Located in the Netherland Antilles, St.Eustatius is a small Caribbean island roughly two miles wide and about seven miles long. Over the years, the islands inhabitants have allowed their animals to roam freely. This in turn has also allowed them to reproduce unabated. Such a scenario has come to characterize the “donkey problem” that the island now faces – what to do about the roaming donkey population that has accumulated, especially in a location where the carrying capacity is very limited. With failed attempts to ship them elsewhere and with inhabitants against euthanasia, the ministry of agriculture reached out to World Vets for assistance.
We have answered their call. This month World Vets has a team in St. Eustatius (also referred to as Statia) where they are providing a humane solution for the roaming donkey population. Our team is operating a catch, castrate and release program for the island’s donkeys. Additionally, each donkey caught will receive a complete health exam as well as any treatments needed. While on the island, our team has also reached out to the cat and dog population and performed one hundred sterilization surgeries and health consultations.
Our team, in collaboration with the the ministry of agriculture, is making veterinary aid possible for the animals of St. Eustatius. More importantly, we are facilitating a much greater objective, that of helping restore the ecological balance and overall health for all the inhabitants of the island. All World Vets veterinary services are provided at no cost.
World Vets was recently in the Dominican Republic where we provided a large scale sterilization campaign for the island’s animals. Our team worked in collaboration with a great local organization Asociación de Amigos por los Animales de Sosúa (AAAS). Together we operated a three day clinic in the coastal community of Sosúa Abajo.