. Well to tell you the truth, it wasn’t weird- it was so typical for Chile...just weird for Canadians.
Our day started at the hardware store where we had to buy a door handle. We got a quote at one place a few days ago for $11,000 pesos, so decided to go back and buy that one. When we told the clerk that we would take it, the price more than doubled to $28,000 pesos because apparently they had made a mistake with their earlier quote. Then when we got the final quote, the price had gone up again to $56,000 pesos...because they forgot to include the handle on the other side of the door in the original quote.....
Then we had to go the vehicle insurance place. Here in Chile, you get insurance for your vehicle, but every time you do something to your vehicle- like upgrade something or buy something new for it, you have to go to get it appraised again or else you won’t be covered if it is stolen or damaged. Our radio was stolen on our last trip to Dichato, and since we have now replaced it, we need to report this to our insurance company. Our original policy was purchased in Viña del Mar when we first moved here, but they can’t check our vehicle because it is about 14 hours away. So we decided to cancel the policy, and move it to Valdivia. Today we were informed that because they gave us “such a good rate”, they won’t allow us to cancel. Hmmmm, ok???  Most things seem to result in a frustrating dead end just like this.
On our way back to work, this guy launches himself off the sidewalk directly in front of our truck. We slam on the brakes...the guy doesn’t even give us a sideways glance! This happens so often, that we are starting to wonder if this is a strange form of suicide attempt....
Then we get a phone call from our volunteer veterinarian who usually works with us on Friday afternoons. It’s a cry for help. She has no vehicle, and rides her bike everywhere with a horse-riding helmet for protection. Her rooster has been seriously wounded, and she needs us to bring supplies to help out. We load up with a few essentials from the office...and here we go- Veterinarians Without Borders to the rooster rescue. Driving there, we come to an intersection that is always SO chaotic- with traffic squeezing through the tiniest areas and coming from all directions. Through the middle of it all, go 2 policemen on horses, followed closely by a street dog that looks like a shepherd with sawed off legs! This dog is following the horses so closely that he doesn’t realize he is coming to the end of the sidewalk, falls OFF the sidewalk into the street, then follows the 2 horses right through the middle of all the traffic, trotting along proudly as if he is a police dog in disguise. We arrive to help the rooster, but unfortunately the poor guy was dead on arrival....
On the way back to work, we see the same street dog. Now he is following a cop on foot. Definitely must be a police-dog wanna be.
When we arrive in front of the office, the post-lunch rush has ended and the street is jammed with parked cars. Two cars have parked on either side of this one little truck so that all 3 are actually touching. There isn’t a hope that the one in the middle is going anywhere in a hurry. Someone has parked again in front of our neighbour’s gate, and he can’t get in, so he is writing in marker on the violators door to never block his gate again....
So far that’s it for our day.... and it’s only 3pm!

Is there such a thing as a free lunch?

Elena and I believe that one of the reasons why cats and dogs reach such high population numbers is because they are indirectly fed by humans (in a sense, subsidized). In Valdivia, we often see cats and dogs reaching into people´s garbage bags, ripping them open. We have asked different municipalities here whether they have an estimate on how much it costs to clean-up after free-roaming cats and dogs and assess whether it would be better to avoid/reduce those costs by implementing a better garbage disposal container and more regular garbage pick-up? Unfortunately, we have not yet received an answer. Is this issue of cats and dogs feeding from garbage “normal”? What do you think?

Based on this sign, which states "NO BOTE BASURA...DEMUESTRE CULTURA" , which translates to “do not throw garbage out – respect your culture”, someone wanted to make a difference and tell people to improve their garbage disposal customs. We are not sure that this sign has been entirely effective. Any comments?