OP Welfare, Wellness and Community Engagement

13/03/2022

This is a great source of insight for mental well-being.

With the right tools everyone has the power to be their own healer. About The Holistic Psychologist. What's on my mind?

28/12/2021

Mental well-being is so important for anybody and can be especially challenging in the helping professions, of which veterinary practice is one. Yet we often forget the many factors that can influence mental health and that addressing mental illness requires a holistic approach. This infographic is quite thought-provoking. Thinking of community engagement activities, for example, as part of the mental health toolkit, makes so much sense - being involved in empowering others is almost automatically self-empowering.

While food security may not be something the average veterinary professional struggles with, several of our students do. If the basic needs of our students are not being addressed, we are setting them up for failure, both academically and in terms of personal well-being. If on top of this, mental illness and mental care are still being stigmatised (which is unfortunately the case, even within the profession itself), how on earth can we expect our young professionals (and indeed mature ones too) to function optimally in their work? It seems to me that a lot of what we do to address mental well-being, focuses on symptoms of the problem and not the underlying issues.

15/10/2021

Listen to this interview with Dr Kresen Pillay as he shares what it's like to be a vet and how he has managed the ups and downs of professional life! Much wisdom here!

podcast

05/08/2021

The conference of the International Society for Applied Ethology has some really captivating talks. Here are some slides from Prof Bas Rodenburg’s plenary talk on “Back to the future: moving towards more natural animal production systems, supported by 21st century technology“. The use of sensors (e.g. in ear tags) and computer vision tools can be applied to individual animals as well as groups of animals to identify welfare issues early on so that problems can be addressed timeously. It’s good to see that the intuitive trend away from highly intensified systems is being supported by scientific evidence. This will help address welfare issues such as feather pecking in hens and tail biting in pigs.

04/08/2021

How can we achieve positive animal welfare (as opposed to mere minimisation of suffering) in low-income countries? https://twitter.com/basrodenburg/status/1422909697166880777?s=21

14/06/2021

As a veterinarian, the export of live animals by sea over large distances concerns me greatly. There is ample objective evidence that this practice is harmful to the animals that are confined in huge numbers in small spaces with inadequate ventilation in unhygienic conditions without proper veterinary care. The practice is currently allowed in the interests of trade, with no regard to the well-being of the animals.

https://fb.watch/67uvGGYKDs/

13/12/2020

A tragic yet classical local example of the link between violence to humans and violence to animals. What we can we do individually and collectively to enhance empathy and compassion in this world?

29/09/2020

Interesting evidence-based information about raw diets for dogs.