First fully equipped wildlife ambulance for Thailand!

 

The Wildlife Friends of Thailand was happy to implement the Mobile Wildlife Clinic project in the first half of 2006 with the generous support of Care for the Wild International, supplying the financial means for the purchase of the veterinary equipment for the vehicle “Mobile Wildlife Clinic”.

The Volkswagen Van

The side of the Van

Since the Wildlife Centre opened in 2001, the Wildlife Friends realized that a fully equipped mobile clinic would be a valuable asset in their efforts to rescue injured or mistreated wild animals, and would assist greatly in their conservation and animal welfare work.

The Wildlife Friends of Thailand purchased a secondhand Volkswagen van “Caravelle 3000cc Injection” built in 1996 for the purpose of setting up a mobile wildlife clinic to help animals upcountry where needed, and to rescue animals from places all over the country when veterinary assistance would be required. With the installed equipment such as pulse-oximeters, IV-pump and a gas-anesthetic respirator the mobile clinic allows us to assess, treat, and monitor animals at the rescue location, and during transit back to the wildlife hospital at the rescue centre.

The interior of the mobile wildlife clinic

A juvenile Fishing Cat (felis viverrina) rescued from forest fires in Sraburi province

Since its inauguration in early 2006, the mobile clinic has been used on numerous occasions to rescue wild animals from various locations throughout Thailand, as well as helping our continuing efforts to improve the health of and provide a neutering service for local street dogs and abandoned domestic pets. The mobile clinic has allowed us to assess and treat animals on location at rescue sites, considerably improving the speed with which treatment can commence in injured or sick animals. These animals then have a much improved recovery time following early assessment and treatment, allowing them to be integrated with the resident animals at the centre at an earlier time.

We anticipate that, with continuing improvements to the facilities available in the mobile clinic, the mobile clinic will allow us to improve the health and conditions of some of Thailand’s wild and domestic animals well into the future.

A fully equipped examination table with Oxi-meter, IV pump and Gas-anesthetics machine in the Van

The use of a dart-gun makes catching injured wildlife such as macaques easier and safer for both animal and our team

As an example of the kind of work we use the mobile clinic for, On 12 October 2006 the centre received a call from the nearby town of Petchburi, where a young wild male long-tailed macaque had been causing problems on the roof of a car dealership for several days. The macaque had at some stage sustained a nasty wound on its forehead. On arrival at the site in the mobile clinic, we were able to successfully anaesthetize the animal using a dart gun, and clean and suture the wound on site, therefore removing the necessity for further or prolonged anaesthesia on our return to the wildlife centre hospital. The animal recovered well following the rescue.

A Thai Mahout brings a domestic elephant for a check-up

Small head injuries are unfortunately very common but easy to treat

Thailand is well-known for its wildlife and its tourism industry. All over the country you find elephant camps and entertainment places with wildlife. Although the Wildlife Friends of Thailand does not support or approves of wildlife in entertainment we do help out those elephants that need medical treatment. Elephant camps in Kanchanaburi and Prachuabkhirikhan provinces have received professional care and treatment from our Mobile Wildlife Clinic in the first months of it existence.

A WFFT veterinarian treating the wild elephant in distress

The third attempt to lift up the elephant

Even Wild elephants need help at some times. The wild elephant found in Chanthaburi province in June 2006 was found in a mud pool and was not able to get up on its legs. For 7 days the team with the Mobile Wildlife Clinic cared for the elephant and fed him. He died unfortunately as he still could not get up on his feet after that long. The Van could not get closer than 2 kilometers from the elephant as it is not a four-wheel drive vehicle.

The Wildlife Friends of Thailand were able to use the Mobile Wildlife Clinic frequently in 2006 since its start. The Mobile clinic has been used for the following tasks;

• Wildlife elephant rescue – once.
• Domesticated elephant treatment and camp visits – 5 times.
• Rescues of wildlife from “pet” owners; 5 gibbons, 3 macaques, one Malayan-sun bear.
• Snake relocation and check-ups. 4 times (once a month) totally 112 pythons, 3 king-cobra’s.