Veterinary care a priority for Afghan families

KUNAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan –  The waiting room was a long line beside the road, there were no magazines, and the patients did not seem thrilled with the promise of free health care. And many of the patients complained loudly as they were secured into pens for their shots.

Their owners, on the other hand, appeared satisfied. 

Residents arrived continuously at the Shamir Kowt mosque in eastern Afghanistan’s Kunar province throughout the morning of Feb. 10, bringing with them more than 900 animals – including cattle, goats and sheep.  

The turnout was the largest of nearly a dozen Veterinary Inoculation Training Operations held since November throughout the province by members of the Afghan Veterinary Association and International Security Assistance Forces.

Organizers previously referred to the events as Veterinary Civic Action Programs, but said they changed the name to reflect the more active role of Afghan veterinarians.

Members of the U.S. Army’s 40th Infantry Division’s Agri-business Development Team, a California National Guard unit, said most area residents depend on livestock for their livelihood.

“The animal is their checkbook and their savings account,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Max Volte, from Sacramento, Calif., deputy commander for the ADT. “[The animals] are a member of the family and they are relied on.”

On previous missions like this, the ADT would do all the work. Now it is a coordinated effort through the Afghan government, which contracts civilian veterinarians and veterinary technicians to conduct the treatments, Volte said.

In turn, the ADT helps organize the event sites and provides invaluable lessons for the veterinary technicians. This experience helps the technicians become full-time veterinarians, open their own businesses and provide the essential follow-ups needed to maintain the animals’ health. 

“[Afghans] have to sustain this because we can’t,” Volte said.

Mohammed Tahir, a veterinarian who participated in other public vaccination programs in previous years, said the event was good training for him but an even better experience for the public.

“It’s most beneficial for the people,” he said.

According to the ADT, Veterinary Inoculation Training Operations have helped treat more than 4,700 animals since November.

Animals received not just vaccinations, but also nutritional supplements and other medicines. Volte noted all the treatments are endorsed by the Afghan Veterinary Association. Members of the U.S. Department of Agriculture were also on hand to evaluate and grade the animals as they came in.

“They’re getting Cadillac treatment here,” Volte said of the animals. “They’re excellent, excellent vaccines.”

Volte said that since the treatments help the animals, they help boost the wealth of the owners who attend, thereby helping the economy of the area. 

Another benefit was helping bring locals down from the hills to meet with those in the valley, essentially making the event a regional one, he added. 

U.S. Army Soldiers handed out additional livestock food supplements and free radios as residents left with their animals in tow. The day had a few shows for the crowd as well, usually when one of the large water buffalos broke free and had to be wrestled back into place by the ADT Soldiers.

“This is acting as a festival,” Volte said. “It has a spinoff of community building.”