Archive for the ‘Dogs’ Category
We have just finished vaccinating 3,200 dogs in Trans Mara! I only got couple of more days till I complete my 2007 vaccination work (which delayed into 2008 due to post-election problem), but our work has so far proven to be a success in reducing rabies and canine distemper in domestic dogs around the wildlife reserve (according to local resident and hospital staff here in this area).
I have little time before I fly to Nairobi, so going to upload all my photos now! We did the school talk at Olepoipoi Primary School in Olmotoni (yes, for those of you who has been following my blog, it is the area the Canine Distemper outbreak started last year)
I had couple of friends who were visiting me and they were happy to be the cameraman during their stay. Usually, there is no photos of myself, but this time I managed to sneak myself into some of the photos.
Today, my dog handler Lesingo got bitten by a dog. We are now up to 2,770 dogs and it was his first time getting bitten by one (I got bitten about a year ago). The bite was small, but we deal with non-vaccinated dog and it was important for him to get post-exposure vaccine nontheless. After giving him a basic first aid treatment, we rushed to my house to pick up the post-exposure vaccine and headed for local dispensary. In general, Maasai can take lots of pain, but from larger crude weapon such as panga (machete), spear, arrows and rungu (club). For some reason they do not handle pain well from tiny pointy needle. Lesingo finched and told me that “he hated needles”.
After Lesingo’s treatment, daktali (doctor) came to us to thank us for all the work we are doing for the community. He says that prior to our vaccination campaign, he was getting average of 5-8 rabid dog attack cases per month. Since we started the vaccination, the number of victim is now is almost zero as even the sporadic cases are from vaccinated dogs. I am soooo happy to hear this positive feedback!
I am back on my track with my dog vaccination. We have started off from the area we left out from last year’s work (number we left off is 2,611 dogs). Just before starting our vaccination in the Lolgorian area, I visited the local primary school to give a small talk during the student parade. I talked to the headmaster of the school to gather up all the students and I was shocked when 950 students came rushing out!
Basically, the talk I give entails “what is rabies and how does it affects human?”, “how is rabies transmitted and what you should do when you are bitten by a rabid dog”, “what kind of work we do” and “how to properly handle dog without getting bitten”. Teaching children the basic of this deadly disease is important as most of the victims of rabid dog attack are of age 5-15.
I have tried using my car for dog vaccination for couple of days last week. Good news is that now I have reached 2,611 dogs. Bad news is that my car broke down even further. I am driving back to Nairobi to fix my car now…
Other parts which broke this week due to bad road condition include: roof carrier, bonnet hindge, power window, gear box (again!!) and rear bumper. I have managed to get sponsor for vaccination campaign in Febuary (I am going to be away from Kenya from this week to end of January on business trip). However, I will not be able to work due to lack of vehicle. We are still looking for donation to cover the balance for the vehicle fund.
Jack Russell Terrier, Yamato, is fully recovered now. The swelling has gone down completely and the pain subsided. Now, she is back to her normal business chasing lizards and birds in the garden. It is amazing how much the inbred instinct is strong in this breed, it is almost impossible to stop them from hunting small animals.
Talking about hunting instinct, my maid Jane’s grey cat brought back the body of the snake killed by Yamato from nearby bush and made Jane scream by placing it on top of her bed. Later he was tossing around a dead frog and off course he had to show Jane what a splendid prey he caught by putting it on top of her table…
My Jack Russell Terrier, Yamato, killed a snake this morning. I was not so sure what type it was as I am no expert on snakes and my worker threw the snake before I could see it. It was green and maybe 40cm long. Just before she bit off the head of the snake, it bit her lip in retaliation. Within 10 minutes, her face started to swell badly.
I treated her symptomatically, but I was worried all morning since I did not know whether the snake was venomous or not. Now she is alert and moving around, but she is in obvious pain as she cannot even sleep with her head down.
My oldest dog Yamato loves her comfort. She loves sleeping in her doggie bed, my sofa and sometimes she even goes further in her quest for comfort.
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