Creating long lasting change in China

“Once they learned the skills, once they understood the importance of humane methods of stray animal control; once they understood the importance of animal welfare … they would become compassionate vets and they would be the best stakeholders to change and improve the situation in their own country.” (Pei Su, Founder of ACTAsia)

Train the Trainers program goes remote

We are so proud of the Chinese veterinarians who we have trained through the partnership between ACTAsia and Vets for Compassion, and there is no greater testament to that work than to see those vets display leadership and show commitment to the cause by training other Chinese vets.

Qinghai is a remote and rural area in China, home to more than 5.2 million people and 37 different ethnic nationalities. Not only is it remote, but most of the area is at very high altitudes, over 3500 meters above sea level. This was the location for one of our veterinary training programs.

Just the journey to Qinghai is arduous, not to mention harsh conditions on location, the lack of resources and altitude sickness for most of our team. But putting the challenges of the location aside, the training program attracted more than 30 public veterinarians and government officials from six provinces, which was amazing to see.

What was even more amazing to see was our certified Chinese vet trainers demonstrating the high standards for surgery and recovery that they were trained to do, and prioritizing the welfare of animals. Our dedicated Chinese trainers neutered 26 dogs in just two days as part of the training course and, in their spare time, worked with local vets to demonstrate other surgical methods for companion animals.

To see the program in action, watch the video

For Pei Su, who set up this program for the teams of ACTAsia and Vets for Compassion eight years ago, it is very rewarding to see how far it has come. There are now 15 certified trainers and more than 1,000 trained vets across China. That Chinese vets are now the agents for change in their own country is the realization of what once seemed an ambitious vision.