1808. Cambodia Khmao Project

Dear Dr Sing.

Some information about myself and The Khmao Project.

I moved to Cambodia 3 years ago and instantly recognised the plight of animals here, it is extremely difficult not too, regardless of your education and background.

Being a developing country, Cambodia is still coming to terms with genocide, war, widespread corruption and heartbreaking poverty.

Animals in Cambodia that do not have financial value (livestock having monetary value) are not considered companion animals or pets, as they are in western cultures.

They merely exist, and have to fend for themselves for food, shelter, health wise.

Cambodia, being a buddhist country, also does not believe in desexing or an interruption to "the natural order"..therefore euthanasia is also against their beliefs.
Everyday here, you are confronted with neglect on such a massive scale. Hence the need for an animal welfare project here in Siem Reap.

There are Khmer "vets" here, but their level of training is very minimal (if any), this is of great concern, when they can advertise themselves as Veterinarians

The only other western vet is 6 hours away..not great in the case of an emergency!

I also have access to a laboratory at a western run hospital, where I can take various pathology samples in for analysis then I send the results to a vet friend in Australia for diagnosis and a treatment plan. This has proven to be invaluable!

All of the female desexings I refer to Phnom Penh (the capital-6 hours away).

I am lucky that the French vet in Phnom Penh supplies me with antibiotics etc..but these items can prove quite costly as they are imported from France. Obviously the cheaper alternative are available here in Cambodia, but mostly these items are not of great quality,(also are "copy medications, non generic) and have been stored in the correct manner and therefore lose their effectiveness. I try to go to Bangkok as much as possible, (to source anesthetics in particular) but sometimes this is difficult.

About The Khmao Project...

The project is in its infancy stages at the moment. Currently we are treating a small amount of local/stray dogs and cats for various conditions, offering vaccinations, general health care and re homing them to expats once they are healthy.

The plan is to (once we have the appropriate funding) to open a facility with a veterinary clinic,(proceeds of this go back into the project) kennels to house stray dogs and cats, offer desexing, vaccinations, health care. Eventually we would like to have a mobile clinic to go out to the various provinces in Cambodia and continue to offer free treatment to Cambodians.
Obviously once we have the facilities etc we will be asking for volunteer vets from overseas to come and donate their time. We will also be employing local Khmer staff and training them in animal care and husbandry. Eventually we would also like to offer further sustainable training for Cambodian vets by western trained veterinarians.

This is a massive task and we are hoping to be able to achieve this.
If there are ANY items in the future that you would be able to supply..it would be greatly appreciated!

Please feel free to contact me if you have any queries or questions. Hoping soon to face our Facebook page up and running so we can keep you up to date The Khmao Project, if you wish.












Katie Beattie V.N