Noah's Ark community service

11 April 2015 - Mr Teh a lorry driver approached Noah's Ark for help to sterilize 20 of his street dogs because the mummy dogs were giving birth to frequently.  The solution to stop the breeding is to have the dogs sterilized.  

The volunteers consulted me and after a short interview with Mr Teh and a site visit Noah's Ark agreed to sterilize the dogs at no charges.  

In return?
Mr Teh was willing to pay in kind by supplying 5 lorry loads of soil to Noah's Ark to level up some low lying areas at the sanctuary.

By Raymund Wee 

Mr Teh carrying one of the puppies at a vacant building.

Mr Teh with his trusted friends.

Feeding them is not a problem.
What he does is to ask the restaurants n hawker stalls for leftovers.

The breeding will STOP when the dogs are sterilized.

An abandoned building where the dogs seek shelter from.

Clearing the fallen trees to save the puppies.

Independent volunteers from JB braving the storm to help Mr Teh to send the puppies 

and the bitches to  Noah's Ark Animal Birth Control Clinic for a medical check to stay 

at the sanctuary until they are old enough to be rehomed.

Payment in kind.  5 lorry loads of soil were supplied to the sanctuary
as a token for the sterilisation and vaccination for the dogs
that were done at no cost.

Over population kills

Relatively high rates among owned dogs and cats and the scarcity of puppies and kittens surrendered to the SPCA and shelters suggest that efforts by humane groups and veterinarians have been successful in lowering canine and feline fertility.

However, as you can see most of the puppies that are posted for adoptions are mainly from the unplanned strays. Low-cost sterilisation scheme initiated by 80% of our veterinary clinics shows that the majority of our veterinarians are contributing/returning their kindness to the animal's welfare. The cost and ease of neutering services are important.

Neutering rates among owned cats and dogs consistently exceed those strays especially the dogs in industrial areas and remaining farmlands around Singapore. Get your priority right for every litter of puppies that are taken from the bitch for rehoming is a step of kindness but to complete that act by getting her sterilised should be your mission.

There are closed to 30 Animal Welfare Groups in Singapore not forgetting AVA as well. Currently there are a few ministers who are having their hands on animal issues as well.

It is easier for the system to ask: "We humans to stop at two then to get those four legged to comply."

By Raymund Wee

Our reflections by Dillon and Kenneth, final year vet students, University of Adelaide

Our placement at Noah’s Ark Natural Animal Sanctuary (NANAS) was truly a memorable experience. Upon stepping into the sanctuary, we were welcomed by dogs of all breeds, ages, colours and sizes (even number of legs). Although each of them had a different physical appearance and personality, one thing common amongst them was their freedom and happiness. This emotional state is possible because of the environment (and home) which the ark provides. The property is aptly named a sanctuary; a safe haven for the animals, a home for abandoned, abused and neglected pets and a place where the animals are protected and taken care of.

One of the many areas the dogs are allowed to roam.

The Cat Wisma, a 2 story house specially for the cats to live in.

The sanctuary also houses the Animal Birth Control clinic which aims to provide low cost sterilization of animals to the community. We spent most of our first week in here, performing spay and neuter surgeries under the watchful eye of Raymund. Under his guidance, we learnt many different surgical techniques and how to handle various situations in ‘shelter’ surgery. This has helped us to gain confidence and become competent in the tissue handling and resolving problems.  

From left: Kenneth and Dillon performing sterilization of female cats in Malacca.

In our second week, we were given the opportunity to perform numerous sterilizations on stray animals and pets in the different communities in Muar and Malacca. This has helped us to further develop our knowledge and skills set.  Besides the technical skills, we were also able to grasp a good understanding of shelter medicine. Raymund also shared with us the structure of the organization and its role in reducing the number of stray animals on the street. Through our interaction with him, we gained an insight into his passion and love for the animals, which is what motivates him everyday.

Among the many conversations we had with Raymund, there is one thing that stands out. He told us - the only way an animal can reciprocate your support and kindness (choosing to rescue, save, treat them etc) is with its love and affection. It is this innocence and purity that compels people to give back to the animal society.

Dillon with the playful cats in the wisma.

Kenneth bidding goodbye to the canine residents at Noah's Ark.

