When a donkey was suffering from an infected wound, SPANA vets in Zimbabwe were on hand to provide the veterinary care he desperately needed.
Honda the donkey works alongside his owner, Isaac, on a small farm in Chivi, a rural district in south-central Zimbabwe. The six-year-old donkey carries out many tasks for Isaac and his family, including ploughing and transporting produce.
One day, Honda suffered a nasty injury to his left ear. With no access to veterinary care and Isaac’s family struggling to survive one of the worst droughts in decades, Isaac tried to tend to Honda’s wound by himself. Despite his best efforts, Honda’s ear wouldn’t heal. Thankfully, Isaac heard about SPANA’s mobile veterinary clinic, which makes the difficult 400-mile journey from Zimbabwe’s capital city, Harare, once a month to treat sick and injured working animals in Chivi.
At the very busy clinic, SPANA vets examined Honda’s ear carefully. The wound was red, painful, leaking discharge and had become infected. Our vets administered painkillers to make Honda more comfortable, then set about cleaning his wound thoroughly with an antiseptic solution. Next, they applied zinc oxide cream to protect the wound during the healing process and started Honda on a course of antibiotics to treat his infection.
The vets gave Isaac a supply of antibiotics and zinc oxide cream. They explained how he should clean the wound and apply the cream, as well as how and when to administer the antibiotics. They also gave Isaac lots of advice regarding how to look after his donkey during the drought.
Issac said: ‘Thank you, SPANA. I didn’t know how to help my donkey and there are no other vets here.’
We need your help to open a permanent animal health and welfare centre for vulnerable working animals like Honda in rural Zimbabwe. There are many working donkeys in rural communities with little to no access to veterinary care. They’re suffering from untreated injuries, malnutrition and dehydration. The need for our lifesaving work is great.
With you help, we can offer continuous, round-the-clock care – providing medical attention, shelter and recovery time for animals who need ongoing treatment. Our new centre will also have a new borehole to provide fresh water for the centre during periods of severe drought. Together, our mobile clinics and a new centre will ensure no animal is left without the professional veterinary care they so desperately need. Find out more here. Thank you for caring for working animals.
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