CTVT

During the launch of our mobile clinic in Thika, our vets carried out a check-up on every animal brought to them.

Unfortunately, they discovered a number of pets suffering from an infectious cancer called CTVT.

While CTVT is a common disease in dogs worldwide, it is much more prevalent in countries where dogs are allowed to roam and mate freely. The disease was eradicated in the UK in the twentieth century when the country introduced dog control laws.

What exactly is CTVT?

Canine transmissible venereal tumour (CTVT), or Stickers sarcoma, is a non-fatal, infectious cancer that affects dogs of any age or breed, but mostly affects mixed-breeds that are ‘intact’, ie, that have not been spayed or neutered.

It cannot be transferred to humans.

How is CTVT spread?

CTVT is spread by the transfer of living cancer cells usually during mating, but it can also be transferred by licking or sniffing between animals, ie through ‘skin to skin’ contact.

How can CTVT be treated?

If you suspect your dog has CTVT (through excessive licking of the genitals and the presence of cauliflower-like growths around the genitals or mouth) then take it to a vet who will be able to assess whether the tumours are malignant or premalignant. Chemotherapy and anti-cancer drugs are the best treatment, although in some very rare cases non-malignant tumours have disappeared of their own accord.

Domestic dogs can be infected if they come into contact with a dog that has CTVT.

How can you prevent CTVT in your pet?

The easiest way to prevent CTVT in your pet is by sterilising it. This will reduce the likelihood of your pet mating with an infected animal.

If you’d like more information please follow this link.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

Okay supporters – we need you BIG TIME!

VOLUNTEERS needed urgently!

Fundraising (NO funds NO clinic!)

Five volunteers who are needed immediately :

You will be the DRIVER of our Trust’s success! We want super excited and committed people for this area. Attributes required:

Super self driven/ able to work independently
Have a min. of 8 hours per week available for the Trust throughout the period
Can commit fully for at least one year (holidays are allowed :))
Subscribes to ‘commitment to time, promises made, deadlines and punctuality
Team spirit and cooperation
Highly skilled in talking with people, timely reporting and feedback
Preferred (proven) experience/success in at least one of these fields: marketing, sales, communication, fundraising, event organising

Kindly fill the form TNR Trust Volunteer application form and send to admin@tnrtrust.org THIS WEEK. For more info, call Carla 0733739708.

EDUCATION for adults and children (rabies and dog bite prevention, animal welfare/husbandry)

Four volunteers needed to create and /or expand
the design of these programs

These programs are fun, informative and will be used at Mobile Clinic days, schools and adult forums.

The designs should be done within 2 weeks. Further improvements over time. We need a head of the group.

Super self driven/ able to work independently
Have a min. of 8 hours per week available for the Trust for the two weeks
Can commit fully for at least six months ( holidays are allowed :))
Subscribes to ‘commitment to time, promises made, deadlines and punctuality
Team spirit and cooperation
Highly skilled in talking with people, timely reporting and feedback
Preferred (proven) experience/success in at least one of these fields: education (teachers/life coaches), marketing, sales, communication, research
We need one person who can make the displays – graphic Designer/Illustrator/Advertising person

Kindly fill the form TNR Trust Volunteer application form and send to admin@tnrtrust.org THIS WEEK. For more info, call Carla 0733739708.

Young Supporters Extraordinaire!

At the end of last year three animal loving schoolchildren chose to support the TNR Trust by donating the proceeds of the home-made cards during the Zen Kids Business Fair held at Zen Gardens (Read their Business Plan)

Keiya (10), and Sitara (8) Sumaria and Ayana (11) Karena – enlisted the help of some friends and sold cards in aid of the TNR, whilst chanting ‘We love Dogs!’ around the grounds.

Their hard work and persistence not only helped raise the profile of the charity at the fair – they also raised a whopping 47,000 KES in the process!

zen girls on site — Keiya, Sitara and Ayana in action during the Fair

We’d like to say a huge thank you to the girls and the boys “pushing” the sales!

The money will all go towards funding our new Mobile Clinic and our dog and cat vaccination and sterilisation programme.

Hear more from the girls themselves!

And here to hear from the supporting boys!

zen garden kids team — The Team by TNR Mobile Clinic

Five reasons why

Five reasons why Kenya needs a good dog and cat control programme:

How good would it be if Kenya was a rabies free zone? You can help by getting your pet vaccinated against the disease.
It’s sad to see stray, unwanted dogs and cats in poor health. By sterilising your pet – you’re making sure you don’t add to the number of unloved animals roaming Kenya’s streets.
Stray animals don’t mix with Kenya’s unique wildlife or vital livestock. Sterilising your pet will reduce the number of dogs and cats becoming a nuisance.
By adopting stray animals that can be rehomed, you’re preventing them being put to sleep unnecessarily.
A low cost or free animal vaccination and sterilisation programme helps protect everyone in the community and goes a step closer towards ensuring that people and pets in Kenya are safe and healthy.

