(AN AUSTRALIAN VET MAKES A DIFFERENCE IN UKRAINE)
October 27, 2023
Hello everyone,
There is something that nearly always gets left behind during hard times or in wartime.
Animals.
Thousands of animals have been brought back to Animal Shelters in Australia because owners can no longer afford to keep them. Most people don’t seem to think about the long-term costs of keeping an animal, and just assume it will all work out in the end. The animal seemed like a good idea during the pandemic, but now is an expense that many Australians can no longer carry.
In wartime, animals are thought of last or not at all. That’s why in war-torn areas, like Ukraine, animals have been abandoned and are now just roaming the streets or are left chained to a post. Some have terrible injuries: gunshot wounds, broken bones, and are malnourished.
One Australian vet is now making a difference to those animals’ lives.
Dr. Lachlan Campbell, a Sunshine Coast vet has flown to Ukraine on two occasions to assist the animals there. Early in October, on his second visit, he travelled to Kramatorsk – less than an hour drive from Bakhmut. Whilst there, he has treated animals and built shelters for pets displaced by the war in preparation for winter.
He teamed up with the British animal charity, Nowzad, and worked with a team of four (from dawn to dusk) to build animal shelters. He commented that the “shelters we built are enough to house 80 dogs in warmth and more comfort – and off chains – which some have been on for up to four years”. He and his team provided quality food, parasite preventatives, and toys for the animals. Dr. Campbell pointed out the building materials for the shelters were transported all the way from the UK by semi-trailer.
He reported that air raid sirens sounded as frequently as six to eight times a day. He said he also wore body armour and helmets if they were required. He had some near misses with a missile hitting within metres of the shelter Dr Campbell had been building.
During his most recent trip, Dr Campbell vaccinated, microchipped, and treated around 100 cats and dogs for diseases.
In Australia, Dr. Campbell works as a veterinarian at Vets Central on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland.
Nowzad opened its first animal clinic in Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2007, and have since opened an additional donkey/horse sanctuary in Afghanistan.
Market Update
We are in correction mode.
If we get a very good break of 4100 on the S&P, we could fall to 3800.
There is still a chance we could rally in November/December.
In other news
The Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, is in the U.S. on a State visit to the White House. Australia’s relationship with China was one of the talking points. Albanese’s State visit is intended to deepen an alliance that’s increasingly viewed as a critical counterweight to China’s influence in the Pacific. It’s the ninth and most high-profile meeting between the two leaders, which is intended to facilitate closer ties on climate change, technology, and national security. The United States also plans to provide nuclear-powered submarines to Australia in the coming years, part of a collaboration with the United Kingdom.
The Australian government is sending military aircraft and defence personnel to the Middle East to be on standby in the event the situation “gets worse”.
Australian fighter jets and defense personnel arrive in The Middle East.
Happy weekend to you all.
Cheers,
Jacquie