  

In summary, our experience at Noah's Ark has been a rewarding and meaningful one. We would like to express our gratitude to Raymund and his staff for their kind hospitality and for providing us with delicious food each meal. We would encourage anyone reading this to find out more about Noah’s Ark Natural Animal Sanctuary, to share in its vision and join its cause in providing a better tomorrow for all animals.

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." - Mahatma Gandhi .

Written by Dillon & Kenneth

Final year vet students, University of Adelaide

  

SPAY Marathon @ Noah's Ark Animal Birth Control (ABC) Clinic

Kenneth and Dillon.

A total of of 210 dogs and cats were sterilised by Kenneth Yen & Dillon Devathasan both are Final Year Veterinary Students from The University of Adelaide. The spay journey started from 5 to 16 January 2015 with a weekend break of only two days.

After 4 days of surgeries under close supervision both Kenneth and Dillon proved their competency in handling "Spay and Neuter Surgeries" to qualify them to embark on this spay journey from Noah's Ark Sanctuary to Muar and Malacca. With their enthusiasm and veterinary training they completed 210 spay surgeries, one caudectomy, a cesarean on a cat successfully surviving 3 kittens and many consults without any post surgeries complications.

These will be the future vets whom I hope will take over Noah's Ark Legacy by giving back their services to the Animal Society.

I am proud of you for your enthusiasm which keeps my passion going and I would highly recommend them for clinics that are hiring veterinarians.

By Raymund Wee

From left: Dillon, Puan Mariam, Kenneth and Raymund.

Dillon attending to a caregiver for Noah's Ark
spay and neuter programme.

Getting ready to sterilise the cats.

The making of a compassionate vet.

Standard incision length for a dog's spay.

Incision for a cat's spay.

Standard incision length for a cat's spay.

Dillon and Kenneth attend to
new born kittens.

Visiting Vet Students at Noah's Ark

Since November '14 till January '15 - we had several vet students that were back in Singapore for the holidays and they took the opportunity to volunteer at Noah's Ark ABC Clinic in Johor as part of their attachment.

At Noah's Ark ABC Clinic, the vet students gained hands on experience working with street animals and attending to our sanctuary residents.

Our sanctuary residents had a great time with our vet friends and we would like to thank them for helping to keep our streets stray free for sterilising the street dogs and cats.

We hope the vet students had gain a valuable experience and knowledge during their stay and we would like to wish them all the best in their  future endeavours

Nally from The University of Glasgow.

Nally a final year veterinary student from The University of Glasgow did her clinical placements at Noah's Ark ABC from the 24 November to 6 December '14. 

A place for aspiring vet to pick up their surgical skills. 

Dr Irving Kay graduated from University of Queensland.

Dr Irving Kay fresh grad from the University of Queensland, Australia did his internship at Noah's Ark ABC (Animal Birth Control) Clinic to familiarise himself with the procedure and to understand shelter medicine and TNR programme. It was a rewarding experience for him before he embarks on a veterinary journey with The Republic Clinic in Singapore.

Left: Pei Xiang, a year three veterinary student and Esther a final year veterinary student from the University of Glasgow did their clinical placement at Noah's Ark ABC clinic for two weeks.

Left: Dillon Devathasan and Kenneth Yen final year veterinary students from University of Adelaide.

Kenneth and Dillon attending to Prisma. 

Seniors from Singapore veterinary clinics were at Noah's Ark ABC clinic on 12 January to guide and share their surgical skills with veterinary students. 

A group of rabbits were castrated by Dr Wan Lin and Dr Nicole with Dr Kesia keeping a close watch on Dillon.

From left: Raymund, Kesia, Wan Lin, Nicole, Dillon and  Kenneth.

After a hard day's work, the vets were rewarded with a sumptuous dinner at The Garden Restaurant in Gelang Patah and a farewell dinner for Dr Nicole Sia who will be starting a new journey in New Zealand soon.

Visit by Ngee Ann Polytechnic final year veterinary students

As final year veterinary bioscience students, when we heard that we would be visiting Noah’s Ark Natural Animal Sanctuary (NANAS), we knew that hopes for a normal day would be replaced with an exciting learning journey for us.  Upon arrival to the sanctuary, we were greeted with a warm welcome by Lynda and Clement who are Noah’s Ark CARES Singapore volunteers.

