Our mobile clinic in Tunisia travels hundreds of miles every week to treat working animals in remote villages. Read how the team helped Melik recover from painful harness wounds.
Melik the donkey dutifully pulls a cart for miles every day, across difficult terrain in soaring North African heat. As Melik worked, the abrasive materials of his homemade harness rubbed and cut into his skin. Over the course of months, deep wounds began to form along Melik’s spine and ribcage. In the dusty, arid climate, these wounds were in danger of becoming infected, possibly endangering Melik’s life.
Melik’s owner Kamel was very concerned; Melik is the only means of transport for his family but he struggles to afford the expensive fees of a private veterinary clinic. The only hope for Melik was the SPANA mobile clinic – regular visits from our dedicated vets, who travel for hours to reach rural communities like Melik and Kamel’s.
As soon as the team arrived, they noticed that the sharp edges of his homemade bridle and bit had cut into the delicate tissue around Melik’s mouth. His back was covered in cuts and Melik winced in pain as our team began cleaning the injuries.
The team knew that, without training Kamel in proper animal husbandry, they could temporarily ease Melik’s suffering but the cycle of injury would continue. The vets spoke with the owner in detail about the importance of using the right materials when working with Melik. They asked Kamel to press the sharp wire bit against the underside of his hand so he could experience the discomfort that Melik felt as he worked. They also showed Kamel how the constant irritation from the plastic straps of the harness continued to open up the painful wounds across Melik’s back.
While they spoke to Kamel, the team disinfected and bandaged the wounds, instantly soothing Melik’s pain and allowing the healing process to begin. As a precautionary measure, the vets also prescribed a course of antibiotics to prevent any early infection from entering the donkey’s bloodstream.
Kamel led Melik home, confident in his ability to better care for his dependable donkey. For so many animals just like Melik, these clinics provide the only source of intervention for otherwise debilitating medical issues in the most remote of communities.
Your generosity makes this possible for working animals like Melik. Thank you so much for your ongoing support.
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