WITH New South Wales impacted by recent floods, many across the country are doing their part to help, including two of the Shire\u2019s horse veterinarians.<\/p>\n
Doctors Jade Janssens and Clara Zalabardo from Golden Plains Equine headed north from Thursday, 17 March to Monday, 21 March, where they lent their care to horses and other large animals affected by the deluge.<\/p>\n
The pair were able to travel to NSW coast via a support initiative by Vets For Compassion, who provided them with flights, supplies and accommodation.<\/p>\n
Dr Janssens heard about the non-profit\u2019s volunteer drive from a fellow vet and said the decision to lend a hand was a \u201cspontaneous\u201d one.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe contacted me on the Monday before we actually left, and said they were really desperate for large animal vets,\u201d Dr Janssens said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe kind of knew from pictures of friends who live up there what it would look like, but when we got there, it was just crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n
During their mornings and evenings, their work was based out of a triage at Bangalow Showgrounds, where they worked with a core team of five people to deliver aid.<\/p>\n
Other volunteers would come and go, and Dr Janssens and Dr Zalabardo spent much of their time travelling to remote properties across the state as part of a mobile veterinary team.<\/p>\n
The pair travelled to places like Lismore and Coraki and as far inland as Fairy Hill and Leeville.<\/p>\n
Dr Zalabardo said every day was filled with \u201ccrazy stories\u201d of both the devastation and what the community was doing to keep their animals safe.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne place we went to, they put their horse on the trailer of a ute just to keep them dry. Other horses were found on a bridge that their owner had to swim them across to,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe went to one farm where it always floods in the lower grounds but the house is on a hill, so it\u2019d never had any water before.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut it actually flooded, and two days in, they got to the rest of their property and found one of their ponies dead halfway up a tree, and horses don\u2019t climb.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pair would treat horses mostly for general wounds and pneumonia contracted from swallowing the flood waters.<\/p>\n
While they were there for four days, they said the core team was emotionally and physically exhausted throughout their time.<\/p>\n
Dr Janssens said that while not wanting to take work away from the local veterinarians, they both would return if given the opportunity.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were a little overwhelmed by the fact that we were leaving these vets with all this work still to do, even though they were so grateful,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou kind of start realising how big it is and that, although horses survived the floods, they\u2019re still not healthy, and they still need all the help they can get.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WITH New South Wales impacted by recent floods, many across the country are doing their part to help, including two of the Shire\u2019s horse veterinarians. Doctors Jade Janssens and Clara Zalabardo from Golden Plains Equine headed north from Thursday, 17 March to Monday, 21 March, where they lent their care to horses and other large […]<\/p>\n