Editor’s Note: Jockey Ferrin Peterson, DVM, has embarked on a charity mission to Southeast Asia to help refugees care for their animals in war-torn areas, bringing back Veterinary knowledge and supplies for villagers with no other chance of care. She will contribute a blog to TDN when possible.
Helping disadvantaged groups in the world has been formed by me since I was a child. My parents worked in Mexico before raising our family, and I have relatives who have served in China, Turkey, India, and Spain as engineers, teachers, and musicians. doctor. This was a cornerstone of my growing up, and it instilled in me a passion for using my personal interests and skills to help those in need.
While pursuing my Bachelor of Animal Science at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, I had colleagues who were members of organizations like Engineers Without Borders and Doctors Without Borders. I have seen violations in the care of animals that support livelihoods by people living in underserved parts of the world. I contacted some of my professors and one connected me with a humanitarian organization called The Free Burma Rangers (FBR). This group helps refugees in the jungles of Southeast Asia and uses a herd group of mules and Mongolian horses to carry supplies to remote villages where they are not allowed to live. veterinary care.
On my first trip, refugees lost several animals in their herd to a strange disease, and the diagnosis of the deadly disease became the focus of my first trip to Southeast Asia. . At the time, I had little veterinary training but connected with my future professor, Dr. Eric Davis, at UC Davis, who taught me how to collect samples and provide lab supplies as I worked. return. We diagnosed the disease as trypanosomiasis, which is transmitted by a vector, the tsetse fly, and is endemic in Asia and Africa.
I returned two years later as a veterinary student at UC Davis. The herd group is still relatively healthy, so the focus of my second trip was to branch out to help other species. The villages we visited were far from the net, and we backpacked 10 hours into the woods through steep mountains to our first village. Those villagers have never seen a veterinarian, and although I am not officially a Veterinarian (DVM), I have received basic livestock training. I have experienced the gratitude they have shared by improving the health of the animals that are essential to their livelihood. It is clear that the villagers appreciate their animals and are providing the best care they know in limited and untrained conditions. I helped them with water buffalo, pigs, chickens, dogs, cats and even a monkey.
I’m sitting at the airport preparing to start my third trip, my first as a full-fledged DVM. Just a few weeks after introducing some of the top thoroughbred horses in the world in preparation for the Breeders’ Cup, I now have the opportunity to work with some of the most underrated horse breeds I know: the hardy , selfless and can also change the life of their owners. I think that’s one of the great things about horses all over the world: seeing the important role they play in so many different uses.
The Free Burma Rangers contacted me this past spring, as they lost four members of their pack animal team this year, three of whom I worked with on trips ahead. Symptoms resemble a combination of parasites, abdominal pain, and malnutrition. Their base camp has lost its entire flock of chickens and pigs this year, so there has been some heavy damage. The base camp provides essential medical care, as it is the only medical facility of its kind within days of moving. FBR trained local doctors and built a basic facility to take care of people. On previous trips, I have witnessed a woman in labor walk all night to get to a medical facility. I also met a man who had been traveling for days with a snake bite that needed treatment. Realizing that the medical staff serving on the base camp have lost two important food sources, their pigs and chickens, is very disturbing.
When my plane lands in Southeast Asia, I will connect with a mentor of mine, Dr. Peter Quesenberry, who is also a UC Davis Veterinary School alumnus and has dedicated his career to animals. animals and their owners in Asia. He wrote the book “Where There Are No Animal Doctors”, inspired by “Where There Are No Doctors”, the world’s most widely used healthcare manual. I use Dr. Quesenberry’s book in my training sessions with the villagers. We could flip to the same page and while I read in English they read along from copies written in their own language and accompanied by simple illustrations. It is instrumental in the language barrier.
Dr. Quesenberry would take me to the local shops in town to buy the rest of the supplies I needed: vaccines, dewormers and ointments, etc. Although I brought a large package from home, It is important to source as much as possible from local stores. This supports their economy and helps locals familiarize themselves with vaccine and drug brands so they can buy more for their own long-term care. Thanks to the generosity of my supporters, I will stock up on necessary supplies before starting the activity.
I’ll bring everything I need to live off-line for two weeks. Anyone who’s ever backpacked knows the delicate balance of carrying the essentials while keeping your luggage as light as possible. On my first trip, I started handing out snacks I had packed in desperation to ease the burden as we climbed another mountain. 10 hours of backpacking is up and down the mountain slope. When you reach the top of one mountain, you have to go back to the other side, only to start over on the next mountain. FBR does these trips in the dry season, ie our winter and early spring, as they say it is difficult to go during the rainy season. I’ve trained the best I can for the mountainous terrain by running hills and stairs in Kentucky, but I know it can’t compare. I always feel humbled when I try to climb a mountain, despite my fitness and proper hiking gear, and then look over to see a villager easily traversing similar terrain in flip-flops by plastic. I have always been impressed by the toughness of these people, who have never known the amenities that I take for granted.
The first leg of the trip ended with a bit of trouble, as my flight to London was late and I missed my connection by 15 minutes. But overall, it’s a small price to pay and I appreciate the encouragement and support of others who have helped make this possible- my relationships during the race, the people who supported me in my absence. available for a few weeks, Back on Track USA, who helped with gearing me up for the trip, and everyone donated through www.freeburmarangers.com.
Tomorrow: Day 1-What’s On Tap