WORLD RABIES DAY: Educating the future of this country

TNR Trust Karura Education Children Event

Going with the theme for this year’s World Rabies Day that is “Share the Message, Save a Life.” on 21^st September, 2018, TNR Trust in collaboration with Friends of Karura held a half day Kids Event at Karura Forest. The intention of the event was to sensitize school children of the age of 6 years to 14 years old children on the subject rabies. It should be noted 2,000 Kenyans die every year because of rabies

For the event to be more relevant and factual, we invited Fifth Year Veterinary students from the University of Nairobi who took through the children on that particular subject. And a lot of questions came out for the speaker to answer during Q&A time.

It will be important to note some of the interesting questions the students had concerning rabies. The questions included:

Can an infected dog that is pregnant, give birth to puppies that are infected with rabies?
Where did this disease come from?
If a dog has rabies, can it be treated and get healed?
If a dog has rabies, can I kill?
What causes rabies?
How do we vaccinate dogs?
If cats are also infected with

These and many other questions were asked by the students during the talk and our able tutor of the day Rashid Ocholla did a great job in using very simple language to make the students understand what is rabies, symptoms if bitten and how to prevent rabies infection and spread.

Being a children event, we had stuffed toys of dogs, stethoscopes and Dr’s coat, empty syringes and a digital weighing scale, where they imitated being Vet Doctors, with the help of the vet students, they were shown how to vaccinate a dog and where exactly. It was real fun for the students.

With the sponsorship from Swedish Society, we had prepared colouring booklets with drawings showing how to take care and treat our dogs and crayons for the students, which we gave them to colour and take home.

Being an education event, Swahili Rabies posters were given to all the students and their teachers to take home to their parents and neighbours. The teachers and the students were very happy for learning much about rabies and how it can be prevented.

Rabies: What is it?

In light of World Rabies Day on 28 September, we will dedicate this week’s post to Rabies: The facts, the figures, how to prevent it and our goals.

WHAT IS RABIES

Rabies is a viral disease that is nearly always fatal. Infected dogs cause more than 99% of rabies cases in humans.

In Kenya approximately 2,000 humans die from the disease annually, 40% of these are children under 15. In rural populations, this figure is 95% for children under 15. Additionally, a significant number of livestock, pets and wildlife die from rabies every year.

TNR Trust doing vaccinations in Kiambu County: This little girl used to be scared of dogs. Thanks to her brother and her furry friend, she became best friends with a dog!

Rabies is a disease that is 100% preventable through vaccination. The Kenyan Ministry of
Agriculture, Livestock & Fisheries together with the World Health Organization, have started a program to eliminate the disease through:
▪ Mass dog vaccinations
▪ Educating the public

RABIES IN PEOPLE

Rabies mainly affects people in poor rural communities. People get the disease from the saliva of an animal that is infected. For example, if an infected dog bites or licks a human, that person can get rabies if the skin is broken and the saliva of the dog enters the person’s body. If the skin is not broken, the person is less likely to get sick.

Main symptoms of Rabies in Humans:
▪ Pain at the bite site
▪ A general feeling of illness
▪ Fever
▪ Headache
▪ Poor appetite, nausea, vomiting
▪ Muscle aches
▪ Sore throat
▪ Depression

TNR Trust Rabies Vaccination Campaign in Kiambu County

RABIES IN DOGS

Dogs get rabies from the bite of any animal that has rabies. Infected dogs often display clear behaviour changes: friendly animals may become shy or irritable, whereas, aggressive animals may become affectionate and docile. However if you do not know a dog it might be difficult to tell whether he is showing signs of rabies.

Main symptoms of Rabies in Dogs:
▪ Constant licking of bite site
▪ Jaw is dropped
▪ Inability to swallow, hydrophobia (extreme or irrational fear of water)
▪ Change in tone of bark
▪ Disorientation
▪ Seizures, paralysis
▪ Excessive foam at the mouth

How can a dog become an effective Guard Dog?

Let’s be realistic and not expect our dogs to shield us from armed thieves. The primary use of a guard dog is to bark when strangers are around and alert you so you can take action.

What NOT to do

First of all, it is ILLEGAL to keep a dog permanently chained or confined in a box.

A dog’s natural behaviour is to have periods of activity and rest throughout the day and night, just like humans do. A dog will sleep a certain amount of time and will then want to run and play, investigate the perimeters of his territory and mark his boundaries. If there are strangers, he sounds a warning by barking. He will also react to intruders who cross his marked boundaries, even if he is resting!

Just like people, dogs are mammals that feel a range of emotions, such as happiness, sadness, pain, fear and anger. They suffer when mistreated, sick or imprisoned.

What to do

To have an effective guard dog, his natural instincts must be respected and nurtured. Here’s how:

Make Friends
Get to know your guard dog, play with him and feed him, so that he will form a bond with you and recognize he is a member of your pack.
Allow him to roam the Compound
He will be able to mark his territory and get some exercise that will avoid boredom, depression and unpredictable behavior.
Give him Company
If you can afford it, keep more than one dog. He will have company when you are not around, which is important for a dog, as they are pack animals.
Satisfy his Essential Needs
Make sure he has all the basics he needs to be happy and healthy: sufficient food,fresh water and a proper sized shelter that keeps out the rain and the cold and allows for a toilet area away from his bed; just like humans, dogs hate soiling their sleeping area so keep his shelter clean at all times.

Category: Education