Our Projects
Animal Birth Control & Anti-Rabies Clinics
VBB runs Animal Birth Control & Anti-Rabies (ABC-AR) projects in Sikkim and Ladakh in India. We also have short-term programmes from time to time in other regions such at the Sera Monastery in Bylakuppe, Southern India. These regions are fascinating areas to travel to and volunteering with VBB offers great opportunities for working with local people and making a contribution to the local community.
The animal welfare benefits of these programs are immense. The benefits start with the agreements we forge with the authorities to stop killing dogs as a method of population control and range to the improved health of street dogs once they are desexed, vaccinated and treated for illness. We have facilities and personnel available for treating sick and injured animals should they require it. We have also overseen the cessation of indiscriminate, reactionary killing of street dogs when there is a rabies outbreak - instead, we educate and intervene.
These VBB projects are supported by our generous sponsor, the Fondation Brigitte Bardot.
Read more about the Sikkim , Ladakh and Bylakuppe projects.
Why ABC-AR?
The Animal Birth Control (ABC) Programme and Anti-Rabies Vaccination Programme is a WHO (UN World Health Organisation) recommended programme for humane control of stray dogs and rabies transmission to humans. It has been proven successful in other developed and developing countries. A systematic animal birth control (ABC) programme includes catching the dog, spaying/neutering, administration of an anti-rabies vaccine and returning the animal to the same spot from which it was picked up.
Why is ABC-AR successful?
Dogs are territorial in nature and do not allow other dogs to enter their territory. The traditional method of catch and kill of street dogs has proven to be unsuccessful. This is because the population of street dogs is dependant on available food and space in a given environment. If street dogs are poisoned, killed or otherwise removed, the remaining population multiplies rapidly to fill the empty biological niche. This kill program is also quite expensive for the municipal corporations. Hidden costs in the current regime include dog bites and human hospital treatments, rabies injections and anti-rabies injections. The ethical costs include subjecting a society to gruesome killings of community dogs on the streets and the operators doing the killing.
Aims of ABC-AR Programmes:
- To humanely capture and surgical sterilise, then re-release to their orginial territory.
- To rabies vaccinate and administer appropriate treatment while captured thus ensuring a stable, healthy, rabies free population.
- To educate the local community about dogs being desexed and rabies vaccinated and thus they are not such a “threat” anymore.
- To educate and encourage owners of pet dogs to desex and vaccinate them.
Vet Train
India
After a well received Vet Train pilot programme in India in 2009, Vet Train will continue in 2010 with a new regional training programme taking place in Ladakh and ongoing training in Sikkim. Currently other regional Vet Train & continuing education programmes are also being developed in other regions of India.
China
After a successful & well-received pilot project in 2009, VBB in collaboration with ACTAsia will run another China Companion Animal Welfare Project in Shenzen & Beijing in 2010, delivering clinical training courses to veterinarians & veterinary nurses.
