Wednesday evening, 7:00PM. I had class with the boys this morning from 9:00AM, until 11:30AM. We studied the FAMACHA system, which is the new rave in the US as a means of determining when to deworm a sheep and goat. The theory is that there are many sheep who are parasite resistant, and don't need deworming as often as others. Over-deworming leads to the parasites developing a resistence or a tolerance to the dewormers that we use, and we don't want to raise generations of super-smart worms. We had been doing the eye exams in the mountains, but I had not had a chance to show them the cards that I had brought along to help them to visually verify what we had seen in the field. Thanks, Holly. We then spent the balance of the morning talking about Economics of Business, and how this can apply to any business. You know, the cost of your goods, cost of holding inventory, taxes, interest, profit, etc. there was more to this, but you get the picture. Titus then took Michael and I down-town for some souvineer shooping. We had to stop off at another staff members house for me to start another IV on Ute, who was very brave. The only butterfly cath that I could fine was a 19ga (Yes, 19 ga.) and it was HUGE!! I did manage to start the drip, which was Lactated Ringers and she had stopped vomiting later this evening. Health care is essentially a joke here, especially if they have more confidence in a vet starting IV fluids!
The first photo is a recheck of my very first fistulous withers/saddle sore. You will notice, if you blow it up, that they branded/burned/pin-fired the wound because they didn't trust our medicine to work. (This is the same village where we went back to see the poisoned calf who was up and they came out in force to praise us!!) Same place, same time, different family. As I said, generations of tradition and belief won't go away overnight. I can imagine that was a little bit painful for the horse, since it is equivalent to hot branding. I will say, however, that the wound looked MUCH better. Was that our intervention, or theirs?? The next photo is a horse who was kicked in the shoulder last year and it still limps. The owner was upset that he was unable to work the horse during this season, and he lost money. He KNEW that a shot of Penicillen would cure it. Problem is, there was massive scar tissue around the shoulder joint and range of motion has been severely restricted. I tried to explain that the shoulder was likely not so painful anymore, but is now mechanically mal-functioning, but I don't think they believed me, especially since I would not yield and give the injection. I know that I would have given the PPG, and they would have declared my medicine a failure. Well, guess what, their medicine failed too!!
In the midst of this sort of everyday fact, I will always remember the animals. Dr Phil Sponenberg, my favorite vet teacher, mentor,
and leader of the vet campus Christian Veterinary Fellowship, is a world renowned expert on breeds and colors or animals. I had promised him that I would take scads of photos of the animals that I encountered and I sure have. I know we are there to provide direct services, but who can resist the opportunity to grab up a cuddly little lamb?? I have seen the Gujjar women tenderly carry these creatures wrapped in their outer garments during a pouring rain, or bring them into their tents when they needed special care. I make no apologies for it. Even after 22 years of practice, I still get a giggle out of the animals that I am privileged to treat. None of us will ever get it 100% correct all the time, but none of us at CVC will lack for trying. That is what I am most proud of with the doctors and staff back home. They give 100%, and I never doubt their committment. Don't forget that they are picking up ALL my work time and emergency time while I have been gone. I have never been away from the clinic or my wife for more than 2 1/2 weeks!! 3 weeks is a first for both, and I thank God that they have enabled me to do this work. (Maybe a month next year? - not from you Nan, but from the clinic! (: :)!.I also haven't forgotten to have fun.! I don't remember what was said in the last photo, in fact, I think they were making fun of me for something that I said. No matter, the Gujjar will laugh along, even if they don't know the joke. I have been strikingly surprised that I could get NO children to sing for a video, Lee Lee. If there is music, it is some quiet humming, but I have not seen a single musical instrument on the mountain, or in the homes. The gentleman in green is Gulzar, the Gujjar man who hears and speaks the best English. He can read Urdu, but he cannot write!! He is very bright, and a tremendous asset to his village. As a boy, he came to these mountains with his family's livestock, and through a twist of fate, met Titus and began teaching him the language, then on to full-time employment. The possibilities for this effort is endless. CVM is already planning to send another team this fall to help out, and I am communicating with the leadership on how to prepare them. Hopefully, they will bring another blessing to this part of the world. What was especially uplifting to me, was to hear these Muslim men pray to God for Ute, for her healing and well being. So, here we are, 2 men praying in English, 4 men praying in Urdu, all praying to the same God. It really isn't rocket science here folks. HE listens if our prayers are genuine, and my prayer is for this group to see the Truth! More tomorrow. BLN
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