Our first volunteers, Amy and Kate, meet a new friend
Our sister charity, STEF Thailand, has now established a veterinary volunteer programme at the STEF-funded veterinary hospital near Khok Kloi. This programme provides the opportunity for veterinary students, nurses, qualified veterinary professionals, and gap year students with an interest in veterinary/zoological/conservation studies, to learn about the care of the magnificent but endangered Asian elephant. Our chief veterinary officer, Dr Aon, will mentor the volunteers, providing participants the chance to observe and participate in medical procedures, learn about routine diagnostic tests, travel with the mobile clinic and learn about elephant husbandry and welfare.
The course is available for a minimum of one week, but can be extended (with a 15% reduction in cost for each additional week booked), and can used as part of the EMS requirement for veterinary students. The course is run by STEF Thailand, and initially will take up to two volunteers at one time, with good accommodation on site.
If volunteering at the STEF Veterinary Centre sounds like something you would like to do, you can make a booking through the STEFT website. For more information please visit the STEFT website or email: coordinator@stefthailand.org. Our first volunteers arrived on 6th November this year. Here are some of their comments:
“The team could not have been more welcoming from the moment I arrived. We travelled to call outs and also treated elephants on site at the veterinary hospital. It was a fantastic opportunity to gain hands on experience with elephants.” – Kate
“I’m a third year veterinary student, and I volunteered for STEFT for two weeks, having never worked with elephants before. I was taken out every day seeing loads of cases, including clinical examinations, taking blood samples, blood and faeces analysis, and even a few emergency call outs in the evenings. I tried loads of new foods and met so many lovely people. I would definitely recommend this clinical placement.” – Amy
See also Vanessa Klabouch’s blogs on her six weeks as a volunteer elephant vet with STEFT.
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