Mara Mobile Veterinary Unit

Category: Wildlife | Date: Mar 23 2008 | By: admin

Today my friend Naitoi, Mara Conservancy Ranger, came to say hi to me at my house. It was then he told me the story of how people were trying to kill a leopard yesterday. It has killed one goat and carried away another one, leaving owner with loss of two animals. It took long time for Naitoi and Warden to convince the community leaders to not to kill this particular leopard, which they have already started tracking down on foot in an attemp to kill it.

Since the financial crisis set in here in the Mara, one lion was killed in Narok side by Maasai and another lion was tracked down on Trans Mara side (saved by Mara Conservancy Ranger), and now it is leopard. The Maasai community living along the reserve has now let go of lion and leopard. People are not happy since they are losing their livestock, letting go of livestock killer and not getting paid for their financial loss.

In one year (2006-2007), Mara Conservancy compensated for 239 livestock attacks along the wildlife reserve border (150 leopard attacks, 67 lion attacks, 15 hyena attacks and 7 elephant attacks). Without compensation, all 239 cases could potentially result in dead carnivores.

5 responses so far

Category: Life of a Vet | Date: Mar 22 2008 | By: admin

I was told that Kimojino has left home to attend his brother’s funeral. Kimojino comes from area called Emarti where land dispute between Maasai and Kipsigis (Kalenjin) has resulted in a decade long fighting. I was told his brother’s death is also due to this tribal crash.

Here is what is happening in Emarti and Shartuka where people are fighting daily since the election. It is as though tribal/land dispute is gun powder and election was the fire causing the explosion of the underlying problems…

2 responses so far

Category: Life of a Vet | Date: Mar 21 2008 | By: admin

My new car is not ready so I am going back to Mara tomorrow. I heard enough stories about how car dealer is having “technical difficulty” bringing in the car from Mombasa for the last seven weeks. I have to finish the dog vaccination by the beginning of April so most likely have to borrow a car in Mara to finish off my work. It would have been much easier if my new car was delivered, but it is life…

I am leaving my Suzuki here in Nairobi. My car now breaks down even with one way trip from Mara and no longer capable to perform in bush. After welding the exhaust pipe three days before departure, it cracked on the way coming to Nairobi. It will finally have a peacefull retirement in my friend’s parking lot in Nairobi.

4 responses so far

Category: Life of a Vet | Date: Mar 19 2008 | By: admin

I am back in Nairobi and things are already not going as I originally planned. After flying into Nairobi, we went straight to car dealer to pick up my new project car. After waiting and searching for the salesman dealing with my car, he comes and tells us that ‘We are still working on your car’. It has been 6 weeks since we closed the deal…! I am so crossed, I cannot even think of words to say… I am going back to Mara on 21st and we are trying our best to push the car dealer to bring up the car from Mombasa by then.

I have checked the price for the autoclave. It is USD 1,050 (65,000Ksh) and it is sold locally in Nairobi. I just got myself a generator so I can sterilize my surgical equipments if I can get an autoclave.

I just discovered that Will has posted some of my photo on Flickr, only to find out that they are shots of me playing with hippo spear and zebra carcass… Great!

13 responses so far

Category: Dogs, Life of a Vet | Date: Mar 17 2008 | By: admin

Taking GPS readings of the village

Issuing the vaccination card

Lesing (left) teaching the dog owner how to handle his dog without strangling and frightening the death out of the dog.

We cover approximately 500 sq Km of Maasai land.

3 responses so far

Category: Dogs, Life of a Vet | Date: Mar 17 2008 | By: admin

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)

Once again, Lesingo showing the poster to the school children

This time, it is pink uniforms!

Showing the red dog collar and vaccination card.

2 responses so far

Category: Life of a Vet | Date: Mar 17 2008 | By: admin

I am going to Nairobi to pick up my new project car today. I really hope it is ready. It was supposed to be ready 6 weeks ago… I will update more photos from dog vaccination once I am in Nairobi with better internet connection.

Here is little quiz from Mara.

Who left these footprints?

1.

2.

3 responses so far

Category: Dogs, Life of a Vet | Date: Mar 16 2008 | By: admin

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.

A cup of tea for lunch.

Lesingo roaming around the Maasai land with coolbox full of vaccines.

10 responses so far

Category: Life of a Vet, Livestock | Date: Mar 15 2008 | By: admin

While I was in Lolgorian, I have received the report that someone who was hunting for bush meat (wildlife) accidentally shot two calves by arrows. Apparently this happened a week ago, but the wound was still swollen. The owner requested a surgery to remove an “embedded arrow” from his calves’ abdomen. The farmer’s house was 4 hours round trip on a horrendous road and when I arrived at the village, I found two calves with very similar wounds (swollen point on right lower abdomen). When I checked the wound, I did not think that arrow point was still inside as owner claims, as swelling was way too small in comparrison.

He claims that this huge arrown point is still inside!

I have removed the small metal pieces and puss inside the swelling.

Practically the entire village came to witness this surgery…

“Ng’ombe imeshona kama gunia “(cattle stitched up like wheat sack), says the villager…

5 responses so far

Category: Life of a Vet, Livestock | Date: Mar 14 2008 | By: admin

I have just managed to reach one of the big towns here in Trans Mara, Lolgorian. This town is predominantly Maasai town and needless to say, livestock trade is major business. Town holds two major market days (Wednesday and Saturday) and Maasai livestock traders from all over Trans Mara and Narok districts congregate in “soko ya ng’ombe” (cattle market). Many are Maasai from Loita region who spend two days walking to Lolgorian and three days back to Loita with mix herd of cattle, sheeps and goats. On Thursday and Sunday morning following the market days, you will come across parade of livestock along the main road.

“soko ya ng’ombe”

When there is a major trading of livestock in form of live weight, there is off course amajor trading of livestock in carcass weight. Slaughter house in Lolgorian is busy on Wednesday and Saturday. As a consequences, stray dogs of Lolgorian town wait patiently around the abbatoire for occational meat scraps, causing growing concern for Public Health Department. Stray dogs can potentially become the vector for diseases such as Hydatidosis and you really don’t want “scavengers” hanging around in a place where people handle meat for human consumption.

So, last month, the department sent some officals to take care of the problem by euthenizing them. Some dogs with owner also hang around the slaughter house and these dogs also died from feeding on the bait. As I visited households from Lolgorian, owner bittery told us that their dogs were killed last month. The point I want to bring out here is the issue of public health awareness and responsibility of dog owner. I am not blaming the public health department because they are doing their job in taking care of human health and preventing chances of potentially human-transmissable diseases. It will be owner’s responsibility to restrict their dog’s activity around the slaughter house, as well as town’s management to clean out trash point and fence off larger premises of the slaughter house, so that dogs do not become scavengers in town. People must understand that being an unresponsible owner is the direct cause of death of their dogs.

This particular owner restricted her dogs in courtyard.

I hope next generation will be more responsible dog keeper.

7 responses so far