Georgia
Mayhew International is reaching out to help more dogs, cats, and communities.
Georgia
Tbilisi has developed a lot over recent years and is now a
thriving city. Because of this, many people have migrated to the
capital and more rural areas of Georgia have suffered - left
with fewer inhabitants, less work opportunities, and less
income. This poverty negatively impacts the welfare of animals
because there are few vets available, and people simply can’t
afford a vet’s bill.
Outside of the capital, there’s little knowledge about spaying
and basic care leading to litters of pups and kittens who suffer
a very short and painful life. That’s why raising awareness
about good parasite control and general vaccination is key to
preventing the unnecessary suffering of dogs and cats.
How can it be solved?
The lack of infrastructure to address the issue of free-roaming
dog and cat populations; the fact that many towns and regions
don’t have any access to veterinary care; poor general animal
welfare within shelters and among pet owners, have all hampered
local government efforts. They want to develop a successful
Trap, Vaccinate, Neuter Release (TVNR) programme to help with
over-population and disease hotspots. But Georgia also needs
more experienced vets operating to international standards - who
are trained in animal health and welfare, and who speak the
local language. That’s why Mayhew has spent the last 5 years
training a group of Georgian vets in the capital to focus on cat
and dog care - including high standards of reproductive surgery
and preventative care. Using Mayhew-trained vets they initially
supported local groups to deliver this programme.
What needs to happen now?
By providing veterinary and shelter management training to
Georgian vets, Mayhew has helped improve animal welfare
standards for dogs and cats in Tbilisi. Mayhew is now being
approached by other towns around the country - where there are a
lot of free-roaming dogs and cats, but few vets. Thanks to the
grant of the Edgard & Cooper Foundation, Mayhew will be able to
invest in personnel and equipment to expand their services
across the country.
This is our second commitment to Mayhew International.
2022 - 2023
Our donation will train 22 vets to offer high-quality medical care to over 5,000 cats and dogs. It will enable the building of a new state-of-the-art clinic and expansion of the pop-up clinic to accelerate growth after a successful initial start-up by Mayhew Georgia.
€199,015 pledged.
Thanks to the grant of the Edgard & Cooper Foundation, Mayhew
Georgia is able to set 3 targets to for maximum long-term
impact:
- Build a new static clinic for the training of vets and
assistants. With community-based welfare services for dogs and
cats in, or on the outskirts of Tbilisi.
- Bring on board a 5th partner clinic to focus specifically on a
cat programme.
- Devise a programme for pop-up clinics where all equipment,
drug, supplies, personnel can be loaded into the vehicle.
Timeline
- Q4/2021 we’ll focus
on employing vets and assistants, and training them to Mayhew
standards. We’ll acquire premises for new static clinic.
- Q1/2022 the static
clinic will be fully equipped and we’ll purchase a vehicle and
equipment for a mobile clinic.
From the start of 2022, the static clinic/learning centre and
pop-up clinic will both be ready to provide pre and post-op
care. Mayhew will increase the provision of the TVNR programme
by directly spaying 1,250 dogs and 150 cats in the static clinic
and helping 1,250 dogs and 100 cats via the pop-up clinic. 10
vets will be given training in cat and dog health.
In 2023, thanks to the grant, we’ll be able to help even more
cats and dogs. Managed populations of free-roaming dogs in the
targeted regions will have overall improved health and welfare,
and more areas and communities understand our humane approach.