Alas, it was pouring heavily and we were not able to explore the sanctuary and that was when Lynda invited us to visit their in-house Animal Birth Control (ABC) Clinic to have a first-hand viewing experience on a quick feline neutering procedure done on a street cat. 

This was where we met Raymund Wee, the founder of Noah's Ark.  The clinic conducts surgeries which range from eye inoculation and leg amputations. Raymund explained to us that many veterinarians from Singapore and overseas volunteer at NANAS. The sanctuary does give aspiring veterinarians and technicians a chance to have practical scenarios where we can hone our skills.

We were definitely in luck as it was by chance that we got to witness several surgical procedures including the neutering of a large canine and it was really an eye opener for us. The reason was that some of us have not witnessed a shelter surgery up close before. With the assistance of the volunteer veterinarians, Noah's Ark is able to sterilise 20 to 30 street animals a day. Sterilisation is the only humane solution to control the street dogs and cats population from getting out of hand.

“Standing beside the operating table and watching the procedure being done reminded me of why I wanted to be a veterinarian back then. Listening to Raymund sharing his passion and witnessing the love he has for the animals was an inspiring moment and that, reminded me of my initial aspirations. Even though the journey towards being a veterinarian may seem daunting and long, just standing there in the sanctuary surrounded by the animals living out their second chance is proof that with determination and perseverance, one can make a difference. It was a great trip, a good experience and a newfound inspiration for me. I would be glad if there was another opportunity to go to Noah's Ark and perhaps maybe a chance to volunteer and be exposed to a learning experience.”

We headed around the sanctuary for a short tour after the rain had subsided. We visited Huggy boy, a rescued Gibbon and the horses at the stables before spending a lot of time in the cat wisma. Everywhere we went there would always be a welcoming party of several of the 600 dogs that call Noah's Ark their forever home. Seeing a 3-legged dog run as if he had 4 legs was really something, we found out his name was Blade! It made us realised that the sanctuary accepts all sorts of animals and that they are all entitled to their own form of freedom.

At the stables, we were introduced to Melody, a 31 year old rescued pony from Tang Dynasty in Singapore when it closed its doors in 1999. She has remarkably exceeded the usual 20 -30 years lifespan of a horse. Although she has difficulty biting the carrots, we fed her like any other seniors by cutting it into smaller pieces for her. Melody still ages gracefully and beautifully for a white mare! Unfortunately, not many horses are as lucky as her, those deemed incapable as a riding horse would be deleted (put down) as they are of no use to the riding facilities. 

Noah's Ark has stepped in to rescue some of these lovely horses and from what I observe, they have settled down happily in their retirement home. Each horse at the stable has a story of its own and it is definitely worth visiting the sanctuary to relive those childhood memories of being up close with horses! 

If you want to learn more about the horses, do visit the Noah's Ark Natural Animal Sanctuary blog to get to know more about the 10 horses residing in the sanctuary.

Amongst the dogs, cats, rabbits and primates were a wild boar and two ball pythons which intrigued us to the variety of animals that call the sanctuary home. The cat wisma was a two storey bungalow located by a quiet lily pond where the felines would just relax and look at the greenery to watch time pass by. There was also a dog named Jasmine that spends her whole life amongst cats as their protector! 

Towards the end of our visit, Clement showed us how to handle the 2 ball pythons and allowed us to have a feel of the 2 ball pythons.  We took some last pictures with the ball pythons before heading back.

 

In our eyes, the sanctuary is seen as a safe and peaceful haven for animals to live out the rest of their lives with dignity. It is a sad reality that many dogs and cats are abandoned, abused or neglected on a daily basis. Some suffer the fate of waiting in a shelter for the right owner and most will not know the true meaning of freedom and love. 

As students, we hope that people’s mindset will change for the better to be more socially accepting of animals. We are also glad that Noah's Ark has made so much difference in the lives of many animals that have pass through the gates of the sanctuary. We will definitely be back at Noah's Ark to help out!

Contributed by:  Dennis,Esther,YuLin and the rest of group!