About the Ladakh Project

Download the project report VBB Ladakh 2007

The Leh Street Dog Sterilaisation programme is being run between June and September. If you are interested in volunteering for the June to September 2008 program please contact jperry@vetsbeyondborders.org. This programme is generously sponsored by Foundation Brigitte Bardot.

The Leh Street Dog Sterilisation Programme is a collaboration between a local non-government organisation, the Ladakh Animal Care Society and Vets Beyond Borders. The Ladakh Animal Care Society was founded in 2003 by Kunzang Namgyal, the society strives to promote compassion and has a special concern for the welfare of stray dogs. The organisation is opposed to culling which is the standard method employed by the local government to reduce dog numbers.

Beginning in July and working through until late September , volunteer vets from around the world work with local dog catchers, vet nurses and assistants to surgically sterilize dogs. Dogs are caught from Leh and surrounding villages and are brought to the LACS site for sterilization and post operative care. The LACS facilitiy is located in Sabu which is a small village 7 km by road, to the east of the capital Leh.

How the project works

Dogs were collected in the early morning by two dog catchers and a truck driver. These roles were filled by Ladakhi locals employed by VBB and partly funded by VBB and the local government. The dog catchers worked in specific areas with an aim to catch all the dogs in that area before moving onto the next area. The programme is thought to have made a significant impact on dog numbers mainly the south and east of Leh Choglmasar, Housing Colony, Main Bazaar and Airport Rd.

Volunteers would arrive at the clinic to find the first group of dogs brought by the dog catchers. A Ladakhi girl called Dolma was instructed in anaesthetic. The clinic would run with 2 tables operating and an average of 15 dogs would be sterialised per day. A priority of VBB is to train local veterinarians and lay staff in the procedures in order that the project can continue functioning without the need for western volunteers.

The story so far ....

• Infrastructure has been built including 4 holding pens and the office was converted to a surgery with kitchen area.
  
• The number of volunteers varied from 3 - 8 at any one time. Volunteers were veterinary surgeons and a vet nurse.
  
• In 2006; 561 dogs - 310 females and 261 males - were sterilised and released.
  
• In 2007; in excess of 800 dogs were sterilised and the training programme with the local government vets commenced.
  
• In 2008; Foundation Brigitte Bardot started to fund the operation of Ladakh Animal Care through the cold hard winter months.
  

If interested in volunteering in Ladakh please contact jperry@vetsbeyondborders.org