Without the clinic and the help of our WVS volunteers none of these animals would have received treatment and all would have most likely died. This in itself is why I love my job especially when volunteering in a place like Malawi because I can make such huge difference for so many dogs and it is often the difference between life and death for some animals!
Barney
Barney was found in a gutter by one of our teams near Blantyre. He was lethargic and obviously injured with no owner in sight. After asking in the area, no owner could be found so he was brought to the clinic for immediate treatment.
He was a juvenile dog and had an awful degloving injury to his tail (the skin had been almost completely removed) as well as large wounds on his torso from a suspected burn. Although it was not entirely clear what had caused these injuries, it was apparent he needed treatment quickly!
The WVS team at the clinic initially set to work amputating his severely damaged tail and conducted wound debridement and fluid therapy to clean the wounds and make Barney a little more stable. Already, he was much happier and lively.
He has now been with our team in Blantyre for a month and has become such a character that everyone loves. His wounds are healing amazingly well with clear improvement each day and he is almost ready to go to his forever home.
Bone
This puppy was only two months old when he was brought to the Blantyre clinic. He was not eating and was becoming very lethargic. After a full examination from the WVS vets, they found a bone fragment was stuck in the roof of his mouth which looked like it had been there for a few days.
Luckily, it had not become too ingrown as the puppy was still small, so it was easily removed while the puppy was still conscious with a pair of forceps. The puppy, now named Bone, went home straight away after a few injections. This case highlights the importance of supervision when feeding your dog bones, whatever country you may be in.
Fox
Fox was a female dog brought to the clinic by her owner after two days of vomiting and diarrhoea left her weak and unable to stand. It was a suspected poisoning case which is unfortunately very common in Malawi as many people are afraid of dogs. Our sister charity Mission Rabies runs rabies vaccination drives and education sessions here to try and reduce the amount of unnecessary and inhumane killings of dogs.
Fortunately, she was brought to the WVS veterinary team just in time and with some aggressive fluid therapy she made a full recovery and was very happy to be going home.
Mable
A member of the public spotted Mable outside the front of her house and saw that the dog was limping and looking very skinny. We sent one of our veterinary experts to check up on her and found that she was weak and severely emaciated as well as having an infected wound on her leg which was causing the limp.
The owner seemed unaware of her suffering and so she was surrendered to the BSPCA where our clinic is based in Malawi.
Our vets treated her wound and after further treatment and some good food, she is now fit and healthy and is ready to be adopted to a loving home.
Bruno
Bruno was found as a stray, living on the streets of Blantyre and suffering from severe mange. He was brought to the clinic by a local supporter of our work here and stayed with us for a month whilst undergoing treatment.
His hair started growing back and the lovely lady that brought him in has sponsored him to stay at a local church where he will continue to be cared for to ensure he lives a healthy life with this friendly community.
Our clinic in Malawi provides a lifeline for dogs like these, and without volunteers like Ellie, we would be unable to have such a positive impact here. If you have been inspired by these stories, please donate today, or join us on a volunteering adventure in Malawi.